Yaya Toure - commits future to City (page 855)

[Shaelumstash]

Re: Yaya Toure

I agree with your points regarding business people and his agent. However, I think the footballing world is changing. In the past I would agree the greatest motivation for footballers was glory. But generational focuses change and I believe status has begun to become just as important. Unfortunately, in a capitalist system status is usually equated with material wealth, which requires money. The more money the more possessions one accumulates. I won't go into a long winded analysis of hyperreality in the world of sport but in short I think money and recognition are equal drivers of today's adult athletes (as is the case for the population at large). There does seem to be trend away from that with the younger generation demanding ethical satisfaction, which has its benefits and concerns, but I don't believe Yaya is of that generation (and it requires conditioning, which is where the trend has originated).

Still, these are just my thoughts.

I completely understand where you are coming from, and in the main I agree with the points you are making. However, I think sport, and football in particular, there are other measures of a player's status that are more important than personal wealth.

Samuel Eto'o was one of the highest paid players in the world at Anzhi, but if anything his status fell when he went there. Messi could have doubled his wage if he's moved to Anzhi, but he would have had no chance of winning the Balon D'Or or the Champions League, so he'd rather stay at Barca.

As I said earlier, I do think being the highest paid player is important for the top footballers, but I think their motivation is more about being seen as the best. Messi becoming the highest paid player in the world probably helps to validate his opinion that he is the best player. I think that is more important to him than the extra 3 million cash a year.

I think winning is the primary motivation for most sportsmen. You have to have that personality type as a kid to stand out in the first place. Of course the money is important, but I think it's more about what the money represents - i.e. the recognition.

The difference I think with money driven people in the business world is that the money, and material possessions are the measures of success which motivate them. They could care less about the industry accolades, because they grew up imagining having the Ferrari and the Yacht. Whereas I think most footballers grow up imagining winning the World Cup, Champions League, and Balon D'Or.

I actually agree with your points if we were discussing a footballer from the previous generation and/or from a western country. But I think Yaya's generation, from an economically impoverish region of the world (caused in no small part but the western world, mind), value money quite a bit. And the money is more than just status, but also realization of stability. Once you have it you crave to maintain it. A very similar psychological trend was studied in the US after the Great Depression (and now again after the latest recession, actually). There is some evidence of a similar cultural shift in England from what I've read as of late.

I think context is king here but I understand why you would disagree and you make a good case.

It's not that I disagree mate, I actually agree with what you're saying in the main. I definitely think money is a motivation for players, and as you pointed out, possibly more so than normal for Yaya. I'm just saying I don't think it is the only motivation for top players. I think most players earning 10m plus a year would take a 1m drop in wages if it meant they would be guaranteed winning the Balon D'or / World Cup.

I agree about him wanting more money, and I think he just leaves that kind of thing to Seluk. As I said earlier, he's helped take him from poverty to an incredibly rich man, so it is understandable that Yaya is happy to be lead by him. Personally I believe anyone that doesn't think this whole think is being lead by his agent as opposed to Yaya himself, is being naive.

 

[RadcliffeRick]

Re: Yaya Toure

I would love it if a club took the hard line against players/agents that pull this type of stunt. A loan spell at Accrington Stanley for a season. Don't want to play? Breach of contract with hold wages. I think that would put some clarity into their thought processes.

 

[CHAMPIONS 2014]

Re: Yaya Toure

I would love it if a club took the hard line against players/agents that pull this type of stunt. A loan spell at Accrington Stanley for a season. Don't want to play? Breach of contract with hold wages. I think that would put some clarity into their thought processes.

 

[SebastianBlue]

Re: Yaya Toure

I completely understand where you are coming from, and in the main I agree with the points you are making. However, I think sport, and football in particular, there are other measures of a player's status that are more important than personal wealth.

Samuel Eto'o was one of the highest paid players in the world at Anzhi, but if anything his status fell when he went there. Messi could have doubled his wage if he's moved to Anzhi, but he would have had no chance of winning the Balon D'Or or the Champions League, so he'd rather stay at Barca.

