The Footie - World Soccer News

43 opinions for Despicable Gallas Threatened To Score An Own Goal

• jason
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:42 am

  ONly an idiot could possibly believe this trype from the CHelsea camp. I am astounded they can be so petty. As a neutral fan I think gallas looks like one of the most respectful professionals in the league. To call Gallas diabolical because of things Chelsea are saying to get their fans on their side who are annoyed at losing Gallas is unbelieveable. Your not responsible enough to put headlines on the internet.

• Gooner 1
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:45 am

  If What Chelsea are saying is true then your article is correct in condeming Gallas. However as Chelsea have no class or morals I would believe the player over the club any day of the week. If he (Gallas) was so despeicable why did they not say so earlier, reason = he didn’t make those threats and like the spoilt child Mourinho can not take getting his own way, so lashes out in all directions. It is also a great cover for the “slave” jibe at the French.

• mjc
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:47 am

  You’ll be a spurs fan then - so why not put that in the name of your blog?

• robinvp
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:51 am

  the only thing despicable is the way the chavs are handling this whole situation.
  they ahve doen more to damage football in the last 2 years with their sordid behaviour.
  fisbarca accusations
  jhon obiu mikel affair.

  one question to ask if and its a very big if gallas had actually said what he is accused of saying why then did the chavs go on to offer him a improved contract? in all the games i have seen gallas played he has vever shirked his duties for france or chavski.
  as for calling him a money grabber thats a lugh. they ahve destroyed the transfer market with their money and pay players rediculus wages yet call gallas one of their LOWEST paid stars a money grabber.
  chavski are a disgrace and when this story unfolds more they will eat humble pie AGAIN!!!

• Alan
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:51 am

  Jason: Chelsea have issued an official statement on this matter saying these very things. If they are categorically untrue then they leave themselves open to being taken to court and punished severely for libelling William Gallas. I think it’s plain to see that by coming out directly with an official statement that these claims are correct. From one idiot to another, maybe you aren’t responsible to comment on issues on the internet.

  mjc: I’m a football blogger, this blog covers all kinds of football and it doesn’t take Sherlock Holmes to spot I’m a Spurs fan although I do sometimes leave that baggage at the door. What have Spurs got to do with the Gallas issue anyway? Absolutely nothing so why bring their name into it?

• Harryboy
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:52 am

  What makes me laugh is peoples willingness to take everything on face value and blurt out their opinion without pause for thought. I will neither side with either Chelski or Gallas on this subject, as all it will be is a case of counter claim after counter claim and then denials. Unless you were there it is very hard to pass comment. Perhaps rather than been involved in playground taunting all involved should just thank each other and walk away. I cannot wait for coles book and accusations. All we all want is to watch football.

• Gersh
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:54 am

  Have they not been criticised from all quarters enough? Fined enough? Officially warned by the FA enough? Officially warned by UEFA enough?

  They lie, force referees into retirement, openly tap up players, break the rules, ruin young players’ careers, spoil the game with ridiculous wages and transfer fees for squad players, then even after all of that, they want to convince everyone that they have a good image. Lets face it, he gave them five years and he deserves credit just like cole deserved it.

• Joe London
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:54 am

  What a classless bunch the directors of Chelski are. Why would anyone believe this drivel about Gallas leaving for more money - everyone knows he took a paycut to join Arsenal!
  They should learn to behave with dignity and maturity rather than dragging the game into the gutter. When Cole left Arsenal, Wenger could have publicly slated his behaviour, but he thanked hime for 9 years service and wished him well.
  The only own goal being scored is by Chelsea’s board who know the price of everything and the value of nothing.

• Jude 704
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:55 am

  Obviously you are a Chelsea Supporter…

• Graham
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:55 am

  I really think that you should question the truth and the motive of anything Jose M says. After all gallas has denied it.
  Did he not prove his capacity for lying over the Ashley Cole affair? Has he not often shown how bitter he gets when he is personally criticised, as Gallas did? Is he not the formost mind game participant?
  These revelations sound to me like a man trying not to fall out of favour with his boss.

• Harryboy
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:55 am

  Alan just reading your response to MJC, it is a little fickle considering you brought up the sol campbell issue in your piece? did you not? What has that do with the Gallas issue, nothing so why bring his name into it? your wording matey.

• John
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:56 am

  Well, the general consensus seems to be that it’s Chelsea’s PR who have scored a the own goal with this. Look at the lack of respect they show other clubs with their tapping up of Cole, those Leeds youngsers, etc. Gallas may not have covered himself in glory (according the statement), but Michael Essien acted in the same way when he wanted out of Lyon. Chelsea were perfectly willing to allow that to happen as long as they wanted to sign the player. But when the tables are turned they throw their toys out of the pram. Chelsea are football’s cancer.

