It’s not a statement, it’s a question.
Which you seem to have dodged. Who mentioned OPEC? I was quite delicate in the way I phrased it.
Should we try again? Yes or no. Thx.
If I won the lottery, put the £6m on a 1000 to 1 accumulator and bought the club, 3/4 of the forum (I suspect) would be furious.
Owners can’t win 
I’d be furious.
I wouldn’t want someone who gambles irresponsibly like that running the club.
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…Yeah, but probably not as furious as your wife would be :0)
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Don’t forget the half time oranges
Reminds me of the new signing who was told by his team mates that the manager was likely to pull him off at half time. He said bloody hell…at my last club, we just got an orange.
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The ideal scenario is a couple of midfielders sign this summer and Jude on a Bosman in 2024. Spend his transfer money this summer and give him a signing bonus the following.
Rabiot this summer, maybe Laimer? Kante 2yr contract?
You’d be looking at this next summer
Hendo
Thiago
Fabinho
Elliott
Rabiot bosman
Laimer bosman
Jones
Carvalho
For three midfield spots
Yeah I know 2 (two) billionaires and one takes a ‘robust’ view of contract law (aka could be a bit of a sharp cunt if you fall out) while the other is a thoroughly decent, low key gentleman who has been a quiet philanthropist for 30+ years and - apart from being an alcoholic when he was a young man and first made big money - is as normal/average as you like. Anecdotal perhaps - and neither of them are rich enough nor interested in football - but not every potential billionaire has to be human rights violating, hydrocarbon polluting, carpet killing scum.
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Leaving aside the ludicrousness of putting a £6m lottery win (I presume you are like 99% of UK residents and have <2m liquid assets) on a 1000/1 bet, you can’t believe any bookies would be prepared to abe exposed to such a bet.
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You’re a ray of sunshine on a Monday morning aren’t you……
Metaphorically speaking, isn’t that exactly what Klopptimist did with Brexit?
(Runs off)
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Dortmund can demand what they want - it could be £500m if they wanted - but until that figure has been bid by another club then its meaningless. So in the Jude case, there’s no ‘competing’ at this stage. We have clearly talked to Dortmund, they have provided a number we clearly find ridiculous and we walked away. It could be that everyone else had balked at the figure as well and that’s why no-one has bid yet.
I could be wrong on this as I don’t understand Real’s financial situation. I seem to recall they had some dodgy business and dealings with banks and the Spanish government to help prop them up. Is that all true? I am trying to understand, if they could genuinely afford Jude for £120-130m while keeping within FFP rules - taking into account its not as if they haven’t exactly spent nothing over the last 2, 3, 5, 10 years - then wouldn’t that make Jude’s figure the market rate rather than something artificially inflated by petrodollars? How do you actually limit spending on those clubs that are genuinely* gigantic like Real?
*Again it comes back to whether Real are following FFP - They are a club that have a history of thinking one rule should apply to them and one for everyone else so god knows…
There were some posts in the La Liga thread about deals they had agreed with a US firm to sponsor legacy events which would be played at Real Madrid’s ground. The sums of money they were getting for that over the next 25 years (i think) were eye wateringly huge. Factor in the cutting back on the fancy spending from before Covid and some of the higher earners moving off of their books in the last few years then I think RM’s financial health is pretty strong. The only worry during covid had been the cost from the hotel but I think they have the money for that in place and held separately so won’t tax the club’s balance sheet.
One of the sneaky truths of european football, is that Real have been very unreal like for near 10 years now. Since that summer they spent big on James (who they didnt need), they have been comparatively quiet in the market in terms of real first team players. They’ve brought in first teamers here and there, but mostly on moderate fees or frees, and at a pretty low cadence. They had a big retooling in the summer of 19-20 (Hazard, Mendy, Milato, Rodrigo, Jovic), but outside they really havent done much. That was likely a salary management issue and acceptance of using the players they already had, but in the last 3 years they’ve brought in just 2 players. It means if Real decided to go and have another window in 19-20 they almost certainly could.
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it is true, but so far back in time as to be basically irrelevant. The numbers involved are almost quaint by today’s standards, a whopping 25 million Euros (2011).
Real’s financial situation is impressive, they have enormous revenue streams in every category, and in particular get more transfer revenue than most people realize.
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I dont know the numbers involved, but they run a very City like approach with young and fringe players. It seems to be a reliable source of revenue and every once in a while will produce a sizeable fee. IN recent years they have got 40 million for both Hakimi and Ødegaard
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If Liverpool were rather more reckless in how we approach the market - ie borrowing money, not giving a fuck about tomorrow - we could buy Jude Bellingham for £135m. The club would just find itself £135m more in debt that it was before (I’m simplifying the finances a bit there).
Real Madrid could probably afford to get Bellingham, but again the noises coming out of that club is that the sums being touted are a bit high. And they certainly couldn’t do Bellingham and M’Bappe (if they do plan on having another crack at that one this summer).
A lot of the damage done to football was done when PSG bought Neymar, the effect of which was more or less doubling transfer fees overnight.
That is a good point. A lot of real’s lack of spending in recent years is seemingly due to wanting to be leave enough room in their finances to afford Mbappe at the moment they get a signal he might be ready to move. That continued hope more than any actual lack of money is the only thing likely to rein in their spending over the next couple of years.
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I don’t think it needs fixing, but you can read the same for Liverpool as Real.
Two behemoths of the game (Real a bit bigger than us, admittedly) strategically constraining their spending to afford the player they want when he becomes available.
That, in my view is a direct consequence of the way the oil clubs (and Chelsea this year) have distorted the market.
Funny how Dortmund continually find themselves at the centre of this. When Neymar went to PSG for £200m, Dortmund immediately quote Barca twice the market value for Dembele. Here we are a few years later, Dortmund reacting to the Enzo Fernandez deal by slapping circa £150m on Judes head.
I maintain the game, and especially the transfer market needs independent regulation. All transfer fees should be set by tribunal. All it takes is one club to go fucking nuts, and the shockwaves get felt through the whole sport.
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That one club originally, Chelsea are joined by City, PSG and possibly Newcastle.
The game reeks
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