As I said earlier, I do think being the highest paid player is important for the top footballers, but I think their motivation is more about being seen as the best. Messi becoming the highest paid player in the world probably helps to validate his opinion that he is the best player. I think that is more important to him than the extra 3 million cash a year.

I think winning is the primary motivation for most sportsmen. You have to have that personality type as a kid to stand out in the first place. Of course the money is important, but I think it's more about what the money represents - i.e. the recognition.

The difference I think with money driven people in the business world is that the money, and material possessions are the measures of success which motivate them. They could care less about the industry accolades, because they grew up imagining having the Ferrari and the Yacht. Whereas I think most footballers grow up imagining winning the World Cup, Champions League, and Balon D'Or.

I actually agree with your points if we were discussing a footballer from the previous generation and/or from a western country. But I think Yaya's generation, from an economically impoverish region of the world (caused in no small part but the western world, mind), value money quite a bit. And the money is more than just status, but also realization of stability. Once you have it you crave to maintain it. A very similar psychological trend was studied in the US after the Great Depression (and now again after the latest recession, actually). There is some evidence of a similar cultural shift in England from what I've read as of late.

I think context is king here but I understand why you would disagree and you make a good case.

It's not that I disagree mate, I actually agree with what you're saying in the main. I definitely think money is a motivation for players, and as you pointed out, possibly more so than normal for Yaya. I'm just saying I don't think it is the only motivation for top players. I think most players earning 10m plus a year would take a 1m drop in wages if it meant they would be guaranteed winning the Balon D'or / World Cup.

I agree about him wanting more money, and I think he just leaves that kind of thing to Seluk. As I said earlier, he's helped take him from poverty to an incredibly rich man, so it is understandable that Yaya is happy to be lead by him. Personally I believe anyone that doesn't think this whole think is being lead by his agent as opposed to Yaya himself, is being naive.

Fair enough. I agree this is being lead by Seluk, though, I do believe Yaya is functionally complicit for all the reasons we've discussed.

I hope this matter is resolved before the World Cup. But it could drag out, unfortunately.

 

[LoveCity]

Re: Yaya Toure

300k a week isn't enough?
City fans signing one of the best footy songs EVER sung for a player?
winning the Prem?

All this not good enough for you? you're not loved? bollocks!

- you honestly make me feel sick

it says on Twitter - everything his agent said is true - 'he speaks for me!'

ta ra yer shitter

He doesn't earn close to £300,000/week and maybe that's part of the problem, seeing the inconsistent Shrek become the best paid player in British football history while he earns less.

 

[GaudinoMotors]

Re: Yaya Toure

300k a week isn't enough?
City fans signing one of the best footy songs EVER sung for a player?
winning the Prem?

All this not good enough for you? you're not loved? bollocks!

- you honestly make me feel sick

it says on Twitter - everything his agent said is true - 'he speaks for me!'

ta ra yer shitter

He doesn't earn close to £300,000/week and maybe that's part of the problem, seeing the inconsistent Shrek become the best paid player in British football history while he earns less.

You'd think he'd realise that Shrek is overpaid and he's on a very very good number with us. He could look at it the other way and think how fortunate he is to be on more than the best player at the club - David Silva!

 

[Matt the Giant]

Re: Yaya Toure

Yaya had a fantastic PL season for us, no doubt about that.
But is is a rather isolated output.

2010–11
6 goals, 7 assists

2011–12
6 goals, 8 assists

2012–13
6 goals, 4 assists

Not really enough to warrant such a megalomaniac-like attitude.

 

[Plaything of the gods]

Re: Yaya Toure

& there I was thinking this was playing out just perfectly (for City) in the media

think it through...

(as for Yaya's valuation and the clubs who might want & be able to afford him, I've no idea what's going on in Barca, or if he would fancy a return to Monaco, but I'd be shocked if someone hadn't of checked into matters on Yaya's side before laying down the trail of cake crumbs)

I have (it is quite literally my job to consider the long game so I have a tendency of doing it with everything). While it may seem a good tactic to sit back and allow Seluk to spout bizarre diatribes—and for a time it is—beyond a certain point it begins to have a detrimental effect on many aspects of operations, including current and future proposed transfer negotiations, economic development concerns, and media relations.