• Wingston75
  Sep 5, 2006 at 10:57 am

  And you believe it without any proof? The same way I’m sure you believed Mourinho when he said he was nowhere near the hotel, (he said he was in italy checking on another player), when cole was meeting kenyon et al, and was then proven to have been there, cos that wasn’t proven to have been a falsehood was it!!!

  Either you’re very trusting, very gullible, a cjelscum fan or a little hasty in posting what reads like an inane naiv pile of bollocks. Which is it?

  it may well be true. It may not. But don’t believe the first thing you read or hear,because more often than nnot it is not true, and more lies under the surface than is first apparent…

  »»Arsene Knows««

• mjc
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:02 am

  Thanks Harryboy, I was about to reply the same.

  Regarding the voracity and possible legal ramifications of the Chelsea statement, I imagine (after hearing their spokesman on Sky Sports News) that Gallas said: “OK Jose, but I’m so mad - don’t blame me if I do something crazy if I’m on that pitch today….”
  So, it could be, technically true, but spoken in anger, and hardly worthy of an official website, and certainly not worth repeating in trying to sully the name of a play who has played hard for a team for five years.

• swedish goon
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:03 am

  Alan your article is just what Chel$ki hopes for. Theres no reason for not beliveing Gallas, he has never been in any trouble before and the lad is 29 not 19, but is there any reason for disbelieving Chel$ki? Of course the answer is yes. Chelsea has no morals, they have made a mockery out of football all around Europe and they are the reason for such anal transfer fees (except when the want to buy an arsenal player, then they wont pay up) being paid just to put world class players on the bench (as berlosconi once did at Milan). The bottomline is that Chelsea have no class. No class.

• mjc
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:06 am

  John - I can’t agree with you that this is an own-goal by Chelsea’s PR department. If you re-read the statement it is glaringly obvious that the statement has not come from a native English speaker. Specifically the wording in regard to the wage structure is bizarre. These are Mourinho’s words, and, I believe, the shuddupayouface article on the “slavery” row come from the same source.
  Personally, I reckon he’ll be gone the day Chelsea get knocked out of Europe.

• Alan
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:11 am

  Of course Chelsea have no class, a brief read through some of the other rants I’ve put together about them and their Special manager over the past while on here will show you exactly what my feelings are about that club and it ain’t positive.

  However, I don’t agree with the way players are currently carrying out threats to nobble their current clubs or retire altogether (Diarra at Lyon) if they don’t get an immediate move despite being under contract. Modern top level footballers sicken me and for any player to threaten his club in this way (even Chelsea who have, as some of you say, done more than any other club to drag football through the mud) is unforgivable.

• Grimsby
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:16 am

  Only the most one eyed Chelsea fan would believe the classless piece of spin released by Chelsea.It has to be questioned why if William did threaten to do such an appauling thing Chelsea didn’t immediately suspend him as any other club would have(imagine Mr Ferguson’s reaction to a threat from Rio to purposely score an own goal if he wasn’t granted his wish to leave?)It seems all to suspicious to me that Jose went noticibly quiet for days after the sale of Gallas and then almost a week after the event Chelsea decide to release the horror story which Gallas vehemently denies…….don’t be a mug all your life.

• Jon
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:19 am

  I find your unswerving belief in everything that Chelsea’s PR department say a little odd bearing in mind that you “have little sympathy for Chelsea in most matters”. Just to point out some gems:

  “..he was hawking himself to the highest bidder..” (Don’t Chelsea actually rely on players of other clubs doing just this - you know, secret meetings in hotel rooms and such?)

  “Chelsea has a wage structure in place…” (yeah, right)

  “Jose Mourinho generously offered him a way back into the “family”..” ( Don Jose put a horse’s head in his bed, maybe??)

  “William Gallas rarely recognised these responsibilities. He also failed to recognise the role Jose Mourinho and Chelsea played in helping him become a double Premiership champion for a player whose only league title prior to that had been in the French Second Division.” (So, never a decent player in his own right then - how charitable of Chelsea to keep him)

  “Clearly this was a totally unacceptable situation for the manager, the team and the club. So a collectively agreed solution in Chelsea’s interests had to be found, hence his departure.” (Translation: “Yah-boo, nuh-ne-nuh-ne-nuh-nuh, Mr poo-poo head, ploppy-bum Gallas, never wanted you in in the first place so we gave you to Arsenal we did, oh yeah. And my Dad’s bigger than yours, so there”)

  Frankly, the only people who are dumber than Chelsea’s PR team - headed by Simon Greenburg, a man who does the job of two men (Laurel & Hardy) - are any people who actually believe a word that they’ve got to say.

