OT - Declan Rice, an astronomical fee

[Danke bitte 967]

Here’s us miserly fretting over a few million quid for any player when Arsenal have just laid down over 100 mill for a midfielder that even Man City baulked at…

Thoughts, feelings, emotions?? Let them be known! I’m struggling to comprehend the fee tbh and is this a sign of silly money to compete with Man City??

[cambridgeshire canary 6,753]

I mean Maguire was 80 million. Anytime I hear anything above 100 it's just silly money mind.

[Midlands Yellow 4,012]

I doubt we were ever in for him. 

[Herman 9,793]

He's a good player but not that sort of money. It's a ridiculous amount. Football's gone.

[Ulfotto 640]

Maybe there are a lack of defensive midfield players? Particularly English (ahem) ones

[wcorkcanary 4,334]

It is mental , truly mental that you'd  need say 130 million, almost certainly more, to engage the services of Declan Rice for say 4 years, with little or no guarantee of substantial return ...anything can happen.  Leave em to it. 

[Branston Pickle 3,667]

Let’s hope they bung about 15-20% of the £ in our direction for Max (unless Yobocop is right about Roma)

[Jason Shackell’s Limp Tack 75]

I cannot wait for the bubble to pop. And, despite my protests last year, I cannot wait for them all to fook of and join a European super league. Because, it's already done. 

[Top corner 228]

It's disgusting, there's people struggling to pay their energy bills, put food on the table & there are footballers costing a fortune in fees & wages. I would love for the general supporters to stand up & voice their disapproval, but that ship has long gone. Clubs could quite easily spend more money on reducing the cost of a season ticket, but they choose to spend it on the ever increasing footballers wage. I'm part of the problem because I keep renewing my season ticket because I want to watch my club, but god it makes me sick. 

[Yobocop 1,105]

I’ve seen him play one good game which was the semi final of euros where he burnt out after 60 mins 

clearly a player there but can’t help thinking he’s moved 2 or 3 years late but equally pleased he hasn’t gone to city and been another Phillips 

[Danke bitte 967]

1 hour ago, Top corner said:

It's disgusting, there's people struggling to pay their energy bills, put food on the table & there are footballers costing a fortune in fees & wages. I would love for the general supporters to stand up & voice their disapproval, but that ship has long gone. Clubs could quite easily spend more money on reducing the cost of a season ticket, but they choose to spend it on the ever increasing footballers wage. I'm part of the problem because I keep renewing my season ticket because I want to watch my club, but god it makes me sick. 

I think when your club gets injected with some hot Saudi money and are able to compete at the top end of the Premier League, as a fan you start to care less about morals of where that money is coming from. 

[Duncan Edwards 2,245]

I think he’s a very good footballer. I think he’ll do better in a better side too. What I do think is telling us that Man City didn’t take him. He’s clearly better than Phillips but obviously not good enough to tip the balance.

the fees paid are obscene but… he’ll play at Arsenal, that’s surely better than what we’ve seen before from City, Chelsea et al simply buying players to stop others getting them.

Lest we forget that City paid £100m for Grealish and can anyone honestly say they’d rather have him than Foden given ability and their respective ages?

For what it’s worth, Rice would have been my first Norwich City signing this summer and the fact we didn’t even try shows a distinct lack of ambition and only goes to confirm that Absentanasio is another Delia puppet. 

[dylanisabaddog 4,947]

I agree with @Duncan Edwards. Rice is a very good player but West Ham have still done very well to get £100m. Real Madrid got a better and younger player for half of that but Bellingham had a better agent who inserted a release clause in his contract. Whoever represents Rice has let him down badly in that respect.

As for the obscenity of money in football that's entirely down to us. The money from Sky and ticket sales goes straight through clubs and into the pockets of the players. If you don't want to be part of that don't pay. Personally I don't mind them earning huge salaries because they improve the quality of my life. As opposed to bankers and hedge fund managers who give me no pleasure whatsoever. 

