Paris Saint-Germain has done a lot of good during the coronavirus crisis. They’ve donated substantial amounts of money and set up a website to make it easier for fans to help those in need. While some of the players have made individual contributions, they’ve yet to agree to reduce their wages.
Late last month, L’Equipe reported that negotiations between the players and Leonardo, PSG’s sporting director, had stalled and that news followed club president Nasser Al-Khelaifi’s comments about the players needing to “make an effort for their club.”
With many of PSG’s employees (non-players) on partial unemployment, one former player is calling the current squad for not doing what he perceives as the right thing.
“I had a lot of PSG employees and it made me feel sick because some are in a very difficult situation and are having their wages cut,” Jérôme Rothen told RMC Sport (via Planet PSG). “Some are unemployed technical people. These people are struggling and it may last because the players have not given any sign of life on the salary decrease.”
Rothen then took on Leonardo for not taken control of the situation fast enough.
“There is also the sports director…what is he waiting for to make a good gesture, to show the example to the players? At the finish, you have families in trouble and I hope that they will become aware of it. If they cannot come to an agreement collectively, in Paris or elsewhere…it would be good if they came individually and that some woke up on this side.”
I have to agree with Rothen here. Even if the players aren’t legally required to reduce their salaries and even if it wouldn’t make that big of a difference in the grand scheme of things, the optics of them agreeing to a large wage reduction would at least help chip away at the perception that PSG players are only there for the money.
People are struggling financially and the sooner the players come to an agreement with management, the better the club will look to football fans especially to those who are struggling financially.
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