Indeed, why should a professional player be EXPECTED or demanded of to stay?
Serie B? Really, its more of a rarity then an obligation for anyone to be willing to stay when you take a steep fall like that, especially someone in Thuram's age where it means wasting basically last real season in football on the lower dungeons of football. Football is a mutually benificial game for club and players, what was the benifite for a 35 year old top defender to go to Serie B, with no gurantees or chances for any aspirations? (it was his loss anyway, he would have been admired beyond belief if he stayed, and its not like he acheived anything but his money check in Barca).
I mean, INSANE amount of loyalty is demanded by a professional like that, just like that, but even if he didnt say that he would leave, we were dumping him like a bad habit (while trying to hold on Canna a bit), our financial state was plumbing REALLY fast, and I very much remember our board making it clear someone like Thuram was those they would get rid of first to ease it. They didnt have it easy selling him, and had to package him into the Zambro deal JUST to find someone willing to take on his big salary.