[Archived] Would You Rather Play For Rovers Or Chelsea?

[Tom]

Agreed, also if you care about Rovers that much take the £120k at Chelsea and give half to Rovers weekely

[Neil Weaver]

Agreed, also if you care about Rovers that much take the £120k at Chelsea and give half to Rovers weekely

Indeed TCO, or do the 5 years at Chelsea and buy Rovers

[Stuart]

This is a bit of a stupid hypothetical question being posed.

I'm good enough to play for Chelsea, is the premise. Which means I'll feature in the first team, play Champions League football and be paid a stupid sum of money. To kick a ball around a field.

Seems like this debate is to stir up an argument about whether someone loves Rovers more than money.

But it's flawed because playing for a club has nothing to do with who you support. If it did, every club would be made up of players from within 10 miles of their home ground - except Man U -(which would be a great notion, btw).

Ultimately we are all on here because we are Rovers fans, and that has nothing to do with whether or not we'd play for a team if they offered £120 per week.

If I was offered £10,000 to become a Chelsea supporter, it would be a 'no' because I can't just change my club. I could pretend that you did but ultimately I'd be a Rovers fan pretending to support Chelsea. Well, either that or I'd just be another soul-less Sky Sports Cheerleader who just follows which ever team wins the league.

[Presty On Tour]

As this is a hypothetical question, could I sign for Chelsea on £120k a week and then be loaned back to Rovers?

If not I would stay at Rovers. 20k wages would just be the basic base of my fortune.

I'd make millions on image rights, endorse console football games and get a hair product contract.

I'd be seen in Ibiza living it up in es paradise a few days before a game surrounded by 10 lingerie glamour models, maybe have a few weddings and divorces a year and sell the photo rights to those girly glossy mags.

Get paid to wear all the latest designer clothes from Milan etc etc

Have I gone to far?

[SamTheShrew]

Rovers, any day of the week.

I'm not lieing...I'm not motivated by money, as I've never had alot of it. And I am certainly not motivated by fame.

If I had the chance I'd be the Le Tissier type - play for aslong as I can for the club I love

[Ozz]

Take the Chelsea money, feign injury every week (Known in the trade as a BOGARDE) and watch Rovers play. Few pints, kebab on the way home, jobsagoodun.

[stuwilky]

Ahhh the moral high ground.

Given that I sit in Ewood Park every other week, given that I have spent tens of thousands of my hard earned following Rovers around Europe and the UK.

Id choose the £120k per week.

[Blueandwhitemike]

I wouldn't blame anyone for taking the money but I'd stick with Rovers.

A million a year and the chance to be a Rovers legend would be more than enough for me.

It is fair enough if you would prefer the money but doesn't mean you know what other people would do.

However if Rovers somehow ended up in League one then I'd be tempted by the premier league and getting into the England team and all that.

Whatever your choice doesn't make you a better fan or more realistic person.

[Steve Moss]

Assuming I am a superstar with some longevity, I'd take the Chelsea money. Provide for the family, enjoy life. But when I hit 30 and have made my bank, get involved with the Rovers, either as a player (for peanuts considering the money banked away) or a trainer/coach of some time. Even if I have to volunteer. Or heck, at a minimum I'd embarass Chelsea by showing up to all the Rover-Chelsea matches wearing a Rover's shirt.

[Al]

20K per week for 52 weeks times say 8 years = £8,320K. Even paying tax at 40% is enough to last me all my life.

Thanks very much I'll play for the team I love.

Rovers for ever.

[joey_big_nose]

Loving this topic! Something to get everyone going.

I think broadly speaking you're looking at this as a fantasy. You are not thinking of it as your job. It isn't just about who you play for, but also the quality of your team mates, how you are progressing personally as a player, the facilities, the friendships you form, the enemies you make. It will be your entire life, the fabric of your existence on this earth. A football club is a football club. It's not something to utterly define you as an individual!

