Gallas Feels He Deserved More From Chelsea

William Gallas’ autobiography has had a timely release it seems and with our game against Arsenal fast approaching, the press have decided it’d be an amusing time to publish some of the details.

Naturally, they’ve picked out the chapter where he gets the digs in at Chelsea over his move to Arsenal in 2006. So, we get to hear him admit he was having sly meetings with AC Milan behind Chelsea’s back when he says “Milan were knocking on my door. An irony really, this prestigious Italian team were offering me a salary higher than that which I was asking of Chelsea. Straightaway, I was seduced. Not because of the euros but because of the faith a club has in you, the value they put on you. The club (Chelsea) came back to me and said: “We’ll offer you a new contract with a rise but not as much as you’re asking”. Peter Kenyon, the chief executive, was against satisfying my demands. He made our life hell. I don’t think either the owners or Kenyon were aware of my contacts with Milan. We let them know and told them of the offer, which was superior to their own and what I was demanding of Chelsea. They wouldn’t stump up. Chelsea said, for their part, that they wanted to keep me and their offer was still open. No one knows how laughable their offer was and what I deserved.”

I’d say I know exactly what Gallas deserved although I probably shouldn’t print it on this page but anyway, when it comes to that ‘own goal’ story, Gallas explains it was said in a conversation he had Mourinho, stating  “You know, when I play for a club, I need to play with heart. Chelsea’s owners have disappointed me, they have not realised what I’m worth. It’s taken time, the negotiations. I’ve just come to the point where my heart is no longer at Chelsea. You’re going to put me on the pitch OK, but if the heart is not there and I’m not concentrating, I risk making errors, errors that I’m not used to making. We could let in a goal, so lose a match stupidly. This is what I said, word for word. I declared that I wanted to go. That conversation would have an absolutely incredible effect in the media a few weeks later.”

Although, of course he says “I would have been incapable of such utter monstrosities. No player, ever, whoever he was, could say or think he would score an own goal. It isn’t done.” Dead right it isn’t.

Not done there though, Gallas has a pop at Chelsea supporters because they didn’t welcome him with open arms in his first game against them as an Arsenal player, stating “My first match for Arsenal against Chelsea was very difficult. Chelsea’s supporters whistled me every time I got the ball; they really had it in for me. For them, I was a player who would score an own goal, they ignored the truth. I was gutted.”

Oh well, I’m sure there’ll be a warm welcome waiting for him on Sunday eh?