Emmanuel Adebayor
last night rocked Arsenal by saying he was ready to quit and added:
"Don't moan, you'll be making millions when you sell
me."
The Gunners are refusing to
give him the £120,000 a week he wants, sparking a £28million bid
from AC Milan and a £25m offer from Barcelona. Adebayor, 24,
admitted it would not be a wrench for him to turn his back on
Arsenal and Arsene Wenger because the Gunners cannot meet his pay
demands.
Adebayor, who would pocket a
basic wage of £80,000 a week after tax at the San Siro, said: "It won't be a
difficult decision. If Arsenal sell me, they are going to get £40m,
maybe £47m and they bought me for £7m. "So everyone is getting the
benefits. They have to make a good decision and I have to make a
good decision as well."
Adebayor's intention to quit
follows Matthieu Flamini walking out of the Emirates to join Milan
on a free transfer and Alexander Hleb also poised to leave for
Barcelona. As Adebayor spoke last night in Vienna there was a big
smile on his face - but huge menace for Arsenal in his voice. And
as he demonstrated he felt no debt of loyalty to Arsene Wenger or
the Gunners' fans, the shadow of impending doom began to descend on
the Emirates.
Losing Matthieu Flamini and
Alexander Hleb was always going to hurt Wenger and his team. But to
also see their 30-goal top scorer exit because they simply cannot
afford to keep him would be a further hammer-blow.
And while Wenger rescued
Adebayor from a nightmare at Monaco barely 18 months ago, the Togo
striker clearly feels there is no need to pay back his manager.
Adebayor said: "Arsene is like a father to me. That is why I love
him a lot. He put me where I am today, no doubt about that. "But he
bought me because he believed in my quality. He didn't buy me
because I'm from Togo or because I needed money or because I look
beautiful. He bought me because he thought I could do something
good for the club."
Adebayor, speaking at an
adidas presentation, added: "I have a three-year contract with
Arsenal but a lot of teams want me to play for them. I'm surprised
and flattered, by that. "I came from Togo seven years ago and now I
have a lot of big clubs trying to buy me. It's up to me and my
agent Stephane Courbis to sit down next week and find a good
solution, to do what's right for my career.
"I'm in a position that I
don't know where to play but that's normal. If you told me seven
years ago when I was playing in Togo without a pair of football
boots that I'd have a choice of playing in Spain or Italy it would
seem crazy.
"Arsenal need to tell me what
they want as well. I have a promise from Arsene that they will call
me next week. I'm waiting for their answer and then I'll decide. I
need to know before I come back to train on July 21. I need to know
by then."
Adebayor's body-language and
demeanour, as much as his words, suggested that decision had
already been made.
