Gareth Barry's Letter to Villa fans - Made me think

I have just read the letter written to Aston Villa fans by Gareth Barry, after he left them to join Manchester City yesterday. Click on the heading of this post to read it for yourself.

It's left me genuinely in a quandary about what I think of him and footballers in general. As fans we love our clubs, we live and breathe them, feeling every twist and turn, high and low they put us through.

As the embodiment of this love, we somehow expect the players to feel the same. They have the chance to represent this entity, to affect its fortunes and ultimately decide much of its fate. But are our expectations unfair?

When I read Gareth barry's letter to the Villa fans I heard the voice of a man who has loved playing for Aston Villa; the voice of a man who appreciates the support and adulation he has been given; the voice of a man who has no issues of conflict with his employers whatsoever. However, he seems to be a man who, at the end of the day, is an athlete who wants to make the best decision for his career.

Now, leaving aside the debate as to whether he HAS actually done that, can we really deny a footballer the chance to further his career. Can any of us really say we would turn down a promotion, pay rise and better career prospects, just because it may affect our current 'customers'.

Now, whilst I don't believe you can place football into a normal work bracket, we have to appreciate that those who 'work' within it are torn between the emotional side of football, and the career side. It is this quandary that I saw in Gareth Barry's letter... and can Villa fans really lament him?

As a United fan, I'm lucky. It's always an argument that any player making a move away from Old Trafford is taking a step down. But for fans of lower ranked clubs, taking emotion away, how can they legitimise denying a professional athlete the chance to operate at a higher level?

This must be hard. We naturally expect a player we adore to show the same loyalty we do. You don't find a staunch Macclesfield Town fan defecting to Manchester United as it is his only chance of watching Champions League football. But this is where, maybe, we have to operate against all our instincts and emotional logic and see players for what they are.

I'm not saying they don't have any 'supporter-like' feelings for their clubs. But surely any ambitious player has to try and rationally decide between emotion and ambition.

No doubt many of you are now venting fury at your screen, saying players should show ultimate loyalty to their clubs. We all believe we would do the same in their position and it is completely natural to react with anger towards a turncoat who has walked away from the cause that dominates your life for the greener grass on the other side. I've done it myself.

But, after reading the letter Barry wrote to the fans at Villa, I thought I'd look at the other side, and the quandary faced by many players at clubs that maybe do not match the standards they themselves can aspire to.

Now, I don't believe Barry has made the correct decision for his career. To leave a club playing European football for one that isn't does smell of a money-hungry option. But it seems he believes he is investing in his future, that eventually City will surpass Villa and give him the Champions League football he desires. Part of me thinks he should've waited for a Liverpool or an Arsenal to throw their hat into the ring - to give him what he wants instantly. But, and we have to take him at his word, he says no-one else met Villa's valuation.

But my take on his decision is irrelavent to the point. the fact is he's made it, and whilst I would agree with Villa fans anger at its content, I'm now thinking we cannot, ultimately, vilify him for it.

His decision to try and explain it through this letter also deserves respect. It shows he has considered the feelings of those he will offend. More players should appreciate that they have a responsibility to those for whom a club isn't a job or a career, but a way of life. It's all too easy for players to simply walk away, and, as long as they don't break a contract, or the club gets a fair deal, they are perfectly within their rights. But to see a player GO OUT OF THEIR WAY to explain the decision and thank fans for their support is heartening - Remember this is a letter written purely unprompted and not pushed out in an interview.

It doesn't take away the hurt, it doesn't change whether we agree or not with the conclusion he reached. But it does indicate that Barry does acknowledge that his decision affects more people than just him, his immediate family and his employers. And I for one salute him for it.