“If you’re first, you’re first; if you’re second, you’re nothing” Bill Shankly
Downloading quotes and quips made by people in the limelight is certainly a tribute to those who patiently collected them and put them in print. For those who follow the sport selections connected with personalities from the football scene throughout the years are particularly interesting. A few are simply hilarious; others just bizarre.
The legendary Bill Shankly, who hailed from the mining village of Glenbuck in Ayreshire, was certainly ahead of his time as Liverpool manager. He won honours and writers revered him as they quoted his debatable if not sensational quotes.
Whole books were written about his classic quotes and quips. Some were classified as hilarious (“In Merseyside we have the best two teams in the world. Liverpool and Liverpool Reserves!”); others were thought too witty by half (“Chairman Mao has never seen a greater show of red strength.”)
Current favourites like Sir Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho and the rest, love doing what Shanks did decades ago.
The ‘Special One’ (a rather flattering title for the Portuguese Jose Mario dos Santos Felix Mourinho, aka Mourinho, because others have won more honours than he did) keeps reminding us that “I may not be special one but I know that I am the best”.
More importantly, he seriously and rightly believes that “football is not a popular contest; it’s about winning games”. He does not mince his words at the lack of support that his side is being given from the stands at San Siro; certain sinister critics compare them with Adolf Hitler who was recently voted as the worst supporter ever according to a poll carried out by The Times! He had supported Shalke 04.
In Heaven
Speaking of fans, this one is a classic.
Shankly asked a young man “where are you from?” The guy replied, “I am a Liverpool fan from London.”
“Well laddie, what is it like to be in heaven?”
The former Liverpool manager who hailed from the mining village of Glenbuck in Ayreshire once said, “Some people believe football is a matter of life and death, I am very disappointed with that attitude. I can assure you, it is much more, much more important than that”.
Unfortunately, Bill Shankly wasn’t around last October when England’s stand-in captain Rio Ferdinand explained the scale of madness in the Three Lions’ camp during the reign of Sven Goran Ericsson and Steve McLaren. “It was like watching theatre unfolding. People were worrying more about what they were wearing and where they were going rather than the England team. The new boss Capello was not going to have a Baden Baden WAGs fest.”
Naturally, Ericsson’s former girlfriend, the 48-year-old Italian lawyer, will hardly have another opportunity to write a sequel to her publication My Favourite Game.
Isn’t that shocking when a member of the England side actually felt so disgusted with the attitude of his mates and their partners who wanted to get in on the act? Here we’re not referring to some village team taking the park on Sunday morning and going to the pub just after the referee’s final whistle. We are referring to a famous national side even if it hasn’t won anything since 1966!
The Italian Capello “has ended ‘funfair’ culture” according to the chairman of the FA Lord Triesman.
Other interesting quotes that attracted my fancy in recent days were those of Italy’s manager Marcello Lippi and Marco Giampaolo, manager of the Italian Serie A side Siena. The latter said, “Referees help the big teams in Italy” whereas the former Juventus and Inter mentor said, “In Italy we have the best referees and the most uneducated players”.
He may have forgotten all about those referees involved in the on-going trial connected with calciopoli. Perhaps the biggest rant of 2008 came from the former Man Utd’s assistant manager Carlos Queroz who described referee Martin Atkinson as “robber” after his team crashed out of the FA Cup quarterfinal when Pompey won one-nil at Old Trafford.
Going back to some of the quotes by the famous Scotsman one may think that he had exaggerated when he was convinced of the importance of competitive football and ignored the fact that football is just a game.
But then is football really just a game and a sport, especially today when it is ruled by commercialism?
The English Premier League clubs’ revenue totalled £2.3 billion in the season 2006-2007. Wages rose to £969 million, which must have exceeded one billion in 2007-2008.
Players’ power
The Bosman rule brought an invasion of foreign players in all European countries.
Players without a contract now are free to move and no transfer fees are involved.
Undoubtedly, there is a lot of money in today’s game. TV contracts enrich associations, football leagues and clubs. Players’ agents have also made their mark and not only because of their commissions and retainers on contracts.
Footballers are advised well these days and the players, power is always evident.
William Gallas convinced Arsene Wenger to give each player a £2500 win bonus. The same French defender was fined £180,000 by the same Wenger because the player gave away dressing room secrets.
There are a few players who are being paid millions for performing on the pitch and on catwalks and films. At times their involvement in commercials give the impression that they hardly find the time to turn up for their respective sides’ fixtures!
Just read about the income of such performers’ incomes from sponsorships and slots, apart from their club contracts of these artists, namely Zlatan Ibrahimov (Inter), Ronaldo (Man U), Frank Lampard (Chelsea), Del Piero (Juventus) Francesco Totti (Roma) Kaka (Milan) and similar ‘golden boys’. Meanwhile, David Beckham is still on LA Galaxy’s payroll while on loan with Milan where he is assured €100,000 a month, and has since given up his £2m image rights for Pepsi, which he had for 10 years, because he is more involved with Vodafone and Armani. ”My fashion business is also doing very well, thank you,” he said last week.
That’s not all. While in Milan, the Beckhams will have a private plane at their beck and call, and an agreement, which give the English boy 50 per cent of the income derived from extra commercials, friendly matches and sales. Maybe the number on his back should have been 50(%) instead of 32!
The fabulous Croxteth couple, Wayne Rooney (an old boy of De La Salle) and his wife Colleen McLoughin, are reported to have made £35 million in just three years. They never went to university!
But then there are footballers that are really exemplary like Gigi Buffon of Italy and Juventus who comes from a sporting family. His father Adriano and mother, Maria Stella Masocco, were champions in athletics. His sisters Guendelina and Veronica were international volleyball players. No wonder they won the important award ‘Sport Civilta’ for being true ambassadors for sport.
Buffon admits that five years ago he suffered from deep depression and was going to give up football. Apart from being the world’s best keeper, he is highly intelligent and well known for his philanthropic work. One of his best quotes is “Around the dimmed and smoky view of Michelangelo a whole culture has formed itself and many will not accept the change”.
It’s not only players who engage famous lawyers before they put pen to paper; managers and coaches do the same thing.
Real Madrid sacked Bernd Shuster and that cost them a €7m handshake after the €9m paid to Fabio Capello not that long ago.
“Football is not a product” – Platini
Despite these glaring economical factors, UEFA supremo Michel Platini recently declared, “football is not a product”. He also said something that was very appropriate when he told clubs “stop hijacking youngsters”.
It is interesting to recall what Newcastle’s billionaire owner Mike Ashley said after England side was eliminated by Croatia at Wembley in November 2007. He angrily remarked, “Steve McLaren only lost his job.
I lost £45 million.”
The pressure in today’s game is different to that of a few decades ago. Today the game is controlled by television and at times football federations, especially the leagues, and clubs are controlled by magnates that have forcibly managed to have football totally at their mercy. Maybe managers and players attend drama lessons these days because of their antics on the field and on the bench as television lenses follow their every move.
Back to quotes and quips, I must admit that this sums up all there is to say as far as football is concerned. It refers to people from all walks of life for that matter.
The maestro was no fool.
“If you’re first, you’re first. If you’re second you’re nothing.” Bill Shankly