These days whenever a footballer makes a comment the media interprets it how they want, but Graziano Pelle's comments to the press have left the media making it mean two different things.
Speaking before Italy's latest games Graziano Pelle made comments in the Italian Press that on the face of it seemed very non committal, but the media have to take them to mean one thing or another and now there are conflicting stories from various media outlets that highlight just how any old comment can be taken in whatever context the writer wants it to to make a headline.
Pelle said:
"My contract runs out in 2017. "Italy is a wonderful country and I miss its beauty in general.
"The league was in decline but it is improving at the moment and that's obvious from abroad.
"Serie A used to be snubbed in other countries but thanks to Juventus' performances in the Champions League and other Italian efforts in Europe, we are returning to the standard of Italian football that we used to know.
"It is becoming one of the world's best leagues once again. "I'm nostalgic for Italy but I'm happy in England, we'll see what happens."
Fairly standard stuff from a player, he obviously loves his Country and is not going to disrespect it, but he is also clear that he is happy at Saints.
Clubcall have taken it at its word and have run the story under the headline
" Saints ace allays exit fears"
However rival media source HITC have chosen to take a different path and have published his comments under the headline
"Has Graziano Pelle dropped Southampton exit hint?"
They have chosen to not publish the quote about him being happy in England and instead try to insinuate that the player is angling for a return to Italy.
These two stories show just how even a simple reply in an interview can be manipulated to produce the story that the media outlet requires despite the fact that the player in question has made it quite clear what he means.
This should be quite reassuring for Saints fans though, it highlights how much transfer rumour in the media is absolute tosh and made up from the most innocuous of comments, therefore we should take most media stories with a pinch of salt.
The problem is though that too often what is based on total fabrication is soon being touted as nailed on truth, that was the case back in August when Manchester United fed the media a rumour that they were chasing Sadio Mane to try and placate their supporters up in arms about missing out on Pedro to Chelsea.
Back then United supporters were not impressed with Mane's pedigree, yet now the rumours are resurfacing based on nothing more than completely inaccurate reporting a few months ago, Mane has had a decent season so far, but he has not set the World alight with regards to his goalscoring record, United are looking for a SCORER and Mane's record of 3 Premier league goals so far this season is not good enough for them, yes he has another 3 in the cups, but 2 goals against MK Dons is not the pedigree United or their fans are looking for, they want a player with a proven record at the highest level, not one with potential.
So the message is clear from the Pelle articles, do not believe what you read in the press, even if everyone is saying it, quite often a story with no basis will seem real because everyone reports it because headlines attract.