Benali: Honour coaching alongside Premier League great Denis Irwin this week

IT has been a disappointing week for many of us from England, but one of my real highlights has been the opportunity to work alongside Denis Irwin.

I've been out here with my wife at the Sun Gardens resort, just outside Dubrovnik in Croatia, coaching with Campioni Soccer Academy again.

For the last couple of years, I had been coaching alongside Stuart Pearce, who is a great friend, so there has been a left-back theme developing.

I'd never really known Denis on a personal level before. Obviously, I knew him as a player and played against him many years ago during our careers.

Immediately you think about the teams he was part of at Man United through the 1990s, and the success they enjoyed under Sir Alex Ferguson.

But this was the first time I'd had the chance to spend any meaningful time with Denis, and both he and his wife, Jackie, have been great company.

It's been fascinating hearing his memories, the players he played alongside and the managers he worked under - there are some incredible stories.

There were always maybe bigger names in those Man United teams, but he was one of the first on the teamsheet because of how reliable he was.

You knew exactly what you were going to get from Denis Irwin. He was a fantastic footballer, someone who could defend, get forward, and score goals.

When you look back at the number of trophies he won, his achievements are incredible, and he played until he was around 39 before he retired.

That tells you everything about his professionalism and quality, and having spent time with him this week, I've found him to be a really nice guy as well.

The coaching itself has been great fun. We've been working with up to 30 youngsters every day this week, and hopefully they've learned something.

It's been incredibly hot here in Croatia. Tough when you've got two hours of football to get through each day, but the youngsters have been brilliant.

We made sure there were plenty of hydration breaks, and we sold it to them as just like playing in the World Cup, minus the air-conditioning and TV adverts.

A lot of the coaching was World Cup-themed. On the day of the England game, we split the youngsters into England and Argentina teams and staged our own mini semi-final.

And I enjoyed getting stuck in for a few minutes during a parents' game we had later in the week. The whole resort here has really embraced the World Cup.

I've had the chance to spend time with some lovely people, to work with some fantastic youngsters and share stories with one of the great full-backs of his generation.

We should probably talk about England's semi-final against Argentina. The hotel put up big screens around the resort, and there was a brilliant atmosphere.

It was probably difficult to make a full judgement on the game in such a busy environment, but there was no disguising the disappointment at the outcome.

I haven't followed too much of the fallout since because I've been busy out here, but I was very disappointed England weren't able to reach the final.

It is tough to take the number of times we have got into these positions and not gotten over the line, and I feel deeply for those players who have gotten so close.

But sport moves on quickly, and club football returns to the south coast today with Saints at Eastleigh, and it's also T20 Finals Day at Edgbaston.

Unfortunately, we'll be travelling home while it's taking place, but I'll certainly be following it closely. Hampshire have qualified again, which is fantastic.

However, Northamptonshire are there as well, and that's where my son-in-law, Lewis McManus, plays. This isn't the first time they've both made Finals Day.

The Steelbacks reached Finals Day last year before going out in the semi-finals, so I'll admit I've got a bit more of an invested interest in that team now.

Hopefully both Hampshire and Northamptonshire can do well, although family loyalties probably mean I'll be keeping an especially close eye on Lewis!

Then, attention starts to turn back towards the Championship season, pre-season fixtures and what could still be a very interesting few weeks in the transfer market.