Also you need to put it in context - you are talking about a 15 year career. You could get fed up with it. Your girlfriend could leave you. You could fall out with your girlfriend. You could be dropped. THe fans might hate you. Derbs is a committed Rovers guy but he had enough eventually, mainly because he wasn't getting starts. Same goes for Dunn when he went to Brum.

As I said on the other topic if this was plausible behaviour why has it never happend? Why aren't Gerrard and Carragher and Terry and Totti and whoever else going "don't pay me more, I've got enough?" Why aren't there loads of world class player playing for second division clubs, or playing in Croatia or whereverthey saw their beloved team play for the first time?

Can anyone name a player who has stayed at one club for (lets pull a figure out of the air) a third of what he could have earnt at another due to his own personal choice of "loyalty" to that football club? I am not just talking now, I am saying ever.

Only one I can think of that would come close is Le Tissier, but I think when Spurs came calling it wouldn't of been anywhere near double let alone tripple.

Thiis adds a bit of reality to this little thought experiment.

If there are no examples out of the tens of thousands who have played professionally over the years - thousands who have come through the ranks of the club they supported - I highly doubt Mr E or whoever else who has claimed otherwise is being realistic. If we find someone I will say it is just about possible.

ps. Ooooh. Just thought of one maybe - Steve Bull? Though did anyone offer him triple money?

[Mr. E]

20K per week for 52 weeks times say 8 years = £8,320K. Even paying tax at 40% is enough to last me all my life.

Thanks very much I'll play for the team I love.

Rovers for ever.

Exactly. For those saying they'd take the Chelsea offer because they want "financial security" or "to provide for their family + grandkids"...how does 8 million (or around that) not fulfill those needs? Yes I'm a modest guy but it's hard for me to imagine wasting so much money so that 20k a week would not be enough.

[Mr. E]

Loving this topic! Something to get everyone going.

I think broadly speaking you're looking at this as a fantasy. You are not thinking of it as your job. It isn't just about who you play for, but also the quality of your team mates, how you are progressing personally as a player, the facilities, the friendships you form, the enemies you make. It will be your entire life, the fabric of your existence on this earth. A football club is a football club. It's not something to utterly define you as an individual!

Also you need to put it in context - you are talking about a 15 year career. You could get fed up with it. Your girlfriend could leave you. You could fall out with your girlfriend. You could be dropped. THe fans might hate you. Derbs is a committed Rovers guy but he had enough eventually, mainly because he wasn't getting starts. Same goes for Dunn when he went to Brum.

As I said on the other topic if this was plausible behaviour why has it never happend? Why aren't Gerrard and Carragher and Terry and Totti and whoever else going "don't pay me more, I've got enough?" Why aren't there loads of world class player playing for second division clubs, or playing in Croatia or whereverthey saw their beloved team play for the first time?

Can anyone name a player who has stayed at one club for (lets pull a figure out of the air) a third of what he could have earnt at another due to his own personal choice of "loyalty" to that football club? I am not just talking now, I am saying ever.

Only one I can think of that would come close is Le Tissier, but I think when Spurs came calling it wouldn't of been anywhere near double let alone tripple.

Thiis adds a bit of reality to this little thought experiment.

If there are no examples out of the tens of thousands who have played professionally over the years - thousands who have come through the ranks of the club they supported - I highly doubt Mr E or whoever else who has claimed otherwise is being realistic. If we find someone I will say it is just about possible.

ps. Ooooh. Just thought of one maybe - Steve Bull? Though did anyone offer him triple money?

One strange scenario is Brad Friedel. Yes, he did move eventually for reasons that are still unclear, but he stayed with us till he was 37-38 I think. After his heroics at the World Cup, winning us the league cup, being named one of the best if not the best keeper in the league....I would be very, very surprised if he didn't have big-money offers from other clubs. Yet he stuck with us almost until the end of his career, possibly turning down an opportunity to earn a great deal more money elsewhere.

