Sunday, July 07, 2013

Quote of the day

"Every time I had a manager that was not happy with it, I've said: 'Listen, I'll do it. If my performance is still good, I'll keep playing; if it's bad you drop me on the bench, that's it.'"

Demba Ba talks about observing Ramadan as part of an article on the growing number of Muslims in the Premier League. I wonder whether by "manager" he's referring to the Silver Fox here - after all, questions were raised about the Senegalese striker's fitness level and performances early in his time on Tyneside, and whether his fasting may have been the cause.

While much effort has been made in recent years to ensure that players from different countries and cultures feel comfortable and at home at the club, it's overstating the case somewhat to suggest that the presence of Papiss Cisse and Mr T (and, until January, Ba too) at St James' Park is indicative of a sensitive and inclusive attitude to Muslims at Newcastle - or of a seachange in the Premier League more generally, for that matter. There was nothing about the club's decision to eagerly accept sponsorship from Wonga that suggested any shred of consideration for the club's Muslim players, for instance...

Labels: , , ,

Share

1 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

That's all well and good, but he's being paid to play - if his performance level suffers does that mean he'll accept a pay cut during that time?

6:03 pm  

Post a Comment

<< Home