• Sack the Juggler
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:24 am

  As a complete neutral, I think neither Chelsea or Gallas has come out well in all this.

  Gallas has behaved like an idiot and has thrown his toys out of his pram. He’s supposed to be a professional sportsman and he gets paid huge amounts of money so maybe he should think about earning them. He needs to remember that the boss IS the boss, and therefore decides who should and who shouldn’t play and in what position, he shouldn’t throw his toys out the pram and threaten to withdraw his services etc. (this doesn’t just apply to Gallas it applies to any footballer who moans about his situation - and that includes Cole for moaning about the club not being loyal to him when he was fined for entering into talks behind their backs (and thereby proving what a hypocrite he is)).

  Chelsea have come out of it badly too. They continue to be defensive about everything anyone says about them instead of being grown up about it, so they react to every one or everything that is thrown at them, including defeat. They appear to be still trying to be accepted as worthy league champions instead of letting their football do their talking.

  I know other managers and other clubs and other players could all be accused of the above, but the fact is that Chelsea seems to be busting a gut trying to prove something at the minute, and they don’t have to, they just need to point to their trophy cabinet and shut up.

• Alasdair Reid
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:30 am

  This despicable accusation will now quite rightly be the subject of a legal action. Rather more interesting, however, is the rumour doing the rounds in the City that Abramovitch has now set a provisional timetable for his departure. There were apparently articles in Russian language newspapers last week. He has, however, set his heart on wining the Champions’ League before he goes.

  Does anyone know how much he’s spent on Chelsea (I’ve been told it’s well over half a billion pounds) and whether he’ll want some of that back when he goes?

  And can you get odds on who will go first? Abramovitch or Tony Blair?

• Harry Barracuda
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:32 am

  Another sad blog from another sad twat.

• Nathan
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:33 am

  What happened to innocent until proven guilty?

  The only thing so far is hear say there is no hard evidence.

  The more despicable is chelsea placing this slander on their offical website.

  It shows what a small club (trying to big) they are.

  Could you imagine Arsenal, Man Utd, Liverpool putting something like that on their website?

  It would never happen as they have more class.

  Gallas has only made statement that has been released in the press, so unless he has been to saying thing to chelsea behind close doors, even that is fabrication.

  The condemnation of Gallas on this site and others is disgusting, maybe Gallas doesn’t fit the profile of someone to be talked about in good terms.

  If this was john terry, there wouldn’t be as many bad words said on here, other forums and the multiple media sources.

  Unfortuately for Gallas he isn’t english and white.

• mark
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:37 am

  “I never said that I would score an own goal. I was very firm in my will to leave, that is clear, and I will explain at the appropriate time why.”

  When is the appropriate time William? We’ve been waiting for months and months now mate. How long is it going to take? You owe us and the club at least that. And you dare talk to us about class? At least Ashley Cole gave Arsenal a proper reason for leaving.

• NyssietheGooner
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:42 am

  You’re a d*ck to believe the sh*t that Chel$ki have come out with.

  All you need do is look at how the respective managers dealt with the situation. AW wished Cole the best of luck when he left. JM wanted to keep Gallas at Staford Bridge to ‘rot on the bench’

  Says a lot about them as individuals wouldn’t you agree?

  UP THE GUNNERS!

• John
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:55 am

  Mark - Cole gave Arsenal “proper reason” for leaving - What? That he felt let down when he was fined for breaking the terms of his contract and talking to another club without Arsenal’s concent? Yep, that’s a valid reason for feeling disgruntled. A better reason would have been that he’s a greedy little no-class chav (look at those wedding pictures) and therefore would feel more at home at the bridge.

• Boz
  Sep 5, 2006 at 11:56 am

  Yeah Mark. Cole wanted lot’s more money, if that’s a proper reason. Gallas wanted to be treated with dignity. That’s why Cole is now at Chelsea and Gallas is at Arsenal.

• mark
  Sep 5, 2006 at 12:18 pm

  Boz it’s lots more money mate, not lot’s more money, learn how to spell. John and Boz, however much you dislike the reason, it’s still a proper reason. Gallas doesn’t have a reason. He said he wanted to try another league, that’s evidently not true. So what is the reason? I would like to know having cheered him at the Bridge for 5 years.

• mjc
  Sep 5, 2006 at 12:27 pm

  Mark:

  Gallas gave his reason for wanting to leave quite clearly in the Independent on Sunday interview in March of this year: he did not feel he was being respected as a player, and was not being given the chance to prove he is a world class centre-back.

