"I'll injure every player until you sell me" - Former Premier League striker says he threatened club after getting transfer request rejected
Former Premier League striker Troy Deeney has said that he threatened to injure every player at Watford if the club didn't let him leave in the summer of 2016.
Deeney ended the 2015-16 season with 15 goals and ten assists in 43 games across competitions, and Watford wanted to retain him for the next campaign. However, he wanted to force an exit and went to extreme lengths to get his wish.
Speaking recently on the Filthy Fellas Podcast, via the Daily Mail, Deeney recalled:
"'I'll come back fat as f***, and I will injure every player until you sell me. I promise you I will injure every player. I go back to my car, and three minutes later, my phone's ringing, and they (Watford) are saying, 'name your price, you can get it'. And I was like, well let's play then.
Eventually, it didn't take a lot for Deeney to stay with the Hornets. He said:
"At this point, I was driving a Lamborghini Aventador, every time I came (to training), this speed bump p****** me off. 'So, I said, 'can you take speed bump out please?'
"You lot thought it was about the money, but I was already getting the money. I've got one box; it's only a 10 seater, so can I get two boxes? Knock the wall out. I want a bottle of Champagne every time, and they're going 'yep, you can have that.'"
The English striker signed a five-year deal that summer and left Watford in the summer of 2021 for Birmingham City. He's widely regarded as one of Watford's greatest players in modern history, with 140 goals in 419 games across competitions.
Pundit backs Premier League giants to beat Inter Milan in UCL final
Former Liverpool defender Phil Thompson has backed Premier League giants Manchester City to win the UEFA Champions League final against Inter Milan on Saturday (June 10).
The Cityzens are in formidable form, winning the Premier League and FA Cup this season. Thompson reckons the pressure of winning the treble won't get to Pep Guardiola's side, writing for Paddy Power:
"I don’t think the pressure of winning a treble will affect them. The way this City team plays is nice and composed; it doesn’t matter who they’re playing.
"They never get ruffled; they just keep passing it, and I think they’ll drag Inter Milan all over the place. ... I think they will win that treble, and I’ve got City to win 2-0."
This will be the second Champions League final for the Premier League champions, having lost the first one 1-0 to Chelsea in 2021. Inter, meanwhile, have won three of five Champions League finals, with their last one being in 2010, which they won beating Bayern Munich 2-0.