Arsenal-Mania

Adebayor backtracks on loyalty pledge

By Jonathan Chong on Saturday, June 28, 2008

Striker Emmanuel Adebayor has seemingly put his Arsenal future into doubt after implying, that he was having talks with manager Arsčne Wneger to clarify his future.

Adebayor, who had originally said that he was happy to stay at Arsenal, went back on that statement by saying: "We will have to meet with the manager [Arsčne Wenger] before anything can be decided.

"But, as you know better than anyone, a lot of teams want me to play for them.

"It will not be a difficult decision.

"I'm just going to sit down with my agent and with my family and decide what is good for my career."

Should Adebayor decide to move away from Arsenal, he is emphasising that such a move will not be motivated by money.

He added: "When I was young I had a dream to be a good footballer and play for a big team.

"I was born in Togo so I never cared about playing for money, my happiness was to play to enjoy myself. That's what I've been doing until now.

"You can see people changing clubs because of money, because they want a change of atmosphere or to get their names in the big leagues. I just play football to enjoy myself. I play because I love it."

User Comments

39

cinjo

Posted on 1 Jul, 2008 at 12:21 PM - Reply

Wenger has to use this opportunity to sell him out. And use the big money to bring talented players.
He is not much enough talented player to play Arsenal striking position.

38

Tate

Posted on 1 Jul, 2008 at 11:52 AM - Reply

I hope he does go if a bid comes in for 30+ million.
He only got the amount of goals he did because the midfield played brilliantly in giving him many chances. If he was worth 30+ million then he would have scored 40+ goals last season with the amount of chances he had.

37

blix

Posted on 1 Jul, 2008 at 09:37 AM - Reply

Sounds to me that he's been TOLD he's maybe gonna be moving. Lets face it, who WOULDN'T sell him for the figures being floated around. I'd love to see him stay because I don't think we've seen the best of him yet, but if the transfer fee is redirected into buying another couple of world class players............. C YA!

36

kakibola

Posted on 1 Jul, 2008 at 06:27 AM - Reply

no point in keeping adebayor any much longer...
he's noboby no more to arsenal...why waste effort if he hs no intention to be loyal to the club..???

35

joe cian

Posted on 30 Jun, 2008 at 10:39 PM - Reply

if he wants to leave then let him go. 25m is a lot of money. he may have scored 25+ goals last season but 6 were against derby! wenger knows best, he'll buy a better replacement or we could swop him for e'to? the club is bigger than any player. by the way well done cesc you deserve it, lets hope you bring the winning feeling home!!!

34

Pee Caster

Posted on 30 Jun, 2008 at 07:27 PM - Reply

Adebayor should take a cue from other never-do-wells that have left the club under such circumstances. Wenger football philosophy is quite different from other coaches, if you get deep into it, it's hard to do well elsewhere leading to a deep in an albeit promising career.

33

Clemson Recruiter

Posted on 30 Jun, 2008 at 06:53 PM - Reply

I guess I am a little confused...Don't we all change companies for more money, opportunities etc. This is his career and not sure anyone can blame someone for negotiating or looking at their options. One of my best friends played in the NFL here in the states and he told me that the most enjoyment he had playing was when he played American college football at Clemson University....he said when he was drafted into the NFL the whole atmosphere changed...he explained to me that they still loved playing the game but it was more complicated because it was a career and when something is your career there are more things at stake than just playing ball for the love of playing ball...I assume Ade is weighing his options like any one of us would.

32

obiwon

Posted on 30 Jun, 2008 at 04:54 PM - Reply

sell him now!get me villa,pleeasse!

31

Fast 1

Posted on 30 Jun, 2008 at 12:14 PM - Reply

Get rid of him as soon as possible, he is a bad apple.

30

Upset Fan

Posted on 30 Jun, 2008 at 11:09 AM - Reply

CAn somebody explain how come it is possible for Adebayor to be able to leave the club. Isn't he under a contract and also beow 27 years of age. Or has the strenght of the contract paper been reduced to a mere printed paper

29

Terfa Hemen

Posted on 30 Jun, 2008 at 09:33 AM - Reply

Ade should remember Anelka,even his friend not having it easy at Barca.Clearly the money is tempting him.He should also remember Henry did not become a 100,000K plus player in one season.Ade concentrate on scoring the chances you meet.Your 100k time will come be patient.But if he want's to go please let's not keep an unhappy player there are strikers out there.

28

Johan

Posted on 30 Jun, 2008 at 08:11 AM - Reply

Firstly; Sell Ade, he will never repeat what he did last season and he misses way too many times to be really lethal.
Secondly; I'm sick and tired that every paper and tabloid seems to think that Arsenal are a selling team. Look at the rumours (stories) about the other teams in the top-flight.
Chelsea: Lampard, SWP
Man Utd: Crybaby
Arsenal; Ade, Hleb, Cesc, Clichy, RVP, Gilberto, Eboue.
This is silly! Arsenal need to change this trend or we'll have players leaving us every year, just becuase the press has upset them and lead them into thinking that Arsenal is a feeder club for the big south european clubs. Also the press likes to say that Arsenal players leave because they are not paid enough, this is not true apart from Chelsea they are on equal terms with the rest of them, it's just that the mentality is that Arsenal is a poor breeding ground for world class players!

