Ex-Arsenal player Song admits he ‘didn’t give a f**k’ about playing
Former Arsenal midfielder Alex Song says he “didn’t give a f**k” about playing football when Barcelona’s lucrative contract offer guaranteed he would become a “millionaire”.
The former Cameroon international joined the Gunners as a teenager before making over 200 appearances for the north London club.
His performances for Arsenal earned him a £15m transfer to Spanish giants Barcelona with the prospect of earning more money proving to be a big draw for Song.
FEATURE: Bargain time? Six hottest young players outside the elite…
“Most footballers live beyond their means. I was at Arsenal for eight years but only began to earn a good living in the last four,” Song said in an Instagram Live chat.
“That was because my salary went up a lot – but also because I came to realise what a waster I was.
“When I first joined them I was getting £15,000 a week. I was a young lad, and I was ecstatic.
“I wanted to rub shoulders with the big boys. I could shop wherever I wanted and have crazy nights out.
“I would go to training and see Thierry Henry – the King – turn up in an absolute gem of a car. I told myself I wanted the same car at all costs.
“I went to the dealership, signed the papers and arranged to pay for it by standing order – and just like that I had the same car as The King.
“But I swear that I had to hand the car back inside two months. All my money was going on filling it with petrol. I told them, ‘Give me a Toyota – this car’s too much for me’.
“When I next went to training Thierry asked me, ‘Where’s your car, son?’ I told him it’s on a higher level than me.
“During my entire time at Arsenal I couldn’t even save £100,000, while people thought I must be a millionaire.”
Song added: “When Barcelona offered me a contract and I saw how much I would earn, I didn’t think twice. I felt my wife and children should have comfortable lives once my career is over.
“I met Barca’s sporting director, and he told me I would not get to play many games.
“But I didn’t give a f**k – I knew that now I would become a millionaire.
“I’ll always say that a 20-year-old who drives a Ferrari is a poor man, as at that age he’s not yet achieved anything. But a man of 50 who drives a Bentley is a man to be respected.”
We could not keep away from the camera for long so we made a Football365 Isolation Show. Watch it, subscribe and share until we get back in the studio/pub and produce something a little slicker…