Union Berlin midfielder Morten Thorsby admits he would refuse to join Manchester City or Newcastle United due to his concerns about how the Premier League duo are run behind the scenes, speaking to Aftenposten.
The Norway international is not merely a sportsman. He’s as much an activist as an athlete.
Thorsby even adopted the number two shirt at Sampdoria to draw attention to climate change, reflecting the Paris Agreement target of limiting the global temperature increase to just two degrees Celsius between now and the end of the century (BBC).
“We need football, because it has such a big influence,” the Norway international explains. “For me, it is absolutely impossible to see that football is not political, and it is the most influential phenomenon.
“I don’t even call it a sport. It is a phenomenon, bigger than sports. We must use the power that exists in football. Football players have enormous opportunities to influence. We are the role models.”
Morten Thorsby would refuse to join Manchester City or Newcastle United
In an interview with Aftenposten, the topic of state-owned football clubs was inevitably brought up. And, if the opportunity was to come his way, Thorsby insists that he would resist the temptation to join compatriot Erling Haaland at Manchester City.
Nor would he join a Newcastle side who’s Saudi Arabian ownership remains a source of constant debate.
“No, I would not have done it,” Thorsby says when quizzed about a potential move to City or St James’ Park. “It is a position of principle.”
Many in Thorsby’s homeland lead calls for a boycott of the Qatar World Cup last year. That is, before the Norwegian Football Federation voted to reject the notion. Despite boasting the most lethal marksman in the global game, plus talents like Martin Odegaard and Sander Berge, Norway would miss out on qualification for the so-called Festival of Football anyway.
They finished third, behind the Netherlands and Turkey, in their qualification group.
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