Kanu - Portsmouth's honest footballer
Posted by DavidM in Portsmouth | 15 December 2006
Kanu, Portsmouth's lanky Nigerian player, has angered a number of people by allegedly stating he's only at Portsmouth until a better offer comes along and that "it's all about the money".
This has led to comments about how players are all greedy and lazy and typefies what's wrong with football.
That may be true, but fair play to him. If he really said this (and who knows what to believe with the low quality journalism we have in this country) then at least he's being open and honest.
My feeling is there are two types of player. There are those who would die for their club, who are passionate about the team and will accept below market wages to remain part of the set-up. Then there are those who see it as a job - they perform well because their livelihood depends on it and will keep an eye on their next move.
Managers are always going to have a mixture of both types and they need to identify and manage them accordingly. Although it's always nice to see a stronger relationship between a club and a player than just wages - such as Robbie Fowler and Liverpool - mercenary players can be a huge benefit to the club so long as everyone understands the situation and the contracts are structured properly.
And remember, most clubs have shafted players at some time in the past, so is it reasonable to expect footballers to do anything other than look out for number one?
While I'm not surprised that Kanu is getting some flack from Portsmouth fans, the fact that he is honest says a lot for him in my opinion. I'd rather an up-front mercenary than a pretend loyalist any day.
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