  It’s the sort of reason why people change their jobs everyday - not being recognised for the thing at which you are best.

  Christ, if Arsenal had being playing Ashley Cole at right-back, I don’t thing they’d have been many complaints if he’d put in a transfer request.

  PS. You can check my grammar if it makes you feel better….

• mark
  Sep 5, 2006 at 12:38 pm

  Mourinho doesn’t know the reason either and asked Gallas to hold a press conference to tell everyone. Gallas refused to play for Chelsea whilst still under contract. Cole made himself available for selection and even played in the reserves recently. Gallas flatly refused which gives me the impression that he did say he’d score an own goal if he was forced to play.

• mark
  Sep 5, 2006 at 12:48 pm

  mjc. If Arsenal had (being?) playing Ashley Cole at right back, Arsenal would have lost even more games than they did last year. The difference is that when Gallas plays at left back, he is one of the best in the country whether he likes it or not. Cole can’t play at right back.

• Eddie
  Sep 5, 2006 at 12:57 pm

  To quote Liam Brady, “All Arsenal were guilty of was to offer to double his wages”.

  Arsenal refused to pay for Cole’s agent’s commission as he was acting on Cole’s behalf, not the club’s, but when the club were told that they had to, they simply decided to take it out of his wage packet instead to cover the cost - seems extremely fair to me.

  Barnett then duped Cole into a meeting with Chelsea, heaping the blame on Arsenal when Cole had not attended the negotiation meetings (few players do) so he didn’t know what had been said behind closed doors. This problem was all down to Barnett’s greed and Cole’s stupidity.

  Gallas, whilst no angel himself, is another story. I don’t believe that one was about money as Chelsea can afford to pay whatever they want. This was about being played out of position very consistently and being made to pay for the manager’s lack of acumen in the transfer market. Having to play out of position to cover for an incompetent left back like Del Horno was down to the manager not getting the right player for the job. And to see your place at centre back taken by a nincompoop like Carvalho must really have been galling for the lad.

  Furthermore, a seasoned French international who has played in a World Cup final is worth at least the same salary as Lampard and Terry, who are decent players, but by no means world beaters.

  I believe chelsea never thought the fans would react with disappointment at his sale and are quickly trying to quell any sustained discontent by making outlandish statements and accusations that no doubt stem from training ground rows rather than official declarations verified by lawyers from Gallas that he would score own goals if picked.

  Mourinho will be gone by next summer.

• mjc
  Sep 5, 2006 at 12:58 pm

  mark (or Mark as it should be):
  Your point is completely irrelevant. Ashley Cole at right back was for the purpose of illustration only.

  I might be very good at doing the filing in my office, I might be the best person in the world at doing the filing. But if I believe that I am actually a damn good salesman, then I’m not going to be happy just doing the filing. And I’ll get a new job, with a new employer. (And hopefully I’d get a better reference that Gallas did!)

• mark
  Sep 5, 2006 at 1:07 pm

  mjc. I’m not too sure about your illustrations but I am sure about one thing and that is that you’re an arsehole.

• Fred
  Sep 5, 2006 at 1:29 pm

  Heh I love it. These same Chelski fans would have been idolising Gallas a year or two back. He is a good defender and it is obvious he didn’t like the environment at Chelski. He wanted out and eventually managed to get free despite Chelski trying to fk up his career.

  The cracks are starting to show this season. Let’s hope they get nice and big to keep us all amused this year :)

• vivb
  Sep 5, 2006 at 1:30 pm

  Gallas gave Chalsea 6 seasons, but appears not to have liked Mourinhio and his methods. Maybe he is money motivated but when he is on £40,000 and Terry is on £100,000 a week maybe he felt a little less regarded. I understood he requested a transfer last May, he wanted to go to Italy. Cole wanted to go to Real Madrid. However as a result of the Italian match fixing, continental teams filled their boots with defenders leaving Chelsea and Arsenal with problems. I can slightly understand Gallas’ wage demands this was his last pay day I presume Chelsea didn’t pay a loyalty bonus, they apparantly paid Cole’s £3m bonus that Arsenal refused to pay.

  What is undeniable though is that Gallas will strengthen Arsenal more than Cole will Chelsea (what now for Bridge). I can only think Chelsea think their brand will be strengthened by containing the whole England team remember their pursuit of Gerard.

  It feels like Roman is sabotaging Jose’s Champions League ambitions to make way for his chosen man Hiddink.

