Is Benitez Right: Did Gareth Barry Move Only For The Money?

(Photo by Matthew Lewis/Getty Images)

"In this market now, money is not the main thing. Everyone at this level earns big money. If it's just for money, sometimes you will make mistakes. I was surprised by some decisions this year, like Gareth Barry.  I won't say too much but clearly it was 100 percent for money. The most important thing for me is the passion of the players."

Those were the words of Liverpool coach Rafael Benitez, a man who has really not been media shy of late.

Liverpool were in for Gareth Barry last summer and could not match the asking price of $17 million by Aston Villa. Gareth Barry was also on record for stating that he wanted to play Champions League football. So a move to Manchester City, a team that could not offer him Champions League football, was surprising.

Or is it?

At Manchester City, he is drawing a salary of $92,000 a week for five years. That is much more than what he got at Aston Villa. 

So is it just for the money?

In a letter to the Birmingham Mail, Barry had stated that the move to Manchester City was purely for a "new challenge".

Well Champions League football is a new challenge, right?

On the other side, City are a team with new owners and these owners are rich beyond one's wildest dreams. They have enough funds to afford to bring in stellar signings to Manchester City. City is definitely a team on the rise and this is just one phase of the rebuilding process. City has the potential to emerge as the new member of the big four.

Was it this potential that maybe swayed Barry's decision to choose City?

Was Benitez right to say that Barry's move to city was only for the money? What do you think was the real motive behind Barry's move?

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