Quote Originally Posted by Pedro de la Rosa View Post
If someone has made a complaint, it should be dealt with . If Bellamy and/or Harvey have made a kid feel bullied, they should have spoken to the kid, said this is why x,y,z happened, with someone else senior present and gone over it, after Bellamy/Harvey were spoken to first and reminded of their responsibilites (or if more serious been removed from their posts). This is supposed to be a talented youngster, that's the reason he's in the academy in the first place. This apparently hasn't happened, and Bellamy has made the kid's life worse, so nobody else would dare accuse Bellamy or Harvey of anything again. If you saw your mate getting frozen out after complaining, and you want a career in football, you shut up. It isn't physical abuse but lots of kids knew about Bennell etc but didn't say, because all they wanted to be was a footballer. Bellamy and Harvey are in positions of power, they can shape a kid's dream.

We don't know if it happened, or what the club found out but I'm sick of people being told that kids are too soft etc. So what if they are? Football and the world are changing, and in my experience there's no bigger snowflakes than 50 year old men like Piers Morgan who lose their shit over trivial bollocks like vegan sausage rolls.
I completely support your view over the insidious nature of bullying, and if there is a culture of bullying it needs to be stopped - no matter who is doing it, as it's counter-productive to all concerned.

I can't agree with your comment on 'so what if they are?' I watch players being bullied on the professional football pitch in every game I watch - whether it's physical or mental bullying. It's a competitive game. If they can't cope with that they won't survive.

Life is not fair and rarely played by rules. Better to find out you aren't cut out to be a footballer earlier rather than later, having wasted some of the most crucial years of your life aiming for something you'll never reach. The discussion should be what is acceptable in teaching young kids that professional football is tough and therefore they must be too, and at what stages are they ready to learn this lesson?

Completely agree about Piers Morgan by the way...