Excuse the rant. Football is in an odd time at the moment. It’s odd, because for seemingly the first time (at least I can remember) fans are rapidly falling out of love with the game. I think League 1 and Championship players are symptomatic of this. I can handle that premier league players being paid obscene amounts. I don’t care, that league is alien to me. I honestly don’t really see how proper football fans support a top 4 premier league team any more really. What irks me the most, is players like the ones we have. Their lack of professionalism, guts, and to be honest talent are completely detached from the amount of money we have to pay to keep them at our club. I’m not going to name names, but there’s many of our current squad who have made it quite clear that the thousands we give them each week is nowhere near what they perceive their value to be. As such, they can’t wait to leave BFC, and make it quite clear that being here is seemingly below them. I really find it hard to stomach. I’m 35, not old but ‘when I was a lad’ players at this level were mostly cloggers, but were paid more or less what they deserved, tried hard, and weren’t pre Madonna’s. Not saying they were good, but this sense of entitlement, whilst putting out absolute tosh, didn’t happen. I’m not sure where this has come from, or how we’ve got here, but I can’t quite believe it, frankly. Don’t even get me started on the championship, where 10k a week barely gets you a half decent squad player. These lower league ‘pros’ are, in my mind, literally killing the game. Our turnover this year will barely cover the wages, we are breaking our club, living beyond our means, to pay for footballers who are barely competent. I hope this generation of footballers looks back with guilt. I doubt it.
Football is dying a death unfortunately. I think it had its time in the 60s-80s, and when Sky bought it it kind of jumped the shark. Money is killing it. The "hardcore" fanbases of lower league clubs get all the stick too, always getting asked: "Who do you support?" "Chesterfield" "Yeah, but what Premiership team?" "None" *blank stare* Then you get Yorkshire based Man Utd/Chelsea fans taking the p!ss saying "ohh what's in Rotherham's trophy cabinet? Just dust lol" Yeah, like Rotherham have the money to buy trophies. Not a sport anymore, just a business and a way for people to get an ego trip by buying into Man City's turn to spend Arab oil money
It does feel a bit pointless doesn’t it. There’s no hope for clubs without big money for whatever league they’re in.
Talking of money. Get ready for the Wrexham juggernaut next season and Sky’s love in with Ryan Reynolds.
You say you’re not going to name names but I don’t think a lack of efforts an issue so I’d love to know who you’re referring to. Cole’s body language is bad but it was when he was scoring in fairness. You can’t begrudge a player for wanting big money. It’s a short career. You’ve only got to look at the serious injuries players like Mawson & Winnall got. Luckily for them they got the big deals before their bodies gave up on them but many don’t. I don’t get what you mean about a sense of entitlement. Fans speculate but what players have said that they want to leave? Kane gave one sulky interview but he didn’t say he wanted to leave. None of the other out of contract players have said anything. If Williams is getting offered a grand or two more a week at his hometown club in Huddersfield then good luck to him. If Kane can get more money & be nearer to Bristol then what’s the issue? Did the lads back in the day care like these pro’s did. They were out on the piss half of the week, plenty of them smoked. The difference nowadays is everything’s online. The honest pros from back in the day were probably trying to engineer moves for more money you just never heard about it.