[joey_big_nose]

One strange scenario is Brad Friedel. Yes, he did move eventually for reasons that are still unclear, but he stayed with us till he was 37-38 I think. After his heroics at the World Cup, winning us the league cup, being named one of the best if not the best keeper in the league....I would be very, very surprised if he didn't have big-money offers from other clubs. Yet he stuck with us almost until the end of his career, possibly turning down an opportunity to earn a great deal more money elsewhere.

He was always under contract with us, we never accepted a bid for him, so he never had the opportunity to negotiate terms with anyone. He did at one point attract the attention of Arsenal it is true. He never made a bid to leave so that has to be respected.

However at Villa he is on double what he earnt at Rovers. Nicko has said that Lerner made him aware of this before the bid came in for him (which is actually illegal but I suppose it always happens) and this was the main motivating factor for Brad leaving. Thats the only info I have, but I have no reason for doubting him.

Brad - great bloke, great servent, primarily left for cash alongside not fancying a working relationship with Ince (who can blame him?!).

[RoversFanUSA]

I think I'd have to go for the money. Seeing as I'm a Rovers fan and love the club I could say that the money and CL football would be a huge reason to leave. BUT to be able to say that I played for the club I loved and haveing a chance to put in a blue and white strip would be a dream come true. But in the end I would look to my far future. If I had a wife and kids I would want to know that when my footballing time comes to an end that we or I would be set for the rest of my life and not have to worry about money would in the end be the main reason to leave for 160k a week

[Tom]

Another reason valid or otherwise is, what if it all went wrong, you miss the chance that could have saved Rovers from relegation, you're lauded as a failure.

Your bond with Rovers would be forever tainted

[thenodrog]

This topic has certainly opened my eyes. So many completely illogical posters. No wonder Lucas Neill got so much stick for taking the professional option is it? I guess MGP will be next whipping boy for sticking implicitly to the terms of the contract which BRFC put before him.

btw the poll is flawed cos it does not offer the difference in remuneration.

[neekoy]

Play for Chelsea, go to Rovers games, not celebrate scoring against them but ultimately I go for the dollar.

[Miker]

I voted for Blackburn. I would like to play for the team I love for a period of time, but I would always move to a more ambitious club with better pay if the chance came up. I've worked in numerous jobs where all the people I used to work with and knew well either got fired or moved on to other things and you lose the passion for that job once that happens.

If all teams were challenging equally that would be another story, but as soon as you accept the fact that you are limited to your achievements in your current job then you will always want to move on. Those that don't simply aren't ambitious, which is fine.

[SouthAussieRover]

It would depend who the manager is.

He'd have to have his badges for a start so not one of your Ince types.

I wouldn't be too keen on playing a hoofball style of game so the likes OF Allardyce may put me off.

Let's see now....120,00 at Chelsea and trips all over Europe, living in the big smoke, loads of birds etc etc...Gordon Bennett it's a no brainer innit?

[Mafioso]

I would go for Rovers too. As some have said whether its 40k or 140k its still a ridiculous amount of money compared to the joke i call a wage (in Malta) at the moment.

A player at 140k a week at Chelsea is almost a normal wage, with the current money and competition involved in attracting big name players at the moment. So I wouldnt really be a star.

If I were that good I would rather be a star at Rovers than just another Chelsea player.

I honestly think Champions League football is just euphamism (i think thats the word) to say that you are not moving for the money. You play much more games for 140k and if we are REALLY considering real life you have a higher chance of injury (i know you can play one game amongst friends and still get hurt) playing all those games. Less time spent with family and friends. Be in the public eye and media waaaay too often, and not just the player but family aswell.

But I guess those are sacrifices for that kind of money. I would be happy playing for Rovers for free at the moment

Anyway that was just my opinion, Rovers all the way !

