Lionel Messi & The Mirage Of Loyalty In Football

"Play for the name on the front of the shirt and they will remember the name on the back of the". This is one of the most popular loyalty quotes in football and is attributed to former Arsenal captain Tony Adams.

The above quote and I believe his mentality towards the club that warranted the quote in the first place I would say, is what totally endears him to Arsenal fans and the club generally and when you hear Arsenal fans talking about "Mr Arsenal", rest assured they are talking about Tony Adams.

It is safe to say that Tony Adams played football when loyalty in football was actually a big deal, an era where footballers would go to any lengths to represent the clubs they supported as kids. Now, things have changed obviously, there is excess money being thrown around currently in football and everyone's loyalty can be bought and paid for with either money or the lure to win bigger trophies somewhere else.

Totti & The Generations Past

Just like Tony Adams, Totti is another name that immediately comes to mind when club loyalty is being discussed. Francesco Totti was one of the most talented players of his generation and a true embodiment of the values of AS Roma. Granted we might not have seen the peak of his true talents because of his niggling injuries, regardless, he courted the admiration of some of the biggest clubs in Europe but he chose to stick it out with the Giallarorssi.

Totti's name at a point in his career became synonymous with AS Roma and it would have been extremely odd seeing him in another football club's strip.

I would say Totti is the last truly talented yet loyal footballer of his generation and it is yet to be seen if any player of the current generation, being as talented as Totti can choose to remain with a not so ambitious club in the mould of Roma when he has a chance of more money and trophies elsewhere.

Luis Figo enjoys (or not) his infamous "pig" status because of his move from Barcelona to Real Madrid. Barcelona fans have not been able to forgive that treachery until today.

Figo and Totti are just opposite examples of the same subject, while I consider Totti that last true loyal great, the same can't be said about Figo but the thing is, what Figo did back in the day that got him so much hate and disrespect from Barcelona fans and many neutral fans seem to have been normalized currently in football.

Players now move to former arch-rival clubs and there is no outrage. What has changed?

Something seems to have broken in football and everybody currently involved in football are thinking about money and rewards. Honour, emotions and loyalty are such weird and cringe words to throw up when discussing football. From club owners who treat the clubs strictly as a business venture where profit is the most important, to players who treat the club as just a job where fat paycheck and financial security comes first and every other thing next.

Money Changed Football And It Is Not For The Best

One of the things that have caused the drastic change in football culture is the private/corporate ownership of such a publicly owned (emotionally owned) sport. Club owners are just businessmen (some have a bit of love for the sport) and business owners care more about profit and financial stability more than they care about footballing bragging rights.

This new trend made clubs less tolerant and inpatient to coaches who aren't winning. So coaches hired by these kinds of clubs have little patience and tolerance for players who aren't performing because obviously, their job is on the line.

This in turn puts the fire up the players' asses and they have come to understand that their long term future isn't guaranteed at any club, so when they are at the peak of their powers, they usually ask for moves away to bigger clubs that would guarantee more money and trophies. Or they stay and request an astronomical increase in wages.

The fans on their part are seeing what these players are earning and want nothing but a top performance from these players and this is what has given rise to the new trend of home fans booing their players. The cycle continues nonstop and many times, the atmosphere becomes too toxic for everybody.

New Allegiance Is To Money/Family & Football...In That Order.

There is a new culture in football and it is one that has moved far away from club loyalties and building allegiances that transcends active playing careers.

Back in the day, football players cared about the clubs they represented the longest, cared about their fans and the feeling is mostly reciprocated. You could say they still care about all these things now but to a much lesser degree.

Money and fame have become the most important motivating factors in players choosing and remaining with certain clubs. With the exception of a handful of players anyways.

The idea now is that their playing career is so short and their job is not pensionable, so best to grab all the money you could while you still could and represent the best teams in the world why you still could.

So footballers now are motivated by providing the best life for their family and loved ones, make a ton of money for themselves and their family while they still could and still continue playing football at the highest level, it doesn't matter for whom or where.

This realization has made me not take football players who kiss the clubs badge seriously because I know it is all a charade. They don't really mean it. You can count on one hand the players that actually mean it when they kiss the badge.

Robin Van Persie kissed the Arsenal badge severally, was seen donning the Arsenal jersey as a kid, said he loved Arsenal but moved to Manchester United, scored against Arsenal and celebrated by jumping on Sir Alex Ferguson, right there in front of Arsene Wenger. He said when he and Arsenal couldn't agree on what they both want for the future, he knew he had to move.

Then he said the "child in him" provided a compass to a new destination by screaming "Manchester United". I could just laugh, but I am currently too pissed with Arsenal myself to actually give a toss about football right now.

Clubs show no loyalties to players, players show no long term allegiances to clubs and the fans are caught up in the rapture of emotions.

Mess Isn't Any Better

The circumstances that surround Messi's departure from Barcelona are still unclear to me to this day but what is crystal clear is the fact that he has been wanting to leave for the past two seasons now.

It is a fact that Barcelona's current squad is a far cry from what it used to be when they were at their absolute domineering best some 8-10 years ago.

It has been a slow and painful transition for them since. Trying to replace the spine of that Barcelona team that had Puyol, Xavi and Iniesta have been almost impossible. Plus the club hasn't covered itself in glory with its transfer dealings and general club operations.

All these and the trashing in the hands of Roma, Bayern and Roma in the Champions League, culminated in the little Argentine feeling fed up and wanting some new challenge, away from Barcelona. It almost happened last year but the inevitable was merely being postponed.

During his last press conference, emotions gushed and love was professed...the whole 9 yards. Messi said he wanted to sign an extension and Barcelona concurred that in fact, he wanted to but an agreement couldn't be reached with La Liga, thus Messi wouldn't be registered for the new season. What?

Now is my question. Why did Messi leave the contract extension so late? Why did he wait for his contract to expire before trying to re-sign? Why didn't he just sign when it was still running?

As I said, the whole thing confuses me, but one thing clear enough to me is...Messi needed a new challenge and wanted to leave.