Is Fabregas better than Gerrard? Is David ‘Calamity’ James less butter fingered than Paul ‘complete rubbish’ Robinson? And is Christiano Ronaldo a more fluid dribbler than me after a heavy night on the sauce? Football is a game of heated debate and opinions, but the biggest argument of all, bigger and more passionate than even the pressure cooker mayhem of a Rangers v Celtic derby, is the annual Fifa v Pro Evolution Soccer debate.

But it’s a debate that for once I am not remotely interested in. And that is because in this game I have found footballing contentment. It’s a similar feeling to what Arsenal supporters have enjoyed for the last few years, or what fans of the 1970’s Holland team experienced. It’s that knowledge that you are witnessing a complete football package, you are getting what you always wanted from the beautiful game and that every time you sit down and play you are involved and entertained. Titles and accolades are almost irrelevant and unnecessary so who cares about the other team down the road?

On the options front there is the wealth of choice above and beyond what I have come to expect from this series. In fact if Fifa 08 was a football team its subs bench would be fifty players strong and all of them world class. As well as the quick games and manager modes there is also a simple cut to the chase tournament mode which allows you to take your favourite team and challenge for the Premiership, the FA cup, even the League Cup. And of course all this can be done with foreign teams and their countries equivalent competitions.

Perhaps most intriguing of all is the brand new ability to play as just one player in a team. Although it is bewildering and less connected than the real game it certainly gives an insight into how difficult it is for one man to shine and how positional sense is all important in football.

All of these tweaks and options would be pretty pointless if the core gameplay was Sunday league quality. Thankfully it’s superb and a refined version of what was already a decent engine from last year. Fifa 08 has now evolved into almost a pure and realistic simulation of football, without any ‘arcade’ pretensions but still slick and smooth in its movements and patterns. The pace set here in most games is a sedate one of build up and attrition. It’s a real team effort and defences are rarely profligate when it comes to goals. But everything is balanced. A poor team can still upset a good one with decent defending and direct attack. Conversely a good team can still wallop a poor one with goals from every angle.

This is the definitely the real thing, encompassing all the beautiful (and the ugly) aspects of the game, and if Fifa 08 loses a few fans by being less carefree and “pick up and play”, it will gain many like myself by delivering a refined, custom-built experience. Add to this - the always welcome - properly licensed teams and players and you just about have the total football that Cruyff would be proud of.