It’s not always I use David Beckham in a footballing comparison. Although he has achieved a lot of success in his Manchester United, the coverage and the press he received were not reciprocal to his performances. He was the poster boy, who defined the word ‘metrosexual’ and a marketing team’s dream. On the pitch, his career had not met expectations. As captain, his team always fell short of the target. His career had stagnated after his move to Real Madrid and his only option was to take the 250mill $ sinecure that the idiots in LA had offered. But one aspect of his game and his personality merits respect. It was evident in the last month and for his entire career and that has been his impeccable sense of professionalism. When lesser players would have taken offense at the demotion to the reserves, Becks took it as a challenge to prove his coach wrong. He appeared everyday for training and not once did he complain about the treatment. He has since earned his recall and looks set to leave his club with his head held high.

But over the weekend, arguably the the best striker in the world showed why, it’s not always the talent that wins you admirers. Prone to the usual fit of rage, Barcelona striker Samuel Eto’o lashed out at his coach Frank Rijkaard for being labeled a shame. Well, to be frank, your behaviour over the weekend was a disgrace. It doesn’t matter if there are only 2 minutes of playing time, when the manager asks you to come on , you do it. When the manager asks you to play blindfolded, you do it. It’s as simple as that, as long as he gets paid the big bucks and is held accountable for every wrong turn he takes, the manager is the Big kahuna.

This is just one of the many incidents that have littered Eto’o’s career. The man can turn a match on its head with his feet, but can also divide a club with his vicious tongue. Some criticize Rijkaard for coming hard on his leading striker in a press conference. This was aberrant from a man, who prefers to dish it out in the privacy of the locker room. But in this case, the reputation preceded the person. This was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Eto’o went as far as revealing divisions in the dressing room between the Rosell (ex vice president, Sandro Rosell) group and the Laporta clan and how the ‘gentle’ African had been made the scapegoat. But honest to god, what the hell has that got to do with you not wanting to play?

It also is very clear that Rosell sympathizers will be leaving the club soon, whether that includes Ronaldinho is anyone’s guess. Although the club is indebted to Rosell for his masterful engineering of the Ronaldinho transfer, his shadow has hung over this team for too long.

The one club that will be celebrating this are the Merseysiders. This couldn’t have come at a better time for them and the controversy looks set to rock the Catalan club for a few weeks. Expect a major clearout in the summer at Barcelona, starting with the African striker.

For now, Eto’o can learn a thing or two from David beckham 23.

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