Keane blasts WAG Culture
Is the Sunderland boss right? Do outside influences dictate the ‘right’ career move?
With his side establishing themselves as more than just relegation battlers this season, Sunderland boss Roy Keane has already launched his first tirade as a Premiership manager.
Renowned for his sharp tongue WAG culture has become the latest topic for a Keane outburst. However credible his remarks, the latest controversial rant by Keane is not out of character with his previous controversial murmurings.
The player who most famously dubbed United’s silent Old Trafford crowd as ‘prawn sandwich’ brigade and also launched a scathing attacking on his former manager and current chairman Niall Quinn during the 2002 has spoken out at the apparent ‘greed’ and ‘weakness’ amongst current players. Stating that footballing decisions are now frequently dictated by those not involved in football the Irishman admitted that he has struggled to attract several of his ‘top targets’ to the club, because his recently promoted Sunderland side are not in a ‘desirable’ area geographically.
“I find it a bit of a surprise that geography seems to play such a big part, or that players let their wives decide” said Keane,
“We have had a player this summer who didn’t even ring us back because his wife wanted to move to London. He didn’t even have the courtesy to pick up the phone. And shopping was mentioned. If someone doesn’t want to come to Sunderland then that’s all well and good, but if they don’t want to come to Sunderland because their wife wants to go shopping in London then that’s a sad state of affairs.”
Several managers joined Keane in speaking out about their difficulties of attracting players to their clubs, but is it simply because of their location or is it really because people see a move to teams outside the ‘top’ clubs, as a risk not worth taking?
The Sunderland manager seems to believe that the location of a club has a massive impact on the kind of player it can attract,
“If there is nothing to do then find something, because people who are bored are boring. It is nothing to do with the shops; football has got to be the priority. I can understand the attraction of people wanting to go to London if you are talking about Arsenal, Chelsea or Tottenham maybe, but there are players going to clubs in London simply because it’s London. To me that is wrong. It is not a football move, it is a lifestyle move.”
In line with his comments regarding the decision making basis a player goes through when negotiating a transfer Keane recalls an incident within his own career suggesting that recent events are following a dangerous president,
“Whilst I was at Manchester United I was offered the opportunity to go and play for Juventus, someone told my wife that I shouldn’t go to Turin because Milan was better for shopping. Opinions like that don’t mean anything to me”
Despite signing several quality players this summer to ensure his clubs survival, Keane’s resentment at those who put geography over football highlights his beliefs that certain clubs, especially for foreign imports, hold an advantage over others because of their geography and status, evidence to back up this theory seems to be all too willingly put forward.
One of the mega moves of the summer involving an old team mates of Keane’s, David Beckham, has been surrounded with controversy due to the former England captain’s decision to leave Real Madrid in order to move to a league which is extremely unreputable. His International manager Steve Maclaren quoted in the Independent likened the quality of the MLS to ‘Top Championship, bottom Premiership’. A level which undoubtedly a top level manager will want his players performing at. Deny that
a move to the ‘States was not about money or about ‘showbiz’ it is undeniable that only time will tell exactly whether Los Angeles Galaxy is a club for Beckham to ‘wind down’ at.
Less publicized decisions relating to players decisions are also in evidence. Rumour has is that Zinedine Zidane turned down a move to Liverpool because the city was not as prestigious as Madrid midfielder Claus Jensen publicly stated in 2000 that he made a move to Charlton rather than Ipswich because his wife instructed him it would be easier for her to return to England more frequently in a city where there was an airport. Chelsea’s 25million pound signing Andriy Shevchenko seems to say little about his difficulties settling into London, where as his wife is quoted on a weekly basis saying that she would prefer her husband to return to Milan, because she ‘prefers’ it there.
It is obviously impossible to prove conclusively that women are indeed ‘wearing the trousers’ when it comes to their husbands transfer dealings or whether unmentioned factors were at the heart of their reasoning. One would assume that players are motivated by ambition, opportunities to win trophies and success but in the finance fueled world that is modern day football it is impossible to rule out other factors.
Steve Bruce, another of this season’s promotee very publically fell out with Hossam Ghaly and even cancelled his transfer to Birmingham because of his ‘attitude’. The Egyptian reportedly had a bust up with his manager-to-be following complaints about having to put in extra training.
