Why Transfer fees can't be justified

by Ben Harrison @bennyrharrison

Why transfer fees can't be "justified"

"Football is a results driven business".

We have all heard those words uttered countless times by pundits, managers, players and fans alike. The statement is appealing because it simplifies the game, making its evaluation a matter of objective fact - after all, teams are either successfully getting results, or they aren't.

But football, like so much of life, is rarely so binary. What constitutes a successful result and over what time frame is continually changing for all clubs - the goalposts do not stay in one place for very long.

It is these shifting expectations that drive the game forward; they keep fans interested; they spur transfers and drive managerial changes.

One area where this is most visible is the expectations placed upon players who have been subject to a big money move.

Every transfer window features one or more of these expensive signings in the Premier League. This summer, the new TV deal means we have seen many clubs moving early in the Window and investing to improve their squads.
For players like Paulinho, Wilifred Bony or Andre Schurrle who have already arrived in the Premier League for large sums, the pressure will be on immediately to start providing a return on that investment for their new clubs.

Never mind that these players had nothing to do with setting their own transfer fee: the majority of fans, the media, managers and owners will take the view that having cost so much, they will be capable of making an instant impact. If they fail to do so, they risk going from ‘star signing’ to ‘expensive flop’ in just a matter of weeks.

Yet there are a number of reasons why generating such expectations based on transfer fees alone does not make sense.

First, the amount a club chooses to spend on a player may have very little to do with any assessment of their 'objective value'. A whole host of factors governs what a club is willing to spend on a new player, including how much they need to strengthen a particular part of the team, whether the target in question is deemed indispensable by their current clubs, or the financial situation of both teams. These factors make judging a player's objective worth based solely on their 'cost' very difficult.

Take the case of Andy Carroll and Fernando Torres. Signed by Liverpool and Chelsea for £35m and £50m respectively, both players have since struggled to live up to expectations and 'justify' those price tags.

That both transfers can now be categorically deemed failures has far more to do with their lack of appearances and output for their new clubs, than it does the fee they were transferred for. After all, at £35m, Carroll is the most expensive English footballer of all time. But he isn't even close to being the best, so any expectations that were driven by his transfer fee were always going to be wide of the mark.

The truth is, the remarkable size of their transfer fees was driven by unique circumstances surrounding the sale of Torres to Chelsea, and the Blues seemingly limitless transfer budget at this time. This meant that Newcastle could essentially name their price for Carroll, safe in the knowledge that Roman Abramovich would be picking up the tab, as Liverpool would simply pass the cost on to Chelsea with a higher fee for Torres.

Alternatively, consider arguably the best signing of 2012/13; Swansea’s Spanish forward, Michu. Signed for just £2m from Rayo Vallecano, Michu stunned the Premier League, scoring twice on his debut, and netting a further 16 league goals for the Swans throughout the season.

Because Michu was signed for so little, it was easy to assume that other, more expensive signings, such as Oliver Giroud (£12m), Shinji Kagawa (£17m) or Moussa Dembele (£15m), would be far more influential during the season ahead.

Continues here - http://v2journal.com/22/post/2013/07/why-transfer-fees-cant-be-justified.html

People are worth what clubs are willing to pay.

There, justified.

*They're

Olly wrote:*They're

Wrong there Olly.

Pay attention to the comma. It's there after the there..

Olly wrote:

FreekShow wrote:

Olly wrote:*They're

Wrong there Olly.

Pay attention to the comma. It's there after the there..

 

New season soon kidda. You excited? I am!..

Olly wrote:

FreekShow wrote:

Olly wrote:*They're

Wrong there Olly.

Pay attention to the comma. It's there after the there..

WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY

FreekShow wrote:

Olly wrote:

FreekShow wrote:

Olly wrote:*They're

Wrong there Olly.

Pay attention to the comma. It's there after the there..

 

New season soon kidda. You excited? I am!..

Excited. I'm basically bursting at the seams!!

I'm excited.

Great that Tekkers has signed new deal.

Looking forward to your legendary drunken Saturday night gems Westy!

Ha, am sure they'll be a few.

there far too much money in football . rooney on 200 grand a week that's just absolutely mad . one weeks wage would dramatically change my life . as much as i love football sometimes it sickens me just to think about it how wages increased . anyway big villa fan and hoping we be sitting mostly top of table this season