Middle Class Footballers

zuchum

I was just wondering ('cause its hard to tell coming from this side of the pond.accents and all that), how many English Premier League players would be considered 'middle-class' /posh,by their peers etc. And who are they?

I know Andrea Pirlo for AC has a really wealthy background...but that's about it.

This doesn't have much relevance to anything btw,I've just always wondered...

Guy:Incognito

Robbie Kea......:D

Xavi6

Kaka is the biggest one that springs to mind for me. There was a lot of resentment towards him in the early part of his career. Silver spoon and all that.

Racing Flat

Gianlucca Vialli +++

Graeme Le Saux and Matthew Le Tissier from the Channel Islands, probably not too uncomfortable being from there...Apparently Le Saux even read the Guardian:eek:.

zuchum

Racing Flat wrote: »

Apparently Le Saux even read the Guardian:eek:.

Hehe,yep,and that show he got his 'gay' reputation...

estebancambias

In general:

Pablo Aimar

Fernando Redondo

Esteban Cambiasso

Gabrielle Heinze(Not that sure though)

Daniel Carvalho

Rodrigo Ceni

Diego Forlan

Nemanja Vidic



How do you distinguish footballer sons?

Apparently Jamie Carragher was middle class, like his family owned a pub.

Michael Owen seems middle class.

invincibleirish

its not that uncommon for footballers from continental Europe and the Americas to be middle class, remember its only really in the UK & Ireland that participation in sport can be viewed in class terms, eg in the UK until the advent of the premiership and the fairweather fan football was a working class game, whilst middle & upper classes occupied themselves with Rugby Union & Cricket.

In Ireland twas the same, Rugby & cricket for the rick folk, football for the Dublin working classes, however GAA transcends the boundaries.

( i speak in gross generalisations of course)

In Europe & S. America football is the game of all the people, thus middle class footballers are two a penny (in south america the whiter the players skin chances are the more rich and thus middle class they are).

Peyton Manning

Keiran Richardson

ibh

Xavi6 wrote: »

Kaka is the biggest one that springs to mind for me. There was a lot of resentment towards him in the early part of his career. Silver spoon and all that.

+1

Can't remember who said it but it was mentioned before that 30 years ago Kaka would have ended up as an Engineer or something as football was not for people of his class..

PHB

Evra's dad is like an ambassador or something.

burnedfaceman

frank lampard

Fratton Fred

invincibleirish wrote: »

In Ireland twas the same, Rugby & cricket for the rick folk, football for the Dublin working classes, however GAA transcends the boundaries.

Which is why I am surprised the GAA despise football but not Rugby. I understand that football was the Garrison game, but Rugby was the game of the officers mess.

Anyway, back on topic, strictly speaking I doubt if there are any true "Middle" class footballers from Engalnd or Scotland as most public schools don't even play football, it is all rugger. The nearest person involved in Football I can think of is the ex Southampton Chairman, Rupert Lowe, who, whilst still chairman, classically said that of course he would be upset if Southampton were relegated, his daughters were Southampton fans:D

_blank_

Jamie Redknapp.

Nalz

DesF wrote: »

Jamie Redknapp.

thats the second tv pundit you've mentioned DesF that I despise!

"well, Richard its a game of two halves, the first half and the"....oh shut the fcuk up Jamie!

Fratton Fred

DesF wrote: »

Jamie Redknapp.

His father is a king. maybe even a god so that makes Jamie Upper Class not middle

Xavi6

Fratton Fred wrote: »

His father is a king. maybe even a god so that makes Jamie Upper Class not middle

This comment has been PM'd to MrJoeSoap as he may have issue with it.

LeixlipRed

I'm middle class and I never got further than Premier DDSL. If only I'd been poorer

Fratton Fred

Xavi6 wrote: »

This comment has been PM'd to MrJoeSoap as he may have issue with it.

You mean from the days he was agent Redknapp. Our old boy Steve Wigley almost completed the job, but he was faltering, so Arry was sent to St Mary's to finish the job and take them down.:D

He is now back where he belongs:)

iregk

ibh wrote: »

+1

Can't remember who said it but it was mentioned before that 30 years ago Kaka would have ended up as an Engineer or something as football was not for people of his class..

Thank god we have moved on and a talent such as his was not lost to a factory floor...

Also the fact that when Kaka was younger the career threatening injury (spinal fracture) was a result of him falling out the 2nd floor window of his house into their swimming pool...

ibh

iregk wrote: »

Also the fact that when Kaka was younger the career threatening injury (spinal fracture) was a result of him falling out the 2nd floor window of his house into their swimming pool...

