Former West Ham sensation Dimitri Payet has come out with some fairly brazen comments about his departure from the club last January that will absolutely disgust any 'good honest pro' who reads what he has had to say.
The manner in which he went on "strike" after the club were adamant they did not want to sell him rubbed a lot of people up the wrong way, but if you didn't like Payet before, you certainly won't like him after this.
Speaking to French magazine So Foot [via Sport Witness], Payet claimed that being a dickhead to get what he wants is one of his specialties and that he knows that sulking is the best way to get what he wants.
I know how to be a dickhead. It’s one of my specialties. It’s a little game. When I want to piss everyone off, I do it. My managers understood that: when I sulk, they talk to me. It’s a way for me to be heard. Those who know me play along, and, in the end, it goes well.
I left for many reasons, but the main one was about football: West Ham’s objectives weren’t the same as the last season, and I felt in danger for my football and my chances with the national team. I had a choice to make.
I left Marseille feeling unsatisfied. Playing in Marseille during the Euros brought all that back, and I saw the fans were still behind me despite me changing clubs. I told myself when I left that I would return to OM. Leaving was never in my plans, anyways.
In a way, you've got to admire his honesty, but in another, much more valid way, that's a pretty ridiculous thing for an adult to say, whether they are a professional footballer or not.
We go on about footballers being role models for the youths that look up to them, well what sort of message does that send? Fair enough he was not happy at the club, but there are much more professional ways to go about getting what you want.
Funnily enough, Payet was very complimentary about Slaven Bilic, someone he says understood him as a person straight away.
He managed me like a father. We spoke every day. He quickly understood how I worked. You saw that straight away in how quickly I adapted. He’s a cranky guy. He’s from Croatia… He can shout, but he’s good at man management.
Unfortunately for Bilic it looks like he is one bad result away from losing his job, but that is not likely to bother Payet as he turns his focus to the Ligue 1 campaign with Marseille.
