One example I can think of : Matt le Tiss

His commitment to a financially less-well-off club like Southampton was unusual in the money-driven world of football. In his autobiography he told of rejecting moves to AC Milan and Chelsea, (the latter having been managed at the time by Glenn Hoddle, who later rejected him as an England player), and tore up a contract he signed with Tottenham Hotspur in 1991.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matthew_Le_Tissier

I see we all have our opinions on who our picks for most loyal footballers are now but as yourself this question. If a player has a spectacular season and you worship him only for him to say he wants to leave next season because another club offers him more money, do you:

a) Thank him for his contributions and say a quite bye bye

OR

b) Curse him for being disloyal

I know a) is the logical answer but I've seen more b) to be honest.

I think we should have stand firm from the beginning. I never liked El Hadji Diouf because I've always thought he was a cheating diving ****, even before we signed him and I wasn't sorry at all to see him leave. If Torres does leave however, I will be sad but I will be thankful and appreciative. After all, he did say that he'd like to go back to Atletico Madrid some day.

I don't think a player needs to be strictly a one-club man to gain respect and trust towards his loyalty from the fans.

I respect players like Fernando Torres (previously of Atletico Madrid), Gabriel Batistuta (Boca Juniors > Fiorentina > AS Roma), Cesc Fabregas (previously of Barcelona) and Roberto Baggio (Fiorentina > Juventus) just to name a few.

Important thing is that they are loyal and passionate about the club they represent, not so much about how many years they have spent in the team.

Gerrard almost swayed to Chelsea couple of years ago even though he was born to play for Liverpool. Yet players like Batistuta stood by Fiorentina through relegation all sorts of crap even though he changed quite a number of clubs beforehand.

It's all down to the principles and characteristics of the player I suppose.

Though personally I prefer players who show loyalty and respect to the club they play for, I also understand why certain players go for big money moves. At the end of the day the player has his own interests to defend just as the club will defend theirs. Whether it's for ambition or a big paycheck it is part and parcel of the game now.

Of course players like Raul, Maldini, Del Piero will always have a special place in fans' hearts. But as long as a player understands the values of the club and shows it on the pitch fans will generally take a liking for the player. There's a reason why Madrid fans like RVN more than Ronaldo (the fat one).

agreed.

gerrard represents the heart n soul of the liverpool team. seems hard not to think of him whenever i think about liverpool. anyway, i think he was just disappointed with his team, because a player of his stature certainly would like to achieve more.

I hate to say this, but Alan Smith stood by Leeds Utd till they are relegated, even though he went to Man Utd, their bitter rivals, the supporters of the club still thanked him.

I however, disliked the way Sol Campbell left for Arsenal.

Are you kidding me? Alan Smith left Leeds to Man Utd and the Leeds fans thanks him?

Just in case you didnt know

I've met with a couple of people from Leeds here in New Zealand, who are both fans of the club. They do not find it too hard to accept the transfer.

There are definitely a few people who do not favour him going to Man Utd, they are rivals after all, but let's not forget the ones who thanked him for fighting for Leeds Utd.

Lets say Torres did leave Liverpool this upcoming January for Man City for obvious reason(money)? How do you respond to that? Does he still deserve your respect?

Please dont respond by saying its never gonna happen becoz well it probably wont. Just in case it did happen

To be honest, I'd be freaking pissed over it. No way I would respect him.

How do you define loyalty? Are the likes of Gerrard and Terry loyal to their club? They probably are but there are times they create havoc while still playing for their beloved club.

Terry = refuse to sign a contract which pays him below Scheva and Ballack
Gerrard = declare that his club ambition doesnt match his

Both are the heart and soul for their club. Yet they create this mess to the anger of their own fans. This is no sign of loyalty as I never heard the likes of Buffon or Totti complaining with this issue.
As for me I still respect those guys (Terry and Gerrard) because they put in 100% effort whenever they are playing. Just curious on how supporters for both club take on this..

Well this example is based on papers talk. If someone has proof that both issues are not true, kindly correct me.

BTW how do you guys view the Alan Smith situation? Does he deserve to be called Judas under those circumstances? IMO if he really loves Leeds he wont even consider the move whatever the reason is. That is why until today I cannot forgive Sol Campbell for leaving us to our london rival, Arsenal.

loyalty... or money... if its up to me, honestly ill pick money:p
but then again, for people already had enough of it. for sure theyll stay where they grown and raised^

At the end of the day players are still human. You can't really blame a lack of loyalty for Terry wanting to a higher wage and Gerrard saying he wants to win titles. As for Alan Smith, he didn't really have a choice did he? The club had to sell him. Why blame him when you can easily blame Leeds United for accepting Man Utd's offer. I mean if Leeds Utd really cared about that "rivalry" they shouldn't have accepted it in the first place. But that would be stupid wouldn't it.

I will be heavy hearted to see him leave but I'll bear no grudge? Why? Did he ever proclaim his loyalty to us? Did he every kiss his badge saying that the only English club he'd play for is us? No so how can I hold a grudge? It would be different if he left and then slandered the club. In the end, everyone knows his heart lies with Atletico Madrid, a club he captained at the tender age of 19 and a club whose fans he has vowed to return to. I can respect that.

I'm not one of those that brush of questions because I can't answer them



I haven't a doubt that Stevie loves Liverpool and would want to win things here. I would like to think that he's stay no matter what (i.e. Jamie Carragher) but if he cannot fulfill his personal ambitions at this club, then perhaps it's the fault of the club and not his.



I have always said that the epitome of LFC is to me, Jamie Carragher, not Steven Gerrard. It doesn't mean I dislike Stevie G, it just means I would not be surprised if he were to move away one day.

ah so true, i just cudnt see jamie playing for any other club other than liverpool. but stevie g, dont be surpirse if man city offering him millions to play there and he as human, will accept it:p

torres left for man city? ...

during my years, the only 2 reason liverpool players left: 1) manager sold them 2) they didn't get to play

My points exactly. How do you define loyalty?Both issues are well solved by their clubs but how about others who couldnt? Sol Campbell move to Arsenal is the main example. He wants to move to a bigger club which can compete for league title (same as Gerrard). The difference here is Gerrard continue his loyalty by signing new contract while Campbell didnt.
Maybe you are right about Alan Smith. He fights for his club during their problems while others (Rio, Fowler, Viduka) all having a new life in their new club. I'm sure he deserve some respect from the fans

I think the focus of this thread has shifted away from whether or not it's fair to cheer for one guy one minute, and then boo him when he decides to leave.

One of the main issues on why Spurs are still hating on Sol is that he came out saying that he will never play for Arsenal before, and eventually left the team free to Arsenal

Plus he almost joined Chelsea... twice. The closest one (to him joining) was in 2004.
The end result was a bumper new contract from Liverpool.