  Chelsea will be found guilty of tapping up the Leeds youth players and Academy coach (Spurs fans so quickly forget the poaching of Arnesen) and will receive a transfer ban or 3 points deduction. I think that says more about the club and why anything they say should be taken with a pinch of salt.

• mjc
  Sep 5, 2006 at 1:42 pm

  mark: you kiss your mother with that mouth?

• JD
  Sep 5, 2006 at 3:13 pm

  er - he did play in the FA cup semi though

• CC
  Sep 5, 2006 at 3:32 pm

  He did play but he didn’t want to. No wonder we lost. He obviously made some deliberate mistakes. I think I even remember one or two.

• shooy
  Sep 5, 2006 at 3:37 pm

  “Chelsea have issued an official statement on this matter saying these very things. If they are categorically untrue then they leave themselves open to being taken to court and punished severely for libelling William Gallas. I think it’s plain to see that by coming out directly with an official statement that these claims are correct.”

  ffs Alan, I hope you’re not a lawyer! It’s an official statement, so it must be correct? I can think of a few reasons why it might not be correct and why it might suit Chelsea’s purpose to set this particular hare running. As for throwing in that loopy litigation angle, well there’s the simple consideration of their word against his. Also, there’s the possibility that Chelsea are prepared to take the risk on the basis that a legal case is likely to be impossible to prove one way or the other and good legal advice would quickly persuade Gallas not to bother. It’s a pretty fool proof strategy, because on the one hand Chelsea would love Gallas to escalate matters, make the story run and run for ages and become unsettled by the issue, but then if he takes no action, it’s obvious they must have been telling the truth, isn’t it?. Don’t let your anti-Arsenal goggles completely dull your critical faculties and blind you to other possibilities.

• Sack the Juggler
  Sep 6, 2006 at 9:52 am

  According to the papers; Gallas is considering legal action over the comments, his Dad has said he wouldn’t do such a thing (that’s what Dad’s are for), Domenech has “hit out” at Chelsea’s claims (although to be fair Domenech is looking for things to “hit” Chelsea with at the minute), Ranieri has said “I don’t beleive it” (in his best Victor Meldrew voice follwed by Ranieri’s manic smile no doubt), and even Gordon Brown supporters have come out and asked for Mourinho to step down (hang on, maybe they were talking about Blair).

  You know with all these wonderful people backing Gallas it may just be that the Jose should admit that due being overcome from the glare from Gallas’s halo that maybe he misheard Gallas’s comments.

  Sorry but I know Jose is a megalomanic, and he has a chip on his shoulder with the world not recognising what he has achieved, but its quite clear that Gallas didn’t want to play for the club anymore and was trying to manouvre a way out all summer long. And whilst that doesn’t mean he did say those comments, and due to his other acts of petty rebellion I wouldn’t put it past him, so all these guys saying he wouldn’t do that, would they all say he wouldn’t miss pre-season tours too?

  I’m not a Chelsea fan, and I know their actions show a distinct lack of class, but I find it comical that Gallas is being portrayed as a victim in all this.

• jonathan okanlawon
  Sep 7, 2006 at 2:07 am

  That’s is definitely childish. CHELSEA FC ARE LIARS. THUMBS UP GALLAS.

• aadithya
  Sep 20, 2006 at 8:23 am

  I agree with Harryboy to an extent as it is Chelsea’s word versus Gallas’ at this point. However over the years i do think Gallas has had a very clean record so it is quite out of character to suggest he would make that threat.
  Also, i don’t see greed being the reason Gallas left as Mourinho definetly wanted him and therefore I’m sure would have offered as much money as it would take, remember Chelsea offered Crespo a plane at his disposal to fly back to Italy when he felt homesick rather than let him leave to Internazionale initially.

  The reason Cole left doesn’t really tie in here because it seems on that occasion there was greed and ambition, the latter which could also be considered greed over loyalty. The fact is if money was a consideration, then Mr Cole has proven that Chelsea is the place to go. I think Gallas really did leave for footballing reasons. Either the rotation of position, or perhaps because Abramovich wanted the higher profile Carvalho to partner Terry, with Cole on the left and ferriera on the right. Gallas had great support amongst Chelsea fans and in fact the whole premiership, myself a Liverpool fan think he is one of the top 4 centrebacks in the premiership alongside terry, carragher and rio ferdinand, it seems that Chelsea are trying to justify his sale, especially for the Chelsea fans.

Have an opinion? Leave a comment:

• Use this area to discover new blogs and content in the b5media network.
• Beauty & Style
• Business
• Entertainment
• General
• Health & Wellness
• Lifestyles
• Music
• Sports
• Team Blogs
• Technology
• Travel & Culture

• Social Web
• E-mail