If it were Marcos Lopes' agent going about making these claims my analysis would be very different but this is a mainstay in our squad who is considered by many (including quite a few very public analysts) to be one of the best midfielders in the world, right or wrong. Influence is greater and potential for loss of control more likely. To think that we should not attempt to influence the narrative is a bit naive.

I don't understand what you're talking about.

The only people coming off badly here are Yaya & his agent.

City have done nothing wrong, and neither do they need to respond publicly on such a farcical matter.

We do have a situation regarding our squad and who will be in it next year, and all that surrounds this, but that's nothing to do with PR initiatives.

It's not a PR problem we have at all, rather the opposite (if you want to look for REAL PROBLEMS that actually need our attention, thought & action)

SSN Radio reporting that City saying they are comfortable with the Yaya Toure situation. It might just be that the club have been in contact with Yaya, demanded to know what is going on and have got an answer. That may be that he is staying or going, but there is no reason to say anything publicly more than they have already.

 

[Dubai Blue]

Re: Yaya Toure

Share price is one reason, yes. But I've already outlined many others. Many private companies have robust PR teams or firms even though they have no such shareholder pressure. And as I have said several times now, they do not need to have an official statement or press conference. But ignoring it as if it is not happening is not an effective away of managing this (and usually leads to the perception of not knowing what to do, or worse, not really knowing what's going on).

The club isn't ignoring it though. In fact they're doing exactly what you suggest. I've seen numerous 'leaks' today that have clearly come directly from the club indicating that City won't be budged on the Yaya issue and that they aren't even concerned by Seluk's outburst as he has a history of pulling this stunt every year. There's nothing more to say on it, which is why they're leaving it at that.

If they really are from our club than I am happy they are taking those steps. They also need to coordinate that with all of the communications teams so it does not seem one element is outside of the strategy. Which is one of my concern.s Do you have links to the 'leaks'. I've reviewed Sky, BBC, and BeIN and there have only been the usual commentary on Yaya and Seluks comments.

Here's one, there are numerous others being fed to the usual sources in the British press: <a class="postlink" href="http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/yaya-toure-transfer-manchester-city-3577770" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/ ... ty-3577770</a>

A lot of videos, photos, tweets, facts, etc are also appearing in the papers that make a direct mockery of most of Seluk's claims. I know most of these were already in the public domain, but it wouldn't surprise me if City have been helping point them in the right direction.

At this point City can't do much more than rubbish the ridiculous claims made by Toure's agent, and they've done that perfectly well. We didn't recognise his birthday? He's our most 'Liked' Facebook post ever. We didn't get him a cake? Here's a video of the players singing happy birthday to him with a cake. Sheikh Mansour didn't shake his hand? Here's a picture of Sheikh Mansour and Yaya shaking hands.

Seluk's claims have been so outlandish that they were always going to garner a negative reaction, but I have no doubt that City have helped shape that a bit behind the scenes.

 

[blue city199]

Re: Yaya Toure

Yaya Toure wants to retire at Barcelona and admits he could leave Manchester City after bizarre birthday farce


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...-City-THIS-SUMMER-bizarre-birthday-farce.html

Yaya Toure's birthday farce could open the door for PSG, but Manchester City will refuse to sell to Premier League rivals United and Chelsea




http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...rthday-cake-snub-blocked-Manchester-City.html

- Manchester City will block any attempt by Yaya Toure to force a transfer following bizarre claims that the new Premier League champions failed to celebrate his 31st birthday properly.

-It emerged on Tuesday that Toure was, in fact, presented with two birthday cakes, on the flight to Abu Dhabi and at the team hotel, and a message on the club’s official Facebook page wishing him a happy birthday received 250,000 ‘likes’ — the most of any post ever on the website

- ! Yay Toure was also backed to the hilt after suffereing racist abuse against CSKA Moscow

- Ivory Coast midfielder is also said to be tempted by a return to Barcelona