On hypocrisy

A short one, today.

We castigate Adebayor for wanting to move to Milan because they're willing to quadruple his pay, and because he wants to play for one of the "top ten clubs in Europe". We complain that he's nothing but a mercenary, and he that should honour the terms of his contract.

However, we want to flog Adebayor to Milan if they're foolish enough to pay 30 million pounds. He's not worth that much money, and we could get a good replacement for half that amount. Every player has his price, and we're just following good business principles.

It's called hypocrisy. Either the contract is sacred and no one violates the terms of the deal, or there is a price above which it is acceptable to break the deal. We can't have it both ways.

Look at it this way - if you've been offered an job for four times your current salary, with similiar responsiblities and duties, you'll want to explore the possibilities. If you're happy with your current job, you'll probably go to your employer and ask for a pay rise. If you're unhappy, you'll probably tender your resignation and fuck off to your plush new job.

Now, I agree that Adebayor's bound by a contract to play for Arsenal. It's a bit different from a normal job. Arsenal have to pay his wages regardless of performance or injury. Adebayor's traded his right to walk away for the security of a contract. It's perfectly legal for Arsenal to reject Milan's offers and keep Adebayor at Emirates.

But Adebayor wouldn't be human if he didn't feel pissed off about it.

Whatever the case, it's undignified for this drama to be played out in public. Not a very classy thing to do. But you can't deny a guy the possibility of advancement. Not really.