His hilarious and pointless time at Chelsea may have come to an end, but Winston Bogarde has added another, literal, chapter to his legendary story as the personification of everything wrong with modern football. A small excerpt from his new book, “‘Deze neger buigt voor niemand’ (This black man bows for no one)
‘Why should I throw fifteen million euro away when it is already mine? At the moment I signed it was in fact my money, my contract. Both sides agreed wholeheartedly. I could go elsewhere to play for less, but you have to understand my history to understand I would never do that. I used to be poor as a kid, did not have anything to spend or something to play with. This world is about money, so when you are offered those millions you take them. Few people will ever earn so many. I am one of the few fortunates who do. I may be one of the worst buys in the history of the Premiership, but I don’t care.’
Outstanding. Admittedly we probably all have a bit of a bias when it comes to the sentimental, badge-kissing-i’ll-always-be-here side of football. It would also be difficult to objectively say that we should expect someone – in any field – to turn down millions to do nothing and instead go continue with a job that pays less, probably having to re-locate in the process. His honesty may not be appreciated by many fans, but it certainly is refreshing during a time when backstabbing and all-round gutless behaviour seems the order of the day.