27

Jack

Posted on 30 Jun, 2008 at 04:24 AM - Reply

We are only 2 million short of Man U in player wages at 89Mil/Yr. But most players are under 80,000 Ł mark. Are we paying too much to reserves and youngstars? Where's the salary gone to? We have a waffer thin Squad last season but we are paying 3rd most in EPL. Our player salary scheme seems not efficient at all....

26

Doug

Posted on 30 Jun, 2008 at 12:04 AM - Reply

One half decent season and he's speaking like this.He's heading down Anelka's path rapidly..What I don't understand is the greed..be a club legend and no one will let you pay for anything(or open a door)..

25

uncleris

Posted on 29 Jun, 2008 at 10:54 PM - Reply

I honestly wonder why Adebayor is getting this much attention. It is unwarranted. He is soooo inefficient...converts less than 25% of the chances he gets. A Torres or Roque Santa Cruz would have easily netted 50 goals, with the service Adebayor got last season. Let him please just go. Hope somebody will be fooled by his flashes and pay the GBP30m that is being bandied...That will be the best thing he will ever do for the Gunners.

24

Edu- kenya

Posted on 29 Jun, 2008 at 06:08 PM - Reply

Its not about money, its about about the dream I had while still young......blah blah blah, then why insist on a raise on your wages, why not be contended with what his got!!! If there is really any foolish manager that might want him, plz wenger cash in on him b4 they change their mind.

Long live Arsenal

23

Bergkamp is God

Posted on 29 Jun, 2008 at 03:42 PM - Reply

he simply does not deserve the money he is after yet, henry won trophies and picked himself up when others r down. Adebayor played well for the first 6 months then he no longer looked interested and scored the odd goal, no consistency then a hat trick against derby, if this is his attitude we may as well cash in and play walcott every game, which to be honest i would love to see and so would many arsenal fans.

22

The Cescenator

Posted on 29 Jun, 2008 at 03:03 PM - Reply

If Ade is already talking about securing the best pension for himself let him go and get in line at some other money trough. Nobody expects players to just ignore the market forces of players wages,but one season of a 60% conversion rate a T. Henry it does not make you. At Arsenal, contracts and agreements are negotiated and concluded behind closed doors and not for the benefit of Sky sports news[ see Cesc Fab }. Ade, your an ingrate and Fridays hope of you staying has been surpassed by Sundays hangover. Leave your transfer fee at the door, and good riddance.

21

James D

Posted on 29 Jun, 2008 at 02:46 PM - Reply

I think if we can get Ł25m for Ade, then it's good business, he's gotta go.
He could have a nightmare of a season next, and be worth Ł10m... Then we'd all be wishing.. what if.

20

Wenger

Posted on 29 Jun, 2008 at 01:03 PM - Reply

Ade is a fantastic player, a guy who knows how to score goals. We have many others that are as good as, or better to take his place should he wish to leave this great club. I see Walcot scoring left, right and centre for us in the coming season - I see Ed coming back to form quickly following his injury and showing us the next level in attacking play. I also see Bentner showing more strength and tactical play - feeding of Cesc and the others.
Ade probably feels that he will have to play that much better next season to ensure he gets playing time with our first team. - Perhaps this is the real reason he is having the problem in deciding if he should stay or go? We will surely miss him but will replace him with bigger and better players.

19

aabbs7

Posted on 29 Jun, 2008 at 11:35 AM - Reply

No offence Mr Adebayor, but u aint even all that anyways!!! Look at Anelka, Overmars, Petite, Viera, Henry, what have they done after leaving Arsenal, (ok Anelka won the european cup and la Liga but hes not exactly really been settled anywhere). Im sure all of them players regret leaving Arsenal, and whilst Adebayor is no doubt a class player, hes not in Anelka or Henrys league.
Id be disappointed if Van Persie, Eduardo, Fabregas, Hleb left, I was disappointed with flamini, but lets face it, adebayor cares more about his own goal scoring records than he does the team.
Where was he when we needed just 1 goal to beat Boro, Villa? Newcastle away aswell.
I remember plenty of times he could have passed it to players in better positions but chose to shoot instead, and ended up missing. To be honest, we should sell him to AC milan, sell Bendtner to whoever wants him and get some class experianced players in. Come Mr Hill Wood, give Wenger the money, we could easily get Karim Benzena and Sami al Nasri, its just a case of us showing we want them badly. And lets just hope Van Persies able to play a full season!!!!

