Let The Insanity Commence

Yes folks it's that time of year again, the time when anybody who can beat Douglas Bader in a sprint gets mentioned in the same breath as Real Madrid and Manchester City. And lo, fresh out of the blocks comes news of a €65 million transfer for Kaka, possibly the third best player in the world, from A C Milan to Los Blancos, for a mere €6 million a year netto.

What's doubly great about this transfer is that it comes just hours after the Brazilian midfielder had declared his undying love for the Italian giants and Real Madrid's returning President, Florentino Perez, had pledged that the years of humiliation that ended his previous reign were over and that lessons had been learned. Yes, the main lesson being that Real Madrid can defy all laws of known economics because they know they only have to hold out their poisoned chalice and it will be filled with euros by their friends in high places. Typical that, in an era when Michel Platini berates English clubs for the way they are run, a club which is practically state owned and constantly on the brink of financial meltdown can find 300 million euros for this summers transfer splurge.

Anyway talking of silly money, what is it Gareth Barry that attracted you to the millionaires plaything known as Manchester City? Was it the prospect of European football? I don't think so. Was it the prospect of playing in the same side as that classy defender Richard Dunne? No, I don't think it was that either. So tell me, just a year after saying you would only move for Champions League football from Aston Villa what was it.

Of course it's not just players who can be deluded when it comes to moving clubs, I see that Tony Adams has tonight convinced himself that he is the next manager of Celtic. When Celtic said they wanted a big name to follow Gordon Strachan I don't think they had a manager who has failed at both Wycombe Wanderers and Portsmouth in mind.

Chelsea want Frank Ribery for 44 million Euros, Frank Ribery wants Chelsea for 6 million Euros a year but Bayern Munich don't want to sell him. Hands up all those who believe that Ribery will not be at his eighth club in eight years come the end of the summer.

I suspect before the new season begins, in about ten weeks time, there will be more high profile transfers, more silliness and more players talking about their undying love shortly before leaving not just their current club but their current country. What I want to know is why don't English players ever get asked to go abroad and experience a different lifestyle, different culture, different style of play. Don't use the bad examples: Jimmy Greaves, Michael Owen, Ian Rush, use the good examples: John Charles, Ray Wilkins and Steve McManaman, as your role models.