Didn't know that.. Obviously just from a regular working class Brazillian family!!!

patmac

Fratton Fred wrote: »

Which is why I am surprised the GAA despise football but not Rugby. I understand that football was the Garrison game, but Rugby was the game of the officers mess.

Come on Fred I know you've had a good weekend and I know there are some small minded bigots still left in thr GAA (Thomas Davis, Cork County Board etc) but the vast majority of GAA don't despise soccer, as they voted in favour of opening Croke Park for soccer as well as rugby, unfortunately there seems to be an awful lot of people here who despise the GAA some with legitamate reasons (Thomas Davis) which I understand, it would be nice not to bring up anti GAA comments on random topics as there are people who post here who amazingly can watch both GAA and soccer and it kind of pissses them off.

Fratton Fred

patmac wrote: »

Come on Fred I know you've had a good weekend and I know there are some small minded bigots still left in thr GAA (Thomas Davis, Cork County Board etc) but the vast majority of GAA don't despise soccer, as they voted in favour of opening Croke Park for soccer as well as rugby, unfortunately there seems to be an awful lot of people here who despise the GAA some with legitamate reasons (Thomas Davis) which I understand, it would be nice not to bring up anti GAA comments on random topics as there are people who post here who amazingly can watch both GAA and soccer and it kind of pissses them off.

OK, fair enough. I wasn't trying to start a political discussion, just trying to highlight my surprise at what could be described as a traditional animosity towards football from the GAA when I would have thought Rugby would have been the game more disliked.

Apologies if any offence caused.

patmac

Fratton Fred wrote: »

OK, fair enough. I wasn't trying to start a political discussion, just trying to highlight my surprise at what could be described as a traditional animosity towards football from the GAA when I would have thought Rugby would have been the game more disliked.

Apologies if any offence caused.

Grand anyway how's the hangover!

SectionF

GAA never squared up against rugby because it didn't see itself as being in competition with it, precisely because it was the preserve of the elite.

The fact that Dev was a rugby man also might have played a part.

Saying that anti-football bigotry has been eradicated is wishful thinking. Most GAA people are more enlightened these days, but there is still a very sizeable rump who bear a deep animosity towards the game.

zuchum

Out of the Irish team...who do you reckon is closest?

I'm gonna go with Duffer...He's hardly one of the landed gentry,but he seems posh enough...and if he wasnt,all them ridiculous Newcastle paychecks will see that he soon is...

Ruskie4Rent

AFAIK Lampard is the only english player in the premiership that went to public school (was privately educated).
I might be wrong though.

stick-dan

owen was hardly middle class was he??

Pigman II

Martin Keown seems rather posh.

stick-dan

AFAIK Lampard is the only english player in the premiership that went to public school (was privately educated).
I might be wrong though.

owen did go to a private one though didn't he but he wasn't there through his parents he got there on his soccer merits and won a scholarship...It's mentioned in gerrards autobiography...Hardly an be considered middle class though, or maybe it can???I amy be worng also??

Beanmachine

Someone metioned evra in a previous post but i read that he was born into a huge family in senegal he was playing for a lower league italian side before being picked up by monaco.

estebancambias

stick-dan wrote: »

owen did go to a private one though didn't he but he wasn't there through his parents he got there on his soccer merits and won a scholarship...It's mentioned in gerrards autobiography...Hardly an be considered middle class though, or maybe it can???I amy be worng also??

What is middle class? I'm sure there are plenty of middle class.

invincibleirish

estebancambias wrote: »

What is middle class? I'm sure there are plenty of middle class.

these days class consciousness is more a state of mind then anything actually concrete.

estebancambias

The thing is a working class in America(I think) is considered someone like the Simpsons(what an example), but I would call that middle class.

Exit

I remember hearing Dave Kitson speak, and I was really surprised to hear how well spoken he was, especially for a footballer.

~Rebel~

Shay Given always strikes me as someone who was rared well..

invincibleirish

estebancambias wrote: »

The thing is a working class in America(I think) is considered someone like the Simpsons(what an example), but I would call that middle class.

In the US its defined as white collar and blue collar replacing middle & working class respectively.

thusspakeblixa

Damien Duff...
Isn't Yakubu descended from a Nigerian prince?
Or maybe that was Lua-Lua

estebancambias

Is Ghedaffi arguably from the richest background? That guy can hit a free kick.

_blank_

thusspakeblixa wrote: »

Damien Duff...
Isn't Yakubu descended from a Nigerian prince?
Or maybe that was Lua-Lua

HA

I am Nigerian Prince. I want your help,my father dies one year ago and left me fifty millions dollar US$. Send me yore bank details.