Not only did Ghaly’s outburst seem extremely petty but the midfielder’s behaviour is perfect example of the kind of player Keane was getting at with his criticism. To say that his career at Tottenham has been a none starter is in truth and understatement, however instead of showing a willingness to work and to earn a first team place at Birmingham it would seem that the player is instead content to return to Tottenham, pick up big wages and spend most of his time playing for the reserves.
Perhaps the Sunderland manager does have a point? Although it would be very interesting to see players react in the same manner in the Keane régime.
Currently in the Premiership there is no doubt that truly world class player given the choice would choose to join a top four club no matter who they are or where they are from, but if Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool are not interested, what outside factors help dictate a players decision when clubs of a similar standing are in the running for his signature?
Previous examples are correct in establishing that location does sometimes have a deciding factor in where a player wants to play their football. Footballers are not alone however in flocking towards the attraction of London. Families, businesses, International travelers more often than not head for the bright lights and entertainment that big cities have to offer. Even domestic based players can make a natural beeline towards the capital but with all due respect given the opportunity wouldn’t you rather move to London Wimbledon, Victoria than Leicester?
The big clubs are now able to offer the big wages which often influences players to make their decisions based on financial grounds over first team oppertunities. The player which Keane discusses in his comments was also presumably offered more money by the London based club and with the number of clubs now given huge financial backing, ‘mid table clubs are now able to offer the big finances to the best players. Despite just avoiding relegation last season, West Ham have added an array of talent to their first team squad whilst a club like Reading, who finished remarkably well in their first Premiership season have struggled to bring in many top names, something just doesn’t seem right about the balance of power.
Keane’s comments that players are ‘soft’ and that ‘greed’ plays an element are without question valid and it is often thought that players who are pampered are often wanting this to continue, again chasing the big finances. If a footballer has been on 20,000 a week then joins Chelsea on 50,000 a week, its not likely any time soon, whether he is in the team or not that he is going to make a move to near by Watford to take a 40,000 wage cut so he can get first team football… a wage cut, now there are two infrequently used words, don’t hear about too many of them now a days do we.
A simple fact, put simply, is that small players fail to attract big players because of their status as small clubs. The powerful hand is held by those with reputations. As with the example of several transfers this summer, it is common that a player will join a stable Premiership club rather than a potentially budding one to ensure their career prospects. Prehaps not a valid move, but a logical one in the world of football.
However valid Keane’s outburst may be, it does however have an unquestionably flawed logic in some cases.
Though he complains that several players have turned his club down for ‘geographical’ reasons during the off season, the ‘poor’ Irishman has still managed to spend around 30million pounds on players this summer, including the purchase of several international talents in Craig Gordon and Keiron Richardson. In moving to Sunderland Gordon even turned down a move to ‘big clubs’ in Manchester and Birmingham to join the Weirside revival so it can’t all be bad Roy.
Even if Sunderland may have beaten all-comers on their return to the Premiership in 2007/8 the fact that they were relegated in their first season back on their previous two incarnations as a top flight side may act as a deterent for potential players. Having being named amongst the favourites for the drop this time around, joining Sunderland potentially provides an uncertain future for those who choose to sign on the dotted line.
Thousands can be testament to the fact that no matter who is in charge of the club or how much money they are backed by, establishing ones-self as a Premiership club is an extremely difficult task and as an inexperienced manager, Keane must do this first before he expects World Superstars to be signing on in red and white.
In defense of those who chose the bright lights and the big city, looking make up of the Premiership it is also obvious to see that the ‘larger cities’ in England find themselves placed higher in the table than those who find themselves being turned down on a more frequent basis.
Though Keane believes that many players would choose London simply because of its location the capital should be classed as an exception to the rule because with so many Premiership clubs (five in total), Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham, Fulham, West Ham are four times more likely than city if it was a straight competition between all twenty. The over population of clubs coming from major cities in England (Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool) will argue that their background, status and more importantly success in the last ten years has earned them the right to the top players.
As you trawl down the league it doesn’t take a genius to work out that ‘smaller clubs’ are more often than not the sole professional representees of their geographical location. Yorkshire, despite it’s status as the largest county in the country, gains an unhonourable distinction because of it’s lack of a club in the Premiership and with Leeds, Sheffield United and Wednesday having being replaced by less ‘fashionable’ clubs such as Wigan, Reading and Portsmouth it makes sense that having only had a few seasons to establish themselves as top teams, it will take a while before they become recognized by top players as established clubs. Not that Harry Redknapp of Pompey or Sam Allardyce when he was at Bolton will have been complaining about the players that they worked with. Perhaps a coach with as little managerial experience as Keane finds it hard to understand why a club with a genuine inability to establish themselves in the Premiership has trouble attracting players.
