Mark Palios - The Terminator

While Birch, who was Chelsea's group chief executive until last month, was a midfielder at Liverpool, Shrewsbury and Chester before returning to his accountancy studies, Palios completed his degree first, before becoming a professional footballer with Tranmere and Crewe.

"It was because of Mark that I joined the Liverpool office of Ernst & Young," said Birch. "We were both from a similar background and we got on well, he was an inspiration to me."

The pair worked together for three years until Palios became a partner of the accountancy firm and moved to Cambridge in 1986.

From there he moved onto PricewaterhouseCoopers and eventually became their head of business regeneration.

"That was a challenging job," said Birch, who still keeps in close contact with his good friend and was his guest at last month's England international against Liechtenstein.

"Essentially Mark was dealing with ailing companies," said Birch. "He had to tell directors some pretty unpalatable facts at times, but that was what he was being paid to do and so he did it unflinchingly."

Experience of "unpalatable facts" and "ailing companies" would have been particularly handy over the past few tumultuous days, but Birch is confident his old mate will have thought things through carefully before coming to the right decision.

"My description of Mark would be the same in his playing and his business career," he said. "A totally honest individual with great integrity.

"As in sport, in life. As a player he was dogged. He played in central midfield and was not afraid of a challenge or a confrontation if it came along. He could kick if he felt the need.

"What we have always had in common was a love of the game, it's in our blood. We both took pay cuts to come back into the sport and we both felt we had some unfinished business here."

A measure of Palios's resilience was that when he had a double cardiac arrest playing football a couple of years ago, he vowed he would put the boots on again once he had recovered.

Now, at 51, he still turns out as regularly as he can for his Sunday morning team and they tell me he is as fit as a butcher's dog.

Too often in the past the FA, the guardians of our beloved game, have prevaricated, but not so this time.

Palios had come in for criticism over the past couple of days for not making a public appearance, but last night, when he was ready, he was up on the podium, statement in hand.

"He will tell it as he sees it," said Birch. "You won't get any spin from him. He will have thought this problem through logically, consulted all the right people.

"The FA can rely on him. He will make the right call, I am sure of that."

There are few outside a section of Manchester who believe Palios has made the wrong call this time and, if Birch is right, he will continue on his unswerving way when he has explored all the angles and still believes he is right.

Back in the summer, when Palios began at the FA, he laid down a few prophetic markers.

"The FA's disciplinary process," he said, "is fundamental to everything that the governing body of the game stands for. I recognised this from my first day at Soho Square and events since have only strengthened my belief.

"My aim is to ensure the highest standards of fairness and transparency. It's what clubs, players and supporters have every right to expect."

How right he is.