It's only a football - or is it?

The World Cup 2010 football, produced by Adidas, has come under scrutiny following comments from big name players about its "weird" behaviour in flight.

Goalkeepers have been quick to criticise the ball, David James (England), Gianluigi Buffon (Italy), Julio Cesar (Brazil) and Iker Casillas (Spain) among the detractors, claiming its movement through the air is unpredictable and that it can suddenly change trajectory.

Mark Schwarzer (Australia) said he struggled with the flight of the ball during his team's 1-0 pre-tournament friendly win over Denmark yesterday.

Some strikers have also expressed concerns despite the alleged movement aiding their shooting attempts. Both Luis Fabiano (Brazil) and Giampaolo Pazzini (Italy) complained about the movement when heading it. However, Mario Gomez (Germany) who has scored with it while playing for his domestic team Bayern Munich, was more positive saying he found it "harder" than conventional balls.

Called "Jabulani", which is Zulu for "to celebrate", the ball is described by its maker as the "roundest yet" and was developed for Adidas by Dr Andy Harland, at Loughborough University's Sports Technology Institute in England.

So, is some of the criticism due to the effects of playing and training at altitude rather than the ball itself? Should we read anything into the fact that players particularly in Germany where Adidas has significant sponsorship say the ball is OK?

Whatever your view, it provides another good talking point...