The problem of Saudi money not mentioned by Duncan Edwards is a completely different matter. As far as I'm aware Arsenal is a well run club that spent relatively little for many years in order to fund stadium construction. I may be wrong but I don't think there is any Saudi money involved. But it is a problem for football and other sports. I'm extremely uneasy about Saudi money and would walk away from Norwich City if they bought our club. But I suspect I'm in the minority and many would happily go to Carrow Road wearing yellow tea towels on their heads. 

[Don’t be Krul 399]

3 minutes ago, dylanisabaddog said:

I agree with @Duncan Edwards. Rice is a very good player but West Ham have still done very well to get £100m. Real Madrid got a better and younger player for half of that but Bellingham had a better agent who inserted a release clause in his contract. Whoever represents Rice has let him down badly in that respect.

As for the obscenity of money in football that's entirely down to us. The money from Sky and ticket sales goes straight through clubs and into the pockets of the players. If you don't want to be part of that don't pay. Personally I don't mind them earning huge salaries because they improve the quality of my life. As opposed to bankers and hedge fund managers who give me no pleasure whatsoever. 

The problem of Saudi money not mentioned by Duncan Edwards is a completely different matter. As far as I'm aware Arsenal is a well run club that spent relatively little for many years in order to fund stadium construction. I may be wrong but I don't think there is any Saudi money involved. But it is a problem for football and other sports. I'm extremely uneasy about Saudi money and would walk away from Norwich City if they bought our club. But I suspect I'm in the minority and many would happily go to Carrow Road wearing yellow tea towels on their heads. 

Agree with this to an extent, Dylan. Bellingham isn't as good as Rice at the moment, but he will turn out to be world class. Also, initial fee was £88.5m and rising, so could eclipse £105m for Rice.

Either way, all world class teams have a world class No.6, Arsenal now have that

[dylanisabaddog 4,947]

9 minutes ago, Don’t be Krul said:

Agree with this to an extent, Dylan. Bellingham isn't as good as Rice at the moment, but he will turn out to be world class. Also, initial fee was £88.5m and rising, so could eclipse £105m for Rice.

Either way, all world class teams have a world class No.6, Arsenal now have that

Thank you. I thought Bellingham was £50m. I was obviously misinformed! 

[canarydan23 4,060]

Imagine what Gilmour must be worth. He can walk into the England team.

[Old Shuck 185]

9 hours ago, Jason Shackell’s Limp Tack said:

I cannot wait for the bubble to pop. And, despite my protests last year, I cannot wait for them all to fook of and join a European super league. Because, it's already done. 

Agreed. The big clubs, including those in the Premier League as well as Tottenham, all scuttled away from that original super league concept a couple of years ago or so but they all want it, they want it bad. 

It's just a question of presenting it again only this time in a way that is acceptable to their fah base here as the hangers on worldwide who support from their sofas are all ready and willing to pay £15.99 a month for exclusive coverage. 

Let them go but make sure they know that when they up and leave their time in their domestic leagues is up. Our game here can survive without them and will.

[Capt. Pants 4,261]

Don't worry we'll have our own Sugar Daddy one day.

I'm sure if our club dumps even £50m on a player we'll love him; buy a horrendous striped shirt with his name on the back, then laugh at the Binners.

We're all part of the problem and the 'opportunity' that businesses, formerly known as football clubs, see us as.

[Midlands Yellow 4,012]

2 hours ago, dylanisabaddog said:

I agree with @Duncan Edwards. Rice is a very good player but West Ham have still done very well to get £100m. Real Madrid got a better and younger player for half of that but Bellingham had a better agent who inserted a release clause in his contract. Whoever represents Rice has let him down badly in that respect.

As for the obscenity of money in football that's entirely down to us. The money from Sky and ticket sales goes straight through clubs and into the pockets of the players. If you don't want to be part of that don't pay. Personally I don't mind them earning huge salaries because they improve the quality of my life. As opposed to bankers and hedge fund managers who give me no pleasure whatsoever. 

