Newcastle Transfers: Demba Ba Not Greedy? You're Having A Laugh
MailOnline, Demba Ba revealed that despite suggestions from a lot of Newcastle fans, he is not greedy, and that his only motivation is to "support his family and friends back in his native Senegal". Ba's "representatives" attracted criticism from Alan Pardew after they apparently chased £5million in commission for the sale of Ba, according to the Mail, which initially derailed his potential move to Chelsea:
"I think Demba's becoming a victim of a few sharks around him."But Ba hit back at suggestions that he, or his agents are driven by greed, stating that he is merely a committed family man and that his salary goes to a lot of people:
"Something which is easy for me to give is money. I feel detached from it."Detachment is often remarkably easy when someone else is in charge of all of the money talks. He goes on:
"I look after myself and my family, but I won't forget people who struggle. The money I earn is not just for me, it is made for me to give to the people. My father lives in Senegal most of the time, and my mother goes there for five months a year. they are from similar villages, and know how to distribute money to people who need it. 'For me, it's not about being Demba Ba, or a footballer, or at Newcastle, I'm no better than anybody else."That's admirable, and I'm sure Ba sees himself as a modern Robin Hood, providing money for those who struggle in Senegal, which presumably must be a ridiculously expensive place to live if it takes a weekly wage of around £100k or so to help anyone stay afloat - unless of course Ba plans to power the entire Senegalese economy on his own. Are we seriously supposed to believe Ba isn't motivated by money? Is his current wage of £50k a week (according to the Mirror) so difficult for him and his dependents to survive on? As long as he suggests otherwise, it's hard to really argue that he just loves money, it's his word against ours, even if his comes from his lavish house in affluent Darras Hall as he packs his top of the range car to move down to Chelsea to a probably even more expensive pad in the capital. It must be footballing reasons then that are pushing him away from Newcastle and their own increased contract offer, but he must be assured of a first team place considering how unhappy he infamously was when he was dropped ahead of the Everton game at Goodison Park. He must be confident that he can force his way into a first team with an awful lot more depth than currently at Newcastle, or perhaps he'd just be happier sitting on another bench, or forced to play outwide at another club. And money won't be the sweetener there either. Even more ridiculously, the Mail say Ba is set to receive a £2million loyalty bonus from Newcastle if and when he does leave, probably governed by the rule that says if you don't ask to leave, you're somehow to be rewarded for the fact. But surely having a team of representatives actively hawking your talents around to other clubs as you apparently turn a blind eye and concentrate on playing is essentially the same as handing in a transfer request. The results are inevitably the same. And in this modern game, there's no place for loyalty at all. Not in the real sense. If it has to be valued in monetary terms like this, that defeats the point - though perhaps we're all idiots as fans for expecting any player to show even a morsel of loyalty to their current team's cause. After all, they are little more than employers, even if it never comes down to money, and free trade rules means that anyone can move anywhere as long as someone is willing to pay the necessary funds. We expect players to love clubs as much as we do, but as long as they have families to support, and agents with their own monetary struggles, and they're all driving round like paupers in their diamonds and sports cars who are we to complain when they just want to better themselves? What do think? Share your thoughts below, and click next to view our suggestions for 10 Goal-Scoring Options To Replace Demba Ba.
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