18

tommy

Posted on 29 Jun, 2008 at 09:20 AM - Reply

let him go. he is not that good any way

17

jp20

Posted on 29 Jun, 2008 at 08:27 AM - Reply

When the tabloids say 30 million,we can probably expect 15 million for ade!
he is a good striker but he is no rooney or henry,and to win the premiership we need those kind of guys,especially when eduardo is injured we cannot afford to miss chances like ade.

buy huntelaar,he seems to be good and cheap as well or podolski,i think podolski would be best

16

Raza

Posted on 29 Jun, 2008 at 01:45 AM - Reply

He is not after money, is he kidding himself or what? Otherwise what does he mean by we have 2sit and have a chat with Wenger. Why does he need to speak to Wenger as he has a contract till 2009 or something. Is he a next Anelka in the making?

15

Gare Kekeke

Posted on 29 Jun, 2008 at 12:52 AM - Reply

Ade is typical of Arsenal players these days; believing his own hype, thinking he's world class when he's not and taking too much advice from his 'agent'. One great season does not make him a great player. There are a number of reasons why he scored 30 goals last season. Yes, he is a good player but lacks a clinical edge in front of goal that makes a striker great (e.g Shearer & Fowler in his prime) as he's sadly prone to missing easy chances. He also benefitted from injuries last season to messrs Van Persie, Rosicky & Eduardo who would have taken goals off him had they remained fit. Ade was also helped with a chronic lack of goals from Hleb, Walcott & Eboue. Has to prove he's not a one season wonder as I think he'll struggle to match last season's tally. And if he were to leave and struggle, fans at Milan or Barca will turn on him quickly as they are both a very demanding group of fans.

14

Ken

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 11:12 PM - Reply

Meh! The story continues...

13

losa44

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 10:51 PM - Reply

i'd like to say two things, one, adebayor get lost, cash in. and two you spelt wenger/wneger wrong at the beginning of the article, done and done.

12

oli

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 07:53 PM - Reply

He's just trying to get a better deal.
When you have got all the right cards you are better placed to negotiate which he has.
I love Arsenal to death but i dont get why the board would boast about how much money they are making off the new stadium (about 3 mill) and then be surprised that players want a pay rise.

11

oli

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 07:53 PM - Reply

He's just trying to get a better deal.
When you have got all the right cards you are better placed to negotiate which he has.
I love Arsenal to death but i dont get why the board would boast about how much money they are making off the new stadium (about 3 mill) and then be surprised that players want a pay rise.

10

Roland Rankin

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 06:07 PM - Reply

Adebayor came under the radar last season.There is not a team in Europe would pay 35 million euroes for him. He is living in cloud cuckoo land if he thinks he is going to get Ł120000 out of Arsenal a week.Bye bye to one season wonder.

9

opiro

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 03:44 PM - Reply

You are just a bunch of disappointment !!!!!

8

Simon C

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 03:29 PM - Reply

He is so two-faced...sell him he shouldhave scored more goals then he had last season. He is a good player but no way world class.

Bring in David Villa or Eto, they would scor 40-50 goals a season with the amount of chances we create.

7

Ben Hutton

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 03:26 PM - Reply

Hes overrated, and misses more chances than he scores. If we'd have had Torres last season instead of him, Torres would have scored twice as many. Id take Ł25 million for him, and anything over thats a bonus!

6

valsenal

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 03:16 PM - Reply

I wouldn't blame Ade if he leaves. Playing Football is a job for these guys, a short career for that matter. Who wouldn't trade jobs when a highly rewarding offer is put on the table? No one.

If the figures (30 million pounds +) from the tabloids are something to go by than Arsene Wenger should let the player follow his dreams and make good money for the club provided that it will be spend on David & David (Villa & Sylva) or any other good attacking combination, Sylva & Puvlyuchenko for example.

The line up would look like this;

Villa RvP
D.Sylva Diaby? Cesc(c) Walcot

Clichy Gallas? Toure Sagna
Almunia?

5

Keith

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 03:03 PM - Reply

In a matter of minutes he flip flops on his pledge to stay at Arsenal. What a jerk!

4

G

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 02:09 PM - Reply

If he isn't motivated by money then why does he want to leave? He won't get any more playing time than he did at Arsenal this past season. Money is the only reason for a player to want to move away to a 'bigger' club. Quit lying Ade!

3

Mac Rees

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 01:58 PM - Reply

To much money not a enough loyality.

2

Mark

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 01:20 PM - Reply

That's the biggest load of rubbish i have heard come from the mouth of a professional footballer, isn't it usually the case that every summer dodgy agents only interested in their own financial gain and with scant regard for the respect of a club and the contracts signed between player and club, seek to unsettle and court other big clubs and light a bonfire under them. Equally if they were happy and it was just about playing then what is the issue?. I have been an arsenal support since a child and Adebeyor has been reading too much about that other great but idiotic player Ronny. :-)

1

sadler

Posted on 28 Jun, 2008 at 12:27 PM - Reply

i guess there is no loyalty now in football at one time a player was at a club for life now a season and the greed sets in let him go there are plenty at the club to fill his boots arsenal will still be there when he hangs his boots up for good