Despite the obvious examples from earlier in these musings which Keane’s comments only strengthened the weight behind there are obvious examples of where trends have been bucked and players find themselves in locations they possibly never considered.
Bolton supporters would not have been able to dream of seeing World Cup Winners such as Youri Djorkaeff and Anelka at the Reebok, just as ‘Boro fans would not have believed that Brazilians Doriva, Juninho and Emerson would be in their line up. It is possible for so called smaller clubs to attract players and just because the Henry’s, Shevchenko’s and Van Nistelrooy’s made their decision to join already established Premiership sides doesn’t mean that a successful stay in the Premiership cannot bring the joys of watching world class players lining up one day.
Tabliodisation of WAG culture and it’s development also somewhat distort the way in which Keane may be viewing the situation. Football players have probably had wives and girlfriends dicating their lives for long periods of times now, but due to the much celebrated culture of footballers and their misuses during the 2006 World Cup, it is now unavoidable that they receive as much press coverage as they do. Often people complain that footballers receive too much attention but before we address that situation perhaps we should sort the attention heaped on their wives and girlfriends out first.
Though there is an element of truth in what Sunderland boss Keane says it is undoubtable that there is no way that a player would jepodise his career for the sake of his wife or girlfriend. It would seem that there is now more to decision making than just the football club itself. Keane says that “It is a football decision, not about shopping” but perhaps transfers are about much more than just football. A player who feels comfortable in his surroundings is more likely to perform well for his team and especially with a player from outside this country, the period of settling in involves important decisions and often it is not just the player who has choices to make, families and children are making decisions about the rest of their life but there is simply no way that shopping dictates whether a club chooses Wigan over Wycombe.
Perhaps Keane should look at the coincidence factor that places so many big clubs from big cities in the big league. London, Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool are all represented by more than one Premiership club and in truth it is no surprise that the top four last season all came from big cities with big reputations. The North East, an area which Keane has been struggling to attract players to has plenty of big clubs and for players International caliber to be plying their trade at Sunderland is something which could not be imagined ten or twenty years ago. Unfortunately for Keane WAG culture is here to stay and if he wants to attract the big names to his club then he is going to have to first build a successful Premiership team.
Renowned for his sharp tongue WAG culture has become the latest topic for a Keane outburst. However credible his remarks, the latest controversial rant by Keane is not out of character with his previous controversial murmurings.
The player who most famously dubbed United’s silent Old Trafford crowd as ‘prawn sandwich’ brigade and also launched a scathing attacking on his former manager and current chairman Niall Quinn during the 2002 has spoken out at the apparent ‘greed’ and ‘weakness’ amongst current players. Stating that footballing decisions are now frequently dictated by those not involved in football the Irishman admitted that he has struggled to attract several of his ‘top targets’ to the club, because his recently promoted Sunderland side are not in a ‘desirable’ area geographically.
“I find it a bit of a surprise that geography seems to play such a big part, or that players let their wives decide” said Keane,
“We have had a player this summer who didn’t even ring us back because his wife wanted to move to London. He didn’t even have the courtesy to pick up the phone. And shopping was mentioned. If someone doesn’t want to come to Sunderland then that’s all well and good, but if they don’t want to come to Sunderland because their wife wants to go shopping in London then that’s a sad state of affairs.”
Several managers joined Keane in speaking out about their difficulties of attracting players to their clubs, but is it simply because of their location or is it really because people see a move to teams outside the ‘top’ clubs, as a risk not worth taking?
The Sunderland manager seems to believe that the location of a club has a massive impact on the kind of player it can attract,
“If there is nothing to do then find something, because people who are bored are boring. It is nothing to do with the shops; football has got to be the priority. I can understand the attraction of people wanting to go to London if you are talking about Arsenal, Chelsea or Tottenham maybe, but there are players going to clubs in London simply because it’s London. To me that is wrong. It is not a football move, it is a lifestyle move.”
In line with his comments regarding the decision making basis a player goes through when negotiating a transfer Keane recalls an incident within his own career suggesting that recent events are following a dangerous president,
“Whilst I was at Manchester United I was offered the opportunity to go and play for Juventus, someone told my wife that I shouldn’t go to Turin because Milan was better for shopping. Opinions like that don’t mean anything to me”
Despite signing several quality players this summer to ensure his clubs survival, Keane’s resentment at those who put geography over football highlights his beliefs that certain clubs, especially for foreign imports, hold an advantage over others because of their geography and status, evidence to back up this theory seems to be all too willingly put forward.
