We hear a lot of complaints these days about "greedy" players etc. For example, Theo Walcott has had a character assassination done on him by Arseblog and others, with insinuations that he doesn't want to sign a contract because he's afraid of competition from AOC, that he's money hungry, arrogant, with ideas above his station etc. And when he gave an interview which sounded somewhat promising, Arseblog spun it to make it seem as if he was non committal about his future.
A similar thing happened with Ashley Cole, and he continues to have opprobrium poured on him for refusing to sign a new contract with us, which we put down to "greed". However, perhaps it's time to go beyond this anti-worker mentality that many football fans of all clubs have and look at the bigger picture. With Cole, the wage being offered was actually too low for a player of his quality. With Walcott, we have no idea why there is a delay in his signing a contract. Maybe the club are messing him about as well, and not giving him a contract that reflects his contributions especially last season?
We seldom look at the board and the money-men when there are contractual disputes such as with Cole, Walcott and many others. Afterall, it is the players who add value to the football "industry", it is they who help attract sponsorship deals for the clubs, that get fans to sign season tickets and win the trophies that increase "brand value". And yet, look at the amount of money being siphoned off by those like Gazidis, PHW, Kroenke and the vast inequality between those who add value (the players) and those who live off the back of the fans and players (the owners and corporate management) becomes clear. Given this, shouldn't we be a bit more understanding when a player threatens to leave the club, rather than immediately branding him "greedy"?
There are interesting comments by Kranjcar about the Modric situation that appeared today:
http://www1.skysports.com/football/n...acks-liar-Levy
And yet, the focus on a lot of blogs and websites is on "greedy" Modric, with little attention being paid to the Chairman/Board who are probably the greediest of any group within football, but who get a free ride from the fans."Levy did everything to protect the interests of the club and make a profit. He has also used lies to deceive the public, which is allowed in business.
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Originally Posted by LDG
