England's China crisis

ENGLAND'S tour of China and Hong Kong at the end of May is under review because of the delicate political situation in Taiwan. The Football Association are anxiously monitoring events this weekend in Taiwan, where elections are taking place against a backdrop of threatened Chinese military intervention.

"We are keeping a close watch," the FA's director of public affairs, David Davies, admitted. "I have had contacts with government, but their guidance is that events so far should not preclude us from proceeding."

Should China carry out its threat to invade Taiwan as a response to what it insists are unsanctioned presidential elections, world opinion is likely to insist on sunspension of contact with China. The United States has a large naval presence around the island at present.

England will play in Peking on 23 May, part of a week-long tour that also takes in a game against a Hong Kong XI on 26 May, as preparation for Euro 96, which begins for England at Wembley against Switzerland on 8 June.

If the tour is disrupted it will be yet another setback for Terry Venables, the England coach, who chose the venues ahead of Canada, the US and South Africa. His campaign over the past two years has been disrupted by the cancellation of a match against Germany in Berlin scheduled for Hitler's birthday and the postponement of another against Croatia because of the war in the former Yugoslavia.

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