One of the mega moves of the summer involving an old team mates of Keane’s, David Beckham, has been surrounded with controversy due to the former England captain’s decision to leave Real Madrid in order to move to a league which is extremely unreputable. His International manager Steve Maclaren quoted in the Independent likened the quality of the MLS to ‘Top Championship, bottom Premiership’. A level which undoubtedly a top level manager will want his players performing at. Deny that
a move to the ‘States was not about money or about ‘showbiz’ it is undeniable that only time will tell exactly whether Los Angeles Galaxy is a club for Beckham to ‘wind down’ at.
Less publicized decisions relating to players decisions are also in evidence. Rumour has is that Zinedine Zidane turned down a move to Liverpool because the city was not as prestigious as Madrid midfielder Claus Jensen publicly stated in 2000 that he made a move to Charlton rather than Ipswich because his wife instructed him it would be easier for her to return to England more frequently in a city where there was an airport. Chelsea’s 25million pound signing Andriy Shevchenko seems to say little about his difficulties settling into London, where as his wife is quoted on a weekly basis saying that she would prefer her husband to return to Milan, because she ‘prefers’ it there.
It is obviously impossible to prove conclusively that women are indeed ‘wearing the trousers’ when it comes to their husbands transfer dealings or whether unmentioned factors were at the heart of their reasoning. One would assume that players are motivated by ambition, opportunities to win trophies and success but in the finance fueled world that is modern day football it is impossible to rule out other factors.
Steve Bruce, another of this season’s promotee very publically fell out with Hossam Ghaly and even cancelled his transfer to Birmingham because of his ‘attitude’. The Egyptian reportedly had a bust up with his manager-to-be following complaints about having to put in extra training.
Not only did Ghaly’s outburst seem extremely petty but the midfielder’s behaviour is perfect example of the kind of player Keane was getting at with his criticism. To say that his career at Tottenham has been a none starter is in truth and understatement, however instead of showing a willingness to work and to earn a first team place at Birmingham it would seem that the player is instead content to return to Tottenham, pick up big wages and spend most of his time playing for the reserves.
Perhaps the Sunderland manager does have a point? Although it would be very interesting to see players react in the same manner in the Keane régime.
Currently in the Premiership there is no doubt that truly world class player given the choice would choose to join a top four club no matter who they are or where they are from, but if Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool are not interested, what outside factors help dictate a players decision when clubs of a similar standing are in the running for his signature?
Previous examples are correct in establishing that location does sometimes have a deciding factor in where a player wants to play their football. Footballers are not alone however in flocking towards the attraction of London. Families, businesses, International travelers more often than not head for the bright lights and entertainment that big cities have to offer. Even domestic based players can make a natural beeline towards the capital but with all due respect given the opportunity wouldn’t you rather move to London Wimbledon, Victoria than Leicester?
The big clubs are now able to offer the big wages which often influences players to make their decisions based on financial grounds over first team oppertunities. The player which Keane discusses in his comments was also presumably offered more money by the London based club and with the number of clubs now given huge financial backing, ‘mid table clubs are now able to offer the big finances to the best players. Despite just avoiding relegation last season, West Ham have added an array of talent to their first team squad whilst a club like Reading, who finished remarkably well in their first Premiership season have struggled to bring in many top names, something just doesn’t seem right about the balance of power.
Keane’s comments that players are ‘soft’ and that ‘greed’ plays an element are without question valid and it is often thought that players who are pampered are often wanting this to continue, again chasing the big finances. If a footballer has been on 20,000 a week then joins Chelsea on 50,000 a week, its not likely any time soon, whether he is in the team or not that he is going to make a move to near by Watford to take a 40,000 wage cut so he can get first team football… a wage cut, now there are two infrequently used words, don’t hear about too many of them now a days do we.
A simple fact, put simply, is that small players fail to attract big players because of their status as small clubs. The powerful hand is held by those with reputations. As with the example of several transfers this summer, it is common that a player will join a stable Premiership club rather than a potentially budding one to ensure their career prospects. Prehaps not a valid move, but a logical one in the world of football.
However valid Keane’s outburst may be, it does however have an unquestionably flawed logic in some cases.