[Beta Ray Bill]

The problem I see with the "20k a week is more than enough" argument is that studies have shown that if your income increases, it is usually Ok for the short term only and you just 'need a bit more'.

eg if you get a 10% pay rise in your current job but were expecting 5%, the vast majority of people adjust their life styles to reflect this. 12 months down the line, they don't think they don't need a pay rise this year as they got double last year.

So to compare £20k pw against what you are earning now isn't something many people on here would be really able to imagine. With the exception of Cheshire Blue (and Hughesy when the shares are doing well...)

Therefore, I think I'd have to plump for Chelsea and hope that I could restrain myself enough not to adapt to that life style too much. Get a 4 year deal, invest in Rovers and buy Rochdale. Oh and stave off Accy's demise - which I'd be able to do in a better of less than a month. That is actually scary...

[The Harwood Yankee]

As an instinct I voted for staying with Rovers. On reflection, if playing football was your vocation in life and you knew you'd never get the chance to test yourself playing all over Europe then I'd probably want to spend the middle 5-6 years of my playing career at the best club I could play for. The money really wouldnt be an issue - anything over 20k a week and you're pretty much secure for life, unless you're an idiot like Gazza - it would be the chance to test yourself at the highest possible level. I'd want to sign for a huge transfer fee so Rovers benefitted from that, and I'd insist on a clause which said that I could return to Rovers when I reached 32. As a central defender I'd expect to play my last 4-5 years back at Ewood, enough time to become a Rovers legend & get on the backroom staff!

[unluckymorton]

If you were a rising football star playing for Rovers (and a fan of the club as you now are), at 20k wages, and were offered a deal at Chelsea worth 120k a week, would you take it?

This is from another topic, where it seems a number of our "supporters" would choose Chelsea. I wonder where the others stand? (You can replace Chelsea with any other big-spending team)

*I would add a poll but I don't see the option... [Poll Added]

As a Rovers fan I would obviously choose Rovers. But if Chelsea were prepared to pay me £120k a week they would probably be willing to pay Rovers £20m for me too! £20m in the bank for Rovers would be impossible to turn down, especially as I am @#/? at football.

Anybody who would choose not to go to one of the best clubs in Europe would be lacking ambition.

I would leave my current post tomorrow for 6x my current salary. I don't believe anybody would do any different.

[joey_big_nose]

As an instinct I voted for staying with Rovers. On reflection, if playing football was your vocation in life and you knew you'd never get the chance to test yourself playing all over Europe then I'd probably want to spend the middle 5-6 years of my playing career at the best club I could play for. The money really wouldnt be an issue - anything over 20k a week and you're pretty much secure for life, unless you're an idiot like Gazza - it would be the chance to test yourself at the highest possible level. I'd want to sign for a huge transfer fee so Rovers benefitted from that, and I'd insist on a clause which said that I could return to Rovers when I reached 32. As a central defender I'd expect to play my last 4-5 years back at Ewood, enough time to become a Rovers legend & get on the backroom staff!

This is a realistic sort of answer. Lots of players start off with the club they love and/or come back to the club they love but spend a long time in the middle just trying to do the best they can. This is sensible. Otherwise you would 1) get bored 2) damage your earnings 3) never test yourself at the top level (unless you are lucky enough to be John Terry and your club can offer you top level football and the best wages).

I would love a world in which Mr E's suggestion was realistic! It would be amazing to see Scholes plugging away against the rubbish of League One for 2k a week at Oldham! Obviously England would have massively suffered because he would be a much worse player, and millions across the world would be denied seeing his enormous talent, but he would have integrity.

Probably the bottom line is that if your overiding ambition isn't to be the best you aren't going to make it as a footballer. If you do want to be the best you are always going to want to play with and against the best you can. This means playing at a higher level.

If you are going to say "nope, happy where I am" you never find out how good you could be. Steve Bull did amazingly well to get into the England squad whilst he was in the Second Division which has to be applauded, and Le Tissier was widely recognised (but not by England managers) as one of the finest players of his time. But neither of them when they look themselves in the mirror can think they truely tested themselves.