Tale of the Tabs - 12th September

So that was the summer that was. A summer where the majority of fans waited and waited for money to be spent on a level that would make an 80s Thatcherite blush. In the end, it was a disappointment for many, the moves of Messrs Bale and Ozil failing to satisfy the expected transfer madness.

The four tabloids that I covered certainly had a mixed window. However, it would be too simplistic to say that either this paper or that journalist is clueless. It may be fun and I’ve had great fun doing it all summer, but it is simplistic. What becomes apparent is that the media is just a pawn in what I call ‘the transfer game’. The willing partners in this game are the buying club, the selling club, the agent and the player. Each of these uses the media to try and manoeuvre themselves into the most desirable position.

The case of Wayne Rooney this summer is a classic example of ‘the transfer game’ in action. Throughout the summer, we read of Rooney’s supposed unhappiness and disappointment at his treatment by the club. Where did these stories come from?

Rooney himself said nothing, not even a single tweet about his situation. We can only assume that these stories appeared courtesy of his agency. Dark rumours persist about the nature of the relationship between Rooney and his agency that I am not at liberty to repeat here. Suffice to say, Rooney’s advisers would have benefited greatly in a financial sense from any move.

The potential buying clubs – Arsenal and Chelsea – were also trying to use the media to their advantage. Arsenal let it be known that they would be prepared to meet the player’s wages, whilst Jose Mourinho not too subtly stated that Rooney was the only player that he was interested in signing. This, of course, was prior to Chelsea signing Willian, Eto’o and Atsu! The selling club, Manchester United, let it be known that they didn’t want to sell the player, especially to Chelsea.

Within the midst of all this briefing and counter briefing, which way was the humble tabloid journalist meant to turn? You have three clubs giving you ‘information’ about a major story, as well as the agency giving ‘direct access’ to whatever the player is thinking. The end result is that stories differ wildly from week to week and the odds on Rooney moving to a particular club fluctuated wildly on an almost daily basis, depending upon which party has the ear of the journalist at that particular time.

Any journalist worth his salt would be sure to maintain contacts within some of the biggest clubs in the game. The only way that they can do this is by playing along with the various clubs and agents and publishing whatever they are told. Whilst Marca is widely derided across Europe as being a Real Madrid mouthpiece, various journalists could be accused of being exactly the same within the UK.

The case of Francesc Fabregas (or ‘Cesc’ as Manchester United referred to him) was equally intriguing. Well informed sources maintain that United had been talking to Fabregas’ representatives since at least May, possibly even earlier. The papers were again seemingly briefed by all four parties. At one point, the player was ‘keen’ on the move, then at another point the figure of £40m was mooted. That the bidding process was played out in public was undoubtedly a mistake by Moyes and Woodward.

However, Fabregas’ most recent quote that he would “never have signed for Manchester United” beggars belief. Are we really to assume in the modern era that the player’s agent wouldn’t have been sounded out in advance of a bid, with potential terms and conditions agreed? The summer papers reflected the briefings of that time – the wages were right, now up to the clubs,or so the message went. That being said, I understand that Fabregas can hardly come out now and say “Yep the wages were great and I was ready to go”…could he?

What really is amusing about the whole Rooney and Fabregas circus is how three clubs missed out on what they needed the most. Barcelona, in need of a centre back, wanted David Luiz. Chelsea, needing an out and out striker, wanted Rooney. United, needing a creative midfielder, wanted Fabregas. They could all have had what they wanted without hardly any net spend. I guess somewhere the press briefings backfired.

So, what were the tales from the tabs? We saw some lazy journalism, some good journalism and even some plagiarism! What we didn’t see was the newspapers carrying the messages that the clubs, players and agents wanted us to hear. We saw rumours, bluffs and outright lies, and we lapped it all up. Maybe, instead of questioning the journalists, we should question the sources of the journalists.

There is one big game being played and all the big players are playing each other. And what of we, the uninformed reader? We love it. Gossip, rumour and counter rumour are fundamental parts of being a football fan. Knowing this all too well, the players in ‘the transfer game’ can feed us whatever they want, knowing that we will lap it all up week after week.

Now, who wants to know the REAL story about Ronaldo coming back to Old Trafford?!