by IMAMATEOFJOVSKY »
06 Sep 2008 12:10
A good article in the Irish Press regarding Hunt- it sdesnt actually say who is writng it - but the clues are there was at Man Utd, thought they were going to sign for Tettenham and ended up at Villa -
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You'd like to believe that Stephen Hunt is a good lad who, just momentarily, lost the plot this week. You'd like to hope that, after mature reflection, he realised how the gist of his argument against Reading FC could actually become a mission statement for those who believe that professional football desperately needs a reality check.
I found Stephen's argument that Reading could have helped him out a little "to benefit my career" by facilitating a move to Everton simply breathtaking. Maybe it's an age thing, but when I hear a guy on a five-figure weekly salary say "it would have been nice to be rewarded,'' I'm inclined to ask exactly what planet he's been living on.
I like Hunt as a player. He looks honest and doesn't shirk a tackle. And I know full well how frustrating it can be when you think you're on the brink of a big transfer move only to find yourself then sitting next to a silent telephone.
It happened me almost 20 years ago when Alex Ferguson began to make it clear that I had no future at Manchester United. I didn't want to leave Old Trafford but my spirits lifted when Terry Venables made a move to bring me to Tottenham.
I remember getting a train down to London to meet him. I had no agent and no financial adviser. It was just me and a few key figures in my head. As it happened, our priorities proved a little different.
Spurs had just signed Paul Gascoigne and there wasn't a whole lot left in the pot. I was 29 and looking for security.
"The money's fine," I said. "I just need a house as well."
"No problem, we'll get you a nice place to rent," said Terry.
"Em, that's not really what I mean," I murmured.
"Sorry?"
"I was kind of hoping you might throw a house into the deal."
Venables looked at me as if I'd dribble running down my chin. And he assured me that Spurs weren't in the business of throwing in London real estate as a transfer bonus. Not long after that, I signed for Aston Villa, even though they didn't put me on the property ladder in Birmingham either.
It all seems so quaint and innocent when I recall it now. I look at the strange machinations that brought Robinho to Manchester City this week on a salary four times what he was getting at Real Madrid. I look at Dimitar Berbatov essentially sulking his way into a dream move to Manchester United.
And I half understand why a guy like Stephen Hunt might lose a sense of perspective.
It's just that nothing he said can possibly have made sense to a Reading supporter. This, I believe, is a symptom of living in the bubble world. It changes people. I've seen it happen the best of guys. Players are becoming alienated from reality, never mind from the supporters who buy replica shirts or pay for season tickets. They're living in a cocoon.
I detected a very significant difference in the attitudes of Hunt and Kevin Doyle this week. Hearing both of them on radio, Doyle was much more philosophical. He, too, looked set to leave Reading, with both Aston Villa and Spurs, reputedly, interested.
But he seemed awake to the idea that he had been part of a side relegated from the Premier League too. And that, as such, maybe he had some responsibility to try to get them back up now.
Very little of what Hunt said could possibly make sense to a supporter. You think of what Reading have invested in his career. Does none of that count for anything? Surely the argument should have been the other way round. What do you owe the club that pays your wages?
Players are earning absolute fortunes today. Some of them get in one week what supporters earn in a year. So you're in a team that doesn't perform and ends up getting relegated. And you're "disappointed" that the club doesn't then prioritise your personal ambitions?
Then again, what can we expect when Sepp Blatter talks about Ronaldo and 'slavery' in the same sentence? The game is in a mess because of the people wielding power in it. People like Blatter, bored billionaires and agents. 'Percentage' is the magic word for too many.
I know people could throw plenty of dirt in my direction, given some of the more notorious episodes of my career. And that's fair enough. But I just feel that money is driving a wedge between players and the public now.
I look at today's footballers, heads down, ipods on, everything about them screaming 'I don't want to know!' It's a shield. They don't want people coming up to them. They're just getting so distant. That's fair enough if you're getting off the coach before a game -- because it's time for war then.
I went to Villa Park last year and noticed there's a gate now blocking people getting near the team bus. So kids have to reach through railings to get an autograph. Something's just not right with the game when you see that.
And that's pretty much the environment that spawns the kind of sentiments expressed by Stephen Hunt this week.
but more importantly it reduces the amount of money that a potential investor would need to buy the club.
