Angry Allardyce rounds on McCarthy

January 27, 2010

South Africa striker Benni McCarthy received a furious farewell from Blackburn Rovers boss Sam Allardyce after the club confirmed Tuesday they have agreed a fee for his transfer with West Ham.

McCarthy has missed training sessions this week, in what has been seen as a bid to force through a move away from Ewood Park, but his controversial action may not have been necessary after the Premier League clubs agreed a fee reported to be 2.25 million pounds.

The 32-year-old striker has grown disillusioned with his lack of first-team starts under Allardyce and has been seeking a move to ensure regular football in the run-up to the World Cup finals in his home country in June and July.

But Allardyce said there was no excuse for McCarthy not turning up at training, branding his conduct “unprofessional” and saying it was symptomatic of too many players in the modern game.

“What he’s done is unprofessional. It shows you that the only loyalty a player has got is to himself,” Allardyce said.

“This is what we deal with today in football, there’s not such a thing as loyalty as there used to be in the older days when I was a player.

“It’s a selfish attitude they have and that’s not just about Benni, that’s all players today. If they want something they do anything to try and get it.”

Allardyce added: “If he is trying to manipulate a move by staying away it’s not the right thing to do.

“Sometimes players will get advised wrongly and I think whoever is advising him to stay away is very wrong as he’s done himself no favours.”

The Hammers are only presently above the Premier League relegation zone on goal difference while Blackburn are five points clear of the bottom three.

BLACKBURN, England (AFP)

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