We must not forget the fortune that footballers make. Most people would be quite happy to earn money whilst sitting in front row to football matches! The money that Dimitar Berbatov is making is not springing out of thin air; it is coming out of Tottenham’s pocket, via a contract. If the club wishes to make a profit out of the player by demanding £30 million for a sale then that is their choice. The threat to keep Berbatov on the bench is merely to show Manchester United that they are serious. Smaller clubs are constantly undercut by larger clubs; they have to make some bold statements to get the money they need to renovate their team.

Tottenham manager, Juande Ramos, expressed his view that Berbatov had a poor attitude towards Tottenham and this was not conducive to team spirit. A lowering in team morale is not good for football; it makes matches impassionate and therefore boring. If to improve the quality of the football, one player has to be put on the bench; such a course of action should be taken. Taking such action will not only increase Tottenham’s chances of winning, it will also heighten the excitement of the match for the spectators, and we should not forget that football is a form of entertainment.

Behind the game of football there is a subtext. Footballers have dreams and ambitions of where they want to go and who they want to play for. If Berbatov is dreaming of playing for Manchester United, he is not playing his best for Tottenham. In fact, if Berbatov wants Tottenham to sell him to Manchester United, he could deliberately jeopardise the game to enforce the sale at Manchester United’s current offer of £25 million.

If a footballer’s heart is not with the team he will not play to the standard expected, therefore it is a team’s prerogative to place a player on the bench. If a player is not physically fit to play a match he will sit on the bench, the same is true if players are not psychologically fit to play for that given team.