"Most footballers are knobs"

So who do you think said that? Those of you that listen to Radio 4 (in the UK) might know already. The rest of you might be surprised to hear that it was Joey Barton, Newcastle United's "bad boy".

Barton was interviewed this morning because Tony Adams, former Arsenal and England Captain and founder of the Sporting Chance clinic, was the guest editor. Barton attended the Sporting Chance clinic to learn anger management.

He came across, as he has before, as quite forthright yet humble (and I think I said that before he got into trouble last time). It has now been two years since he has had a drink, having realised after attending his anger management course and still finding trouble, that alcohol was actually the common denominator.

He was asked why footballers seem to get into so much trouble, which was when he pronounced that basically "most footballers are knobs", which he explained as buying the flashest cars and changing them "like their socks", wearing ridiculous diamond watches, and so on. But he also raised the important issue, that footballers are not raised in the real world. Professional football in the UK is different to the big American sports, for example, that takes its pros from the college system which means that, at least to some extent, they have to give some attention to their education and mix with other students. As Barton explained it, in the UK, kids are taken into football clubs and treated as special from 8 or 9 years of age, and become extremely well paid, high performing athletes who are "crap at life". They never grow up.

I'm not close enough to professional football to know if the academy system is changing this, or whether professional football clubs are doing more to teach their young players social and personal skills, or to take responsibility for their behaviour, but if not they must.

--
Rob Robson
Co-founder, iStadia.com