What about the players who infamously left us?
What about the players who infamously left us?
When has Wenger or the club tried to blame players for wanting to leave? Classy as always, the club have allowed them to leave with as little fuss as possible. A little too classy if you ask me.Originally Posted by Marc Overmars
Same applies in my book. If we have a player on our hands that doesn't want to sign a new deal, it's up to the club to convince him to stay or let him go.
I've said the same concerning Theo and even RVP.
Agreed. I didn't blame van persie for wanting to leave - even to man utd. I was a bit bitter that we didn't keep him for the extra year though. But that was Arsenal's fault. Potentially title we missed out on - he was by far the best player in the league at that point.
Anyway there are two different things here. The fans, and those who are more closely associated with the club. As a club, ex-players etc. have tried to portray Sterling as a disloyal little shit. Wenger and the Arsenal have never had a bad word to say about our players (even after they've left). The club can't control what fans sing though and even then Wenger usually calls for respect to be shown.
That said, if I was sterling I would stay at Liverpool. Not sure what the hurry to move is. He's only 20 and is progressing well at Liverpool.
That's right, there are two relationships. With the club and with the fans. Club vs player is business. On the other hand fans vs player is... business. It should have some sort of consideration for the fans but it doesn't. Football isn't like that any more. Which is a very bad thing. Only a few clubs can realistically challenge for the the title, only a few can win the CL. These clubs are buying up all the talent. Of course they are, it makes sense for them. But don't expect any serious competition in the league if this is accepted without complaint. The current arrangement is great for the player, great for the agent, usually okay for the club as they tend to win either way unless they fuck things up. Terrible for the fans, devoid of any sort of payback for their loyalty and personal investment. Players are signing deals with no intention of staying, or letting deals run down so they get maximum financial benefit from a freebie move - we're talking one wheelbarrow of cash in comparison to a larger wheelbarrow of cash, pure greed. And it's the norm. The reality of it can be understood, but there's no point asking fans to accept it without complaint. The reaction of the fans is probably the last barrier between players setting up their own fucking auctions in public. I think it's healthy for the game when the fans give the players a seriously hard time. It preserves that 1% of the old game we are still clinging to. No harm in that.
Basically, speaking as a fan Sterling is a huge cunt as far as I'm concerned.
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I wouldn't go as far as Alan Davis and say I feel any sympathy for Sterling (well apart from his murdered father part - didn't know about that). He's a PL footballer, getting paid handsomely already and probably in line to receive another bumper contract soon once he leaves Liverpool.
However I do certainly agree with how awful Liverpool have handled things. The really stupid thing is why they didn't attempt to lock down Sterling to another contract the previous year when he really broke through. Liverpool were close to winning the title, he was playing with top players, the atmosphere was favourable and in his own words, he would have signed without question then.
We've made the odd flub in the past but we always now lock talented young players down when they emerge. Bellerin and Coquelin just got new deals and the likes of The Ox and Ramsey got new ones last year. It's how you make them feel valuable to the club and ensure that you do get top dollar if they were inclined to leave.
Got a feeling it links to my previous point about FSG being tight gits and wanting to keep Sterling on low (relative) wages for another year instead of giving him the wages he really should have deserved for as Rodgers put it, "the best young player in Europe". And now the silly thing is they probably will end up losing a lot more when he leaves on a free than from the saving in wages.
L'Equipe are reporting that PSG have pulled out of the Cech deal as he's close to signing for us (Arsenal).
Is Sterling that good? From his performances this season I wouldn't rate him as top quality. Still very raw, highly likely to make the wrong decision when he's on the ball. He had a good season in the company of Suarez and Sturridge, but he hasn't taken the lead with those two gone. Maybe that's why he's so keen to move? Does he know himself that the hype far outstrips his talent?
Do we know Liverpool didn't try and lock him down? Maybe they did. He has that horrendous agent in tow. He's evidently infected the player with all sorts of ideas to the extent Sterling seems much more focused on where he plays and the cash he'll get rather than putting in performances on the pitch. He's been shit for England too. Is that it for him, one season and then everything blown? Can he come back from this and get down to playing football?
I'd say he's a huge risk for anyone that signs him unless they are the chavs or the gypos where it's common to have super expensive players sitting it out on the bench.
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Diaby released.
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