Though he complains that several players have turned his club down for ‘geographical’ reasons during the off season, the ‘poor’ Irishman has still managed to spend around 30million pounds on players this summer, including the purchase of several international talents in Craig Gordon and Keiron Richardson. In moving to Sunderland Gordon even turned down a move to ‘big clubs’ in Manchester and Birmingham to join the Weirside revival so it can’t all be bad Roy.
Even if Sunderland may have beaten all-comers on their return to the Premiership in 2007/8 the fact that they were relegated in their first season back on their previous two incarnations as a top flight side may act as a deterent for potential players. Having being named amongst the favourites for the drop this time around, joining Sunderland potentially provides an uncertain future for those who choose to sign on the dotted line.
Thousands can be testament to the fact that no matter who is in charge of the club or how much money they are backed by, establishing ones-self as a Premiership club is an extremely difficult task and as an inexperienced manager, Keane must do this first before he expects World Superstars to be signing on in red and white.
In defense of those who chose the bright lights and the big city, looking make up of the Premiership it is also obvious to see that the ‘larger cities’ in England find themselves placed higher in the table than those who find themselves being turned down on a more frequent basis.
Though Keane believes that many players would choose London simply because of its location the capital should be classed as an exception to the rule because with so many Premiership clubs (five in total), Arsenal, Chelsea, Tottenham, Fulham, West Ham are four times more likely than city if it was a straight competition between all twenty. The over population of clubs coming from major cities in England (Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool) will argue that their background, status and more importantly success in the last ten years has earned them the right to the top players.
As you trawl down the league it doesn’t take a genius to work out that ‘smaller clubs’ are more often than not the sole professional representees of their geographical location. Yorkshire, despite it’s status as the largest county in the country, gains an unhonourable distinction because of it’s lack of a club in the Premiership and with Leeds, Sheffield United and Wednesday having being replaced by less ‘fashionable’ clubs such as Wigan, Reading and Portsmouth it makes sense that having only had a few seasons to establish themselves as top teams, it will take a while before they become recognized by top players as established clubs. Not that Harry Redknapp of Pompey or Sam Allardyce when he was at Bolton will have been complaining about the players that they worked with. Perhaps a coach with as little managerial experience as Keane finds it hard to understand why a club with a genuine inability to establish themselves in the Premiership has trouble attracting players.
Despite the obvious examples from earlier in these musings which Keane’s comments only strengthened the weight behind there are obvious examples of where trends have been bucked and players find themselves in locations they possibly never considered.
Bolton supporters would not have been able to dream of seeing World Cup Winners such as Youri Djorkaeff and Anelka at the Reebok, just as ‘Boro fans would not have believed that Brazilians Doriva, Juninho and Emerson would be in their line up. It is possible for so called smaller clubs to attract players and just because the Henry’s, Shevchenko’s and Van Nistelrooy’s made their decision to join already established Premiership sides doesn’t mean that a successful stay in the Premiership cannot bring the joys of watching world class players lining up one day.
Tabliodisation of WAG culture and it’s development also somewhat distort the way in which Keane may be viewing the situation. Football players have probably had wives and girlfriends dicating their lives for long periods of times now, but due to the much celebrated culture of footballers and their misuses during the 2006 World Cup, it is now unavoidable that they receive as much press coverage as they do. Often people complain that footballers receive too much attention but before we address that situation perhaps we should sort the attention heaped on their wives and girlfriends out first.
Though there is an element of truth in what Sunderland boss Keane says it is undoubtable that there is no way that a player would jepodise his career for the sake of his wife or girlfriend. It would seem that there is now more to decision making than just the football club itself. Keane says that “It is a football decision, not about shopping” but perhaps transfers are about much more than just football. A player who feels comfortable in his surroundings is more likely to perform well for his team and especially with a player from outside this country, the period of settling in involves important decisions and often it is not just the player who has choices to make, families and children are making decisions about the rest of their life but there is simply no way that shopping dictates whether a club chooses Wigan over Wycombe.
Perhaps Keane should look at the coincidence factor that places so many big clubs from big cities in the big league. London, Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool are all represented by more than one Premiership club and in truth it is no surprise that the top four last season all came from big cities with big reputations. The North East, an area which Keane has been struggling to attract players to has plenty of big clubs and for players International caliber to be plying their trade at Sunderland is something which could not be imagined ten or twenty years ago. Unfortunately for Keane WAG culture is here to stay and if he wants to attract the big names to his club then he is going to have to first build a successful Premiership team.