Better Safe Than Sorry!

By Zain Alvi | 30th June 2009

Better Safe Than Sorry! | read this item

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th14 When I came across this morning’s comments provided by the agent of Barcelona ace Samuel Eto’o, the first word that came to my mind was diplomatic. Mr. Mesalles, who has been instrumental in promoting Eto’o to interested parties ever since Barca’s treble-winning season came to an end, stated that the Cameroon international preferred to see out the one year that is left on his Barcelona contract. However, to keep things exciting, he also stated that his client would be “delighted” to move to Manchester City.

A lot of us who require that our morning dose of football news be as strong as our coffee can obviously care less about such ambiguous press conferences, as they hardly provide any spice to an on-going transfer saga. We would much rather hear Eto’o walk out on Barca, or, even better, reject City’s financially astounding terms to stay at Camp Nou. However, judging by past experience, I feel that everyone is better off when a player (or his agent) plays it safe until an impending decision regarding the future has been finalized.

Perhaps guys like Eto’o, and his fellow La Liga superstar David Villa, have learned from some of their fellow football stars that it is extremely important to remain firmly grounded during high-profile transfer talks. This way, they can almost guarantee themselves no hard feelings from either party once a final decision has been announced.

Some of their colleagues in the past, however, took the opposite route and paid the price for shockingly parting ways with their former clubs. The classic example of such a case in recent memory is that of Thierry Henry. The former Arsenal superstar continued to reject any approaches from Barcelona until one fine day, when he suddenly announced his departure from the Emirates.

Was it shocking and unreasonable that Henry left a transitional Arsenal squad to play for a star-studded Barcelona side? Even as one of the most passionate supporters of Arsenal, I respond to that question with a strong NO. I would say it was practical, and not selfish, for Henry to look out for his interests as time was quickly running out on his injury-prone career. That being said, Henry lost a great deal of respect from me just because of the manner in which he departed.

Following Arsenal’s 2-1 defeat to Barcelona in Paris in the Champions League Final of 2006, Henry couldn’t control his emotions, and as a result it seemed he became more close to the Arsenal family than he had ever been. I am sure that almost every Arsenal and Barcelona fan remembers the moment when he openly criticized Barcelona for an overreliance on Swedish legend Henrik Larsson. He went on to rate the performances of Barcelona’s core team as “mediocre” and subsequently signed a new Arsenal contract, claiming that he wanted to remain at Arsenal for the rest of his career.

Barely a year later, Henry was unveiled as Barcelona’s latest superstar. Obviously, feelings of betrayal ran rampant among the Arsenal faithful because none of us could see the hot and spicy news of Henry’s transfer coming our way before it actually did. If he had to move to Barcelona in that manner, then was better off never signing that career-long contract with the club. In short, Henry did not play it safe, and I feel that has hindered his legacy at the club.

Another such example, which is certainly more mild, is that of Kaka’s transfer to Real Madrid a few weeks ago. While we will always be given the impression that Kaka’s sale was Milan’s way of raising funds, I believe the transfer had a lot to do with the player’s hidden desire to represent Real Madrid. The way I see it, Kaka always professed an undying love for Milan in the media and on multiple occasions, he was heard expressing his desire to captain Milan. Famous quotes such as “I want to grow old with Milan” are definitely unforgettable.

Well, if that was the case, then I am sure that Milan could have offloaded other wanted players like Alexander Pato and Andrea Pirlo rather than selling their talismanic playmaker. Of course, we can derive that Kaka’s unspoken desire to leave for the Bernabeu played a crucial part in the transfer process. I am sure the Rossoneri fans would have felt better about the whole issue had Kaka prepared them for his exit by giving into the speculation, at least on one or two occasions.

The lession here is obviously not to accuse classy players like Kaka and Thierry Henry for inappropriate behavior, or an incorrect attitude. It’s just that handling the situation by playing it a little more safe could have done the trick. I would go as far as praising Cristiano Ronaldo for at least always hinting that Madrid was his eventual destination, not Manchester. Ronaldo may not be cheered by the United faithful for moving to Real Madrid, but then again, he did play it safe, which makes it very difficult to accuse him. Hence the lesson that it’s better safe than sorry!

Do you agree with Zain or wish for more player loyalty across the board? Have your say below!