Adebayor’s Ego Rampages Onwards
Thursday, July 3rd, 2008 by Stuart Stratford
Emmanuel Adebayor continues to agitate for a move away from Arsenal to join Barcelona with his agent claiming that the motivation for his client is to play at a higher sporting level and nothing to do with the offer from that Catalans that would almost triple his wages.
Arsenal have reportedly offered the Togolese international a revised deal worth £45k per week, a £10k increase on his current contract. For many, this is a realistic increase and the signs are that Arsenal supporters are growing increasingly dissatisfied with the player’s stance. Adebayor seems to mistakenly believe that his thirty goals last season are an indication of his class. Instead he should recognise that this tally shows he has the potential to be one the great centre-forwards in the game; the proof of his class will come when he repeats the total season after season.
Stephane Courbis, Adebayor’s agent, claimed
If this were a money problem, then he would have asked to leave. He is a man of the heart not of money. He is not greedy
The public utterances of his client undermine Courbis’ argument. Whilst Adebayor may not have asked for a move, he has made clear his desire to leave and his willingness to do so, claiming that if he did depart for a big fee then it was a “win-win” situationl; he would be happy with his new increased salary and Arsenal with the profit they have made on his sale. This is hardly the rationale of a player who is being sold against his will.
Adebayor stated that Barcelona represented a bigger challenge than AC Milan and that he would not be joining the Italians. His wish was granted when Milan pulled out of the race to buy him, citing the £35.6m fee Arsenal desired as being too much for them to pay.
For Adebayor though this is dangerous territory. Pep Guardiola has admitted this week that he has to sell to continue buying and the club has also stated that they have yet to receive offers for Ronaldinho and Samuel Eto’o. If this deal falls through - a scenario that could happen if Joan Laporta loses the motion of no-confidence on July 6th - he has to make good his relationship with the Arsenal supporters. Whether that is possible remains to be seen. Certainly, the current feeling is that for footballing reasons, they might be happy for him to stay at The Emirates but as for the ‘love’ he claims to feel for the club, little is likely to be reciprocated from the stands.
Tags: Arsenal, Emmanuel Adebayor, Football, Soccer, Transfer Gossip
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