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Clubs are quick to try and cover their tracks in defence of their brand and image, but there has been a notable trend of late, of players who are increasingly willing to come out and express their thoughts and mindset, thus breaking the long established order of clubs trying to keep their players from saying what they think.
Fernando Torres is the latest to have got into hot water, over expressing his opinion in public. He allegedly criticised his Chelsea teammates in an interview, and the furore and fallout this has subsequently caused seems to highlight the fact that we live in a world where footballers cannot be allowed to say what they think.
On the one hand, Torres’ very public criticism of his colleagues and teammates seems out of order, you could not get away with that in any other line of work. To publicly criticise your colleagues could affect team morale, and be extremely damaging to the image and reputation of the club. However, the incident also serves to highlight a greater trend whereby it is the norm to protect us from the unedited thoughts of athletes.
All too frequently a club is quick to remind a player what comes first, and try to silence the player. Players words are controlled by PR officers to such a point that we never get anything interesting worth hearing about from their lips, and if we do, a la Joey Barton or Jose Enrique, then they are quick to be punished for expressing their views, and also crucified by the press.
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Perhaps the problem lies at the foot of the press, as journalists seem to inevitably twist players words and create huge hype out of nothing much at all. Players are under closer scrutiny than us mere mortals and have to be careful when expressing their views, particularly as the media seems so intent on making stories out of nothing. Clubs have stamped out candour as a result and it has forced players into the type of bland sound bites we have become all too familiar with.
Social media has somewhat combated the trend, as we are now increasingly let into the thoughts of footballers, and fans can communicate directly with their heroes. Supporters pay their hard money to watch the clubs they love every week, and should be entitled to know what the players think, outside of another anodyne press conference. Players expressing their opinion adds a different dimension to the game, and it is nice to see that a player instead of simply behaving like a robot can offer more than the usual inane commentary. Twitter is now showing that players can connect with fans in an honest, unsanitised way, and seems the only way we can now gain an insight into a players mind.
Ultimately players should be allowed to express their views and mindsets as long as it isn’t in a seriously unprofessional way, and subsequently they should be prepared to live and die by the decisions they make. Freedom of speech should not be curtailed, and the general outrage that stems from hearing a players thoughts and opinions is likely to lead to a continued suppression of speech. The thought that footballers should be kept quiet is nonsense, we want a bit of colour in the game, and as fans paying our hard earned cash to watch our sides we are entitled to know what goes on in our star players mind.
Do you think players should be allowed to say what they think? Let me know your thoughts by commenting below or following me on Twitter @LaurenRutter
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