Yesterday's Sunday Sun in Newcastle contained what's either an eye-opening or completely unsurprising admission from Alan Pardew that Newcastle United no longer can nor will compete with wealthy clubs like Spurs and Liverpool on wages for players. "Pardew says United will have to get there by squeezing the most out of what they’ve got – and discovering more hidden gems like Cheik Tiote in the transfer market," reported the Sun and Journal's Mark Douglas.
Monitoring Twitter and the message boards, these pronouncements don't seem to be getting a warm welcome across the Toon diaspora. However - as the article points out - big paydays haven't worked out particularly well in recent NUFC history. On the contrary, disproportionate wages, in any sport, tend to attract a certain brand of high-reward, higher-risk player: the mercenary.
In professional sport, of course, all the guns are hired, so they all fit the dictionary definition of mercenary. Behind the scenes, though, the term is reserved colloquially for the player whose scoreboard is his contract - who's more concerned about pay than the game he's being paid to play. Unless you know or cover the players and are eyewitness to the mansions and sports cars and pendulous bling, it can be hard to pick out the mercenaries from the rest of the pros. But one might assume, for example, that a player demanding repeated wage increases while living the dream of starring for his hometown club might fit the popular concept of mercenary (see photo).
Because wages are supreme for the mercenary, they and their agents often command top cash when they change clubs. But because the wage is the end of their game rather than the beginning, they often lack the ability to raise their performance when their teams most need them. So it's perhaps fitting that Pardew's confession on wages comes concurrent with reports out of Liverpool that Andy Carroll is having trouble living up to his record transfer fee. If you don't believe News of the World, ask Liverpool's supporters, with whom Carroll's stock is falling faster than a Microsoft mobile device. The other day, in a cynical moment, I tweeted from @NUFC_US, "Have we received an offer from Liverpool on Cabaye yet?" To which a Liverpool fan shot back, "We'll get relegated if we keep buying your shite!"
So here's to being smart instead of rich. If Newcastle can't afford the Messis of the world, let's be glad they can't afford the Carrolls either. The current transfer window is bound to be about hunting for bargains: the young Frenchman striving to be proven, the Senegalese sniper dragging a nicked-up knee, the once-touted Turk coming off a disappointing season, the prodigal son who needed an absence from Newcastle for his heart to grow fond. Leave Arsenal fall for Gervinho's endless strip tease. This summer, we can hope for new arrivals who will appreciate the chance Newcastle is giving them - and live up to it when it counts.
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