Wayne’s world is a galaxy apart

BUT OTHERS CAN STRIVE TO JOIN

The numbers game at the top of the Football Pyramid does blow your mind. If reports are correct, Wayne Rooney will now earn in a month, roughly what my entire Stevenage squad earns in a year.

His club averages around 30 times the home gate that we generate; personally he generates more than 12 times the income that my 20 lads earn.

Those statistics are staggering.

Until you start to understand the reasons why.

1) Television companies pay huge money to the best clubs to employ the best players and they then transport the resultant football product around the world to millions of eyeballs.

2) Sponsors therefore pay millions of pounds to attach their brands to the arenas, pitches and shirts so that the millions of eyeballs become brand aware.

3) The quality of player on show results in gate ticket prices being sky high compared to lower league football.

4) Good players, generate better results, which generate better prize monies; at the top end, that might mean the difference between Champions League participation or not.

Every industry has a top end where the same sort of thing is true.

The best appear to earn disproportionately more than the rest. But there is always a reason.

The opportunity is to knuckle down, focus on being the best you can be, and like Chris Smalling move from Non-League to United in a heartbeat. It can be done.