Come Off It, Carlos, You'll Give Insincerity a Bad Name [Scot Region Edition 2]

Summary

---

CARLOS TEVEZ declined to celebrate the two goals he scored for Manchester City against West Ham the other evening. Instead, he gave the fans of his former club a small wave of apology. Soft hearts that they are, they responded with grateful applause. And a soft- focus, lip-trembling, stomachturning saga unfolded. The West Ham manager, Gianfranco Zola, called him 'a gentleman'. The back page headlines went into drool mode while the phone-ins were besieged by forelocktugging Cockneys from Central Casting: 'Gawd bless you, Carlos. You're a regular gent and no mistake.' Whereupon Tevez started to say things like: 'In my heart, part of me will always be a Hammer ... I hope I've not damaged them too much now.' It was the kind of drivel that gets insincerity a bad name. Because the facts are simple. Tevez left West Ham when his 'advisers' decided he could make a great deal more money with Manchester United. And he left Old Trafford when Sir Alex Ferguson refused to pay the staggering price which those same 'advisers' were demanding. The player is perfectly entitled to take those career decisions. He is not, however, entitled to take the rest of us for fools.

In fairness, Tevez may have done the game some service by drawing attention to the whole business of the goal celebration, that choreographed caper which always evokes the image of a toddler misbehaving at a birthday party. It is the excessive rehearsal which kills spontaneity, the knowledge that players who might have been learning how to kick with both feet have instead been practising dance steps. A personal cringe is that twee little 'cradling' routine which is meant to signify proud fatherhood.

See the full content of this document

Extract

---

Come Off It, Carlos, You'll Give Insincerity a Bad Name [Scot Region Edition 2]

Of course, we expect players to be pl...

See the full content of this document

---