Sara Carbonero Showing Great Yoko Ono Potential

By: The Offside | September 21st, 2010

ronaldo-iker-casillas-2009-12-4-20-13-4 If we’re to go on recent times, the current title-holder as football’s Yoko Ono must be one Kristen Pazik, the wife of Andriy Shevchenko who torpedoed the man’s career with one seemingly innocuous request: ‘let’s go to England, honey’.

But no one in the football world currently holds more Yoko potential than Spain’s very own Sara Carbonero, whose dual employment as media personality and jewel of Iker Casillas‘ eye creates something of a slightly worrying overlap.

That promise is turning into production.

Even if this amounts to little or nothing at the very core, the potential for a nuclear implosion at Real as she unleashes Iker’s pillow talk on the listening masses is certainly ever present, and we have evidence enough she likes to be seen as professional in the public eye.

“Ronaldo has always been like that, selfish and an individualist on the pitch and Real Madrid signed him like that,” Carbonero, a sports journalist, told popular daytime chat show “Ana Rosa” on Telecinco, the private television station she works for.

“The only problem is that he was bought for 96 million euros so when he does things wrong, he can’t be forgiven.”

Some reports have suggested Ronaldo has personal problems, but Carbonero denied this: “Nothing is happening to him, he is not depressed, he has not consulted a psychologist as has been said in recent days.”

She’s neither the first nor the last person to call Cristiano selfish, and there’s every chance it’s just about the nicest thing he’s heard today. The slightly worrying bit is that last part, where she apparently has knowledge of his state of mind. She is a journalist and could get her information as most overweight, greasy media types do, which doesn’t involve sleeping with the players, but the math is too easy not to make assumptions.

Pillow talk, or even the perception, is dangerous – for Real Madrid anyway. For the rest of the world it’s the opportunity to sit back and watch a soap opera blossom on the stage before us.

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Category: Spain La Liga

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OffsideSarah

Wow, Sara Carbonero again getting thrown under the bus for merely being a professional. Anyone who watches football knows he's an individual player who takes the chances he's given (and doesn't always share them with his teammates). It's silly to read into what she said in those quotes as if she's implying thats the way he is off the field or that she's communicating information shared with her in a private context. If she was revealing "inside information" - Id expect something juicer than a tidbit even the casual football fan might know.

Maybe she should have known how this would be interpreted and reconsidered her words but its frustrating that she's been accused now twice (in the English media at least) of impropriety for merely doing her job. Male sports journalists often have personal relationships with players - usually not of the romantic variety - but some of them are close friends and they do not work under the same scrutiny.
Jordan

I'm not sure what your idea of 'professional' is, but if she's reporting things that Iker is saying to her in a private setting, she is being pretty unprofessional. It seems, if this is where she is getting her inside scoop, that she is reporting these things just to cause drama/garner attention.
OffsideSarah

But, my point is that there is nothing from her statement which indicates she made her judgement based on anything other than her own observations on the field. She's talking about his style of playing - which (as Chris pointed out) has been described as "selfish" for years.

She's a journalist - she is capable of making her own independent observations of players and games. I did say that perhaps she should have predicted the way her words would have been twisted - but (for me) her personal relationship doesn't mean she can't have her own professional opinion. I dont even think what she said is that controversial - strikers and attacking players are suppose to score goals. And to do that A LOT you have to be selfish to a degree. And when they don't score, they are going to be criticized.
Jordan

No.....the selfish critique is completely irrelevant here. As Chris stated, everyone knows CR7 is selfish. The problem in Carbonero's review, as Chris stated, is the insight into CR7's psychological state and his steps, or lack thereof, to remedy it. You seem to be overlooking Chris' most poignant statement in his post, "Pillow talk, or even the perception, is dangerous." We're talking about the idea of people making the jump from Iker to Carbonero to the press/media. That is unprofessional if they're in a private setting, no matter how you slice it. Unless she knows the RM psych department or CR7's personal head shrinker and was able to get the inside scoop, chances are it came from the Madrid 'keeper. I highly doubt you, as a fellow female journalist, can consider that professional behavior.
OffsideSarah

Regarding the 'perception' of 'pillow talk' - I think there is a double standard here that isn't being addressed. Male reporters and journalists often have personal relationships with players (having worked and interviewed with them over time) - and their opinions/sources do not receive the same scrutiny. The 'perception' of their professional judgment doesn't seem to be compromised or discredited unless there is explicit proof.

Granted, I know probably much less than you about Sara's reputation and the quality of her work in the Spanish press. I dont know if she has a history of dating players and using them for information to further her own career. Without that, I continue to operating under the assumption that, if anything, her relationship with Casillas makes her more likely to NOT report negative stories involving Real Madrid players.

I'm not sure how she received the information about Ronaldo's visits (or lack thereof) to the shrink. Today, I read an article where she says her comments were taken out of context (http://www.marca.com/2010/09/22/futbol/equipos/real_madrid/1285174222.html) about Ronaldo. I don't speak Spanish fluently, but I think she says this..

"I spoke well of Cristiano, I said that he had no depression, what he has is an eagerness to succeed because he is an ambitious player on the field, which is not bad, [it is] a good quality."

To me, she was trying to say that his attitude (frustration, impatience) was not the result of a mental illness but merely just dissatisfaction with his own performance. As in, he doesn't need to see a doctor - he just needs to score goals.

Re: your argument about "jumping from Iker to Carbonero to the press/media." I think it is an important point, but I'll admit I feel conflicted.

On one hand, it seems like Sara/Iker are getting the blame for something they may not have done (Sara using Iker for inside information and Iker using Sara to push his own agenda in the presS). Why should they be punished because the public (or the press) want to insinuate things about them and their relationship that are not true (or at least there is no proof)? It seems like they are screwed either way. They could do everything right (not even talk about football to each other) and still people would find ways to pick apart their statements to imply they are acting unprofessionally. If Sara is able to do her job well, she'll never get the professional credit she deserves (bc Iker "helped her"). When it comes to "perception" and female sports journalists - I rarely find the "perception" corresponds to reality.

On the other hand, this is (sadly) pretty predictable and for me crosses some professional boundaries/ethics I, myself, would not choose. There is an arguable conflict of interest - but I'm uncomfortable suggesting that she has to either (a) give up her livelihood or (b) give up her relationship with Iker in order to be taken seriously. Basically, unless there is proof, I'm weary to give into a 'perception' that seems to be based on an unfair double standard. From what I've seen of Sara - it doesn't seem to me - like she is milking her relationship with Iker to further her career. She is getting a lot of attention, but I don't think she is "asking for it [attention]" - at least more than any other journalist.

I wonder if I feel differently about this because of the situation in France the past few years. Raymond Domenech's partner, Estelle, was a sports presenter in France. Raymond famously proposed to her on camera after France lost in the group stage. She had a difficult job to do as the presenter of a football show in France - but I always thought she held herself with dignity and respect. She invited people on the show that criticized her partner and she was honest and respectful about the team's (and her husbands) performances. To make it even stranger - she was asked out by Guily (which she turned down as he described in his bio) and (allegedly) had a relationship with Pires. For the record, she has moved on from sports news, which is understandable. Can't be easy going to work every day to hear your loved ripped to pieces.

Sorry - long reply, but I think this issue is complicated.