Football: Power Struggle

PLAYER POWER:
As Luka Modric battles with Tottenham to try and engineer himself a move to Chelsea, a move that would give him the opportunity to challenge strongly for the title and play Champions League football, I cannot help but picture him as some kind of caged animal struggling to break free and reach the lush surroundings of the outside world.

Despite Tottenham’s undeniable quality, Modric needs this big move to further his career, and it is not right that his club should prevent this. It is natural that footballers desire to hit the highest realms of their potential, just as people in regular jobs try to work their way to the top. In normal life, though, companies do not keep their employees with them against their will. A regional paper, for example, would not prevent one of their journalists leaving to write for a national, and therefore it should be the same in football.

Yes, Modric has a contract at Tottenham, but that is what transfer fees are there for – to buy this contract out. Should Chelsea offer Tottenham the right price they must accept that their player is ready to move on to bigger things, let Modric go and invest their money in some other talent.
Everyone seems to talk about ‘player power’ being a bad thing, but I do not understand why. It is simply the product of the natural desire to better oneself and reach the top, and clubs must learn to accept this.

CLUB CONTROL:
Wayne Rooney, Carlos Tevez, and now Luka Modric. All players who, this season, have used their position within their respective sides to try to force the club to sell them or offer an improved contract. It’s easy to describe the likes of Modric as a “caged animal” or, as Sepp Blatter described Cristiano Ronaldo’s early failed attempts to engineer a move to Real Madrid, a player trapped in a form of “modern slavery.”

However, what are we kidding ourselves for? It’s simply the latest shift towards the player power that we’ve all envisaged and seen develop over the years.
Where is the integrity of these men? Contracts are signed for a number of years for a reason. If Modric wasn’t sure if he’d want to stay for the six years of his contract, why did he sign it this time last year? If you or I sign a contract, it is our duty and obligation to stick to it; these players should too. It wouldn’t be acceptable for me to openly criticise my employer if I was in the public eye, nor should it be acceptable for Modric and the like to disrespect their employers by stating ambitions to the press of a move to a rival club.

This isn’t a question of whether a player should be allowed to move or not. Put frankly, it’s a question of respect, and whether Luka Modric becomes a Chelsea player or not this summer, he has shown very little of it to Tottenham Hotspur.