Manchester United: Shinji Kagawa never did have a dig at David Moyes
DID Manchester United’s Japanese star Shinji Kagawa really “hit out at new Manchester United boss David Moyes”?
Is the style of things in Japan to attack your boss in public? The Daily Star says it is. The Metro agrees:
Shinji Kagawa dig at David Moyes bemuses Manchester United
ITV says Kagawa told this to “reporters:
Kagawa encourages reporters to question Moyes
But only one reporter seems to have heard Kagawa’s “dig“. And then all newspaper run with the same AFP quote:
“Please ask David Moyes why I’m not in the side”
Was he pleading with them to quiz Moyes?
Not one report in Japan has that quote.
Minds are cast back to 2012, when Kagawa said of Alex Ferguson:
“I can’t tell a word he says! I am trying to learn English, but understanding the manager might take a little longer . . .
Indeed, after Japan’s match against Guatamala, Kawaga said (and this just four days before his above quote was attributed to him):
“It’s very early to say [what I think of Moyes]. I think after I get back I will start to get a feel for the new manager.”
Ben Mabley, a Japanese journalist based out of Osaka, notes:
Having heard Kagawa’s original remarks in Japanese he provides a much more accurate and somewhat milder translaction. Ben wrote on Twitter that Kagawa was being misquoted by the English media. He says that Kagawa did not say “ask David Moyes”, he infact said, “You would have to ask the manager…”.
Such are the facts…
Posted: 12th, September 2013 | In: Sports Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
