Back when Manchester Evening News reporters buzzed around the newsroom, the football desk phone rang and I had the dubious privilege of being sat an arm’s length away from it.
The caller was looking to speak to Samuel Luckhurst. I had never spoken to the caller before. A Manchester United player’s unflattering player rating from a goalless draw was mentioned and the caller sought an explanation. Initially presuming it was just a disgruntled reader, it turned out to be a PR adviser for one of the players.
Nearly two years later, the brother of the offended player mentioned my Instagram handle in a Story on his public profile, referring to the rating. It never ceases to amaze how fixated fans become with player ratings but it is a bit of a jolt when it bugs a player or a member of their entourage.
An associate of the family (an online search quickly confirmed it) threatened me with violence over the apparent bad press - on Twitter, naturally. ‘Manchester United footballer’s brother and friend troll journalist and associate threatens violence over player rating’ would have been an intriguing headline but it did not merit a mention in morning conference.
Maintaining a working relationship with a football club whilst covering them objectively is a tactful balancing act. Someone at the MEN once described the ‘paper as a ‘critical friend’ of United’s and that is sage advice for any budding reporter looking to join a football desk in an age where some endorse fan-with-a-keyboard reporting.
Access to United players is scant yet, when provided, it invariably ends with a more positive impression of the player and, hopefully, the player finds us more personable than what they glimpse at us on Twitter.
Andreas Pereira was approachable in Los Angeles, shaking the hand of all of the reporters present at the UCLA, the charming Axel Tuanzebe referred to me as ‘sir’ and Diogo Dalot spent the first day of his summer holiday in 2019 watching us media members scrape a win over the United media team at Old Trafford.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is even more personable in the flesh than through a laptop lens, and hopefully we are too. The pandemic has been problematic in that footballers and reporters have never been more distant and it seemed a novelty to speak to Solskjaer pitchside at Derby last month. It was a more engaging exchange than any conversations conducted over WiFi.
With a wider distance between players and media, paranoia is easily fueled. A former player's wife took umbrage with me at the mention of her husband’s performance in an infamous League Cup thrashing quarter-final thrashing.
A current United player has a dedicated media team tasked with assessing every sentence that is written about him, which is an issue in itself.
I am blocked by a United player on Twitter and by the sibling representative of another on the same platform. Another player has blocked me on Instagram, although that appears to be his relative’s doing. Both players have been criticised and praised fairly in pieces, as every United player has.
The player who did the blocking on Twitter used to search his name on the site to read negative posts to channel them into positive performances. He never seemed likely to make it at United but he has.
Certain familial representatives, such as Raphael Varane’s brother, have forged a high reputation in the industry and Antony Varane is highly regarded by the France internationals.
It is startling how many footballers preach the maxim ‘surround yourself with those who see greatness within you’, or insist on ‘good vibes only’. Neither they, nor their entourage, countenance any form of constructive criticism, so when it is meted out by a blunt manager or a forthright columnist, they are devoid of coping mechanisms.
Sam Johnstone once gave an interview to the United website as he was piqued by this correspondent tweeting he had ‘effectively become a goalkeeping coach’. A colleague at the MEN had also written a piece questioning Johnstone’s ambition.
Johnstone was 23 and a third-choice goalkeeper who had already embarked on eight loans but was more active complaining about criticism. He rather proved the point when he then agreed a new contract, delaying a permanent transfer by another 18 months.
Luke Shaw has copped more flak than any other United player over the last decade yet has never once complained about poor press. Chris Smalling, another occasional whipping boy, never took a journalist to task during his decade at the club. Both are usually approachable and have been engaging with the media.
Negativity is usually water off a duck’s back for the overseas players. David de Gea had to develop the skin of a rhinoceros in his first six months at United and is as unflappable as his demeanour. Paul Pogba is possibly the most scrutinised footballer at the most scrutinised football club on the planet but is not knocked off his stride by the Manchester pack. The most player-specific correspondence I get is from Swedish or Scandinavian readers appalled by my assessments of Victor Lindelof, yet Lindelof would not recognise me if I doorstepped him.
One current United defender became so irked by my assessments of his defending he complained to a member of staff and sought sympathy from a colleague.
It is never personal and, contrary to the paranoid portion on Twitter, there is never an agenda. The aforementioned player who caused grief for me has been rated and written about fairly since.
As for the player whose brother took to Instagram, I have since spoken to the player through one of his sponsors. He seemed utterly unaware the ‘rating’ phone call ever took place.
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