There are heartfelt words, such as those that were published in support of Fabrice Muamba, and there are ones that are highly emotional, such as Billy Sharp’s “That’s for you Son” statement, which was released three days after the loss of his son. However, the ones below are either crazy, pointless, emotional, conceited, or simply inexplicable.
Table of Contents
7. Andrea Iniesta
Iniesta used the World Cup as a platform to spread his message, and it was a powerful one. Andres Iniesta offered his condolences to Dani Jarque after scoring the winning goal in the 2010 FIFA World Cup final. The year previously, at the age of 26, Espanyol player Jarque died of a heart attack.
6. Ian Wright – 179 – Just Done It
Wright was one goal short of Bastin’s Arsenal record of 178 going into the contest. Ian Wright equaled Bolton’s record, despite Alan Thompson’s first-half opener. Yet one goal too early he flashed the now notorious phrase, ‘179 – Just Done It.’ Only five minutes passed until Wright was able to break the record and once again unveil the shirt, which if done by anybody other than Ian Wright may have come across as a sleazy bit of business advertisement.
5. El Hadji Diouf –
Wherever Diouf goes, controversy follows. The Blackburn player lifted his jersey to show a T-shirt displaying a visage like Osama bin Laden at the 2002 World Cup in Senegal. It was actually Senegalese mystic Cheikh Amadou Bamba, on whom Diouf is fixated.
4. Mario Balotelli – why always me
Although Manchester City’s 6-1 thrashing of Manchester United at Old Trafford in October 2011 served as a collective declaration of intent, it was Mario Balotelli’s personal message that spurred Roberto Mancini’s team on at the Theatre of Dreams.
3. Aboutrika Mohamed – Sympathy with Gaza
After scoring against Sudan at the 2008 African Cup of Nations, the Egyptian midfielder raised his top to show a T-shirt that said, “Sympathy with Gaza.” He received a yellow card for violating FIFA’s ban on wearing political statements while participating in a game, but no other sanctions were imposed as a result of his political remark.
2. James Beattie – Obvious.
At Southampton in 2003, James Beattie was a key member of the team. Beattie was desperate for an England call-up, and the Three Lions were struggling to score goals. After scoring against Middlesbrough, Beattie decided that he was the obvious pick and displayed the message “Obvious” on his shirt. Sven Goran Eriksson, England’s then manager, called up Beattie, but he failed to deliver on his promises.
1. Marco Materazzi – Do you want This too?
If Mario Balotelli is Manchester City’s greatest provocateur, then Marco Materazzi, a former teammate from Inter, may have taught the Italian a few tactics for enraging his rivals. The defender, who entered the game in the 92nd minute as a replacement, felt obligated to brag about his team’s victory to Juventus, the Italian team’s derby d’Italia adversary, as the Italian team completed an unprecedented treble under Jose Mourinho in May 2010. wearing a T-shirt with the words “Do you want this too?” and a picture of the defender holding the Champions League trophy in response to Juventus’ demand that Inter be stripped of their 2005–06 Serie A championship due to allegations of match-fixing that were a part of the “Calciopoli Scandal” in Italian football.
