The stereotypical image of a young footballer who plies his trade at the highest levels of the game, stumbling out of a nightclub or being papped puffing on a shisha pipe, is one that edifies the very fans that idolise these spoiled 'men'. It shows children that the life of a footballer is one of fun and pleasure - that all they can wish for can be theirs. It also shows another facet of a pro-footballers life that isn't so apparent to starry-eyed dreamers. It is evidence that no matter what choice you make, if you are up on a pedestal then the media want nothing more than to send you sprawling. If you leave yourself open to interpretation, then the repercussions could be huge.

The factor of form in regards to sportsmen is now moot. Whereas once the majority of the watching public could differentiate between a professional simply having an off day, or a player reaching his career's final stretch being unable to will their muscles and brain to work in perfect symmetry as they once did, and not performing to their maximum potential, now it would seem the once bold lines that separated the two have merged and one howler is enough to consign someone to the footballing scrapheap.