The problem of Saudi money not mentioned by Duncan Edwards is a completely different matter. As far as I'm aware Arsenal is a well run club that spent relatively little for many years in order to fund stadium construction. I may be wrong but I don't think there is any Saudi money involved. But it is a problem for football and other sports. I'm extremely uneasy about Saudi money and would walk away from Norwich City if they bought our club. But I suspect I'm in the minority and many would happily go to Carrow Road wearing yellow tea towels on their heads. 

Didn’t Bellingham cost Madrid over €100m not including add ons? 

[Mike w 46]

Apparently we have 9 players who are paid in excess of £1m pa. ? 

What do they show for it ?

I never earnt that in my working life for 5 or 6 days per week and they train and play 2 matches per week for 9 months.

Football gone crazy now and with Saudi League offering micky mouse money for what?

 

[Wacky Waving Inflatable Arm Flailing Tube Man 3,822]

Meanwhile, Southend United are at real risk of not being able to start the National League season and may even go out of business. It would take a few hundred grand to save them.

The greed and desire of the mega-rich elite clubs to get bigger and richer is really frustrating at times. I'm sure the authorities would love to distribute finances more evenly and stop these obscene transfer fees and wages, but they simply don't have as much power as the clubs.

[A Load of Squit 5,184]

14 hours ago, Jason Shackell’s Limp Tack said:

I cannot wait for the bubble to pop. And, despite my protests last year, I cannot wait for them all to fook of and join a European super league. Because, it's already done. 

Two days ago...........

European Super League: Juventus begin process to pull out of breakaway project

Think that just leaves R Madrid & Barca.

The money is coming from Saudi, wouldn't be surprised to see a new 'elite' competition being formed with Middle Eastern clubs.

 

[Terminally Yellow 2,471]

Just done a rather loud swear because I've seen that Riyad Mahrez is moving to Saudi Arabia.

For £86 MILLION.

What the actual ****. 

[Sooty57 403]

19 hours ago, Midlands Yellow said:

I doubt we were ever in for him. 

You think?

[WD40 720]

18 hours ago, Jason Shackell’s Limp Tack said:

I cannot wait for the bubble to pop. And, despite my protests last year, I cannot wait for them all to fook of and join a European super league. Because, it's already done. 

Would be brilliant so long as they can’t play in domestic competitions. Let them go be NFL franchises. 

[Haus 259]

4 hours ago, A Load of Squit said:

Two days ago...........

European Super League: Juventus begin process to pull out of breakaway project

Think that just leaves R Madrid & Barca.

The money is coming from Saudi, wouldn't be surprised to see a new 'elite' competition being formed with Middle Eastern clubs.

 

Who would watch it though

[A Load of Squit 5,184]

Just now, Haus said:

Who would watch it though

Take the current Champions League, on BT the viewing figures are dismal but the clubs still get loads of money. Add clubs from the Middle East to those clubs that tried to form the Super League (most guaranteed a place in the competition) backed by Saudi money and they won't care as long as they get paid millions.

 

[sgncfc 1,233]

It has a long way to go yet! There are over 4 billion people in Asia, and the vast majority of them in China and India have yet to even see a football match. Currently 800 million are fans, responsible for 32% of the EPL's viewing figures and Sky has only 23 million subscribers. So still a market many, many times bigger than the current one to go for. That's not counting the US where the game is growing again and will potentially explode with the World Cup there again; or Africa with another 

In England, I think it's heading for a two tier system - TV Leagues and non-TV Leagues. If ME, US and Asian money keeps coming into the game here then it will all eventually be televised from mega stadiums. If you don't have at least a 40,000 capacity and a worldwide supporter base this is a league you can't really take part in. Those clubs not fortunate (or unfortunate) enough to be able to compete financially with a weekly wage of £200-500k or so per player will be left to play each other.

Money will flow down because of transfer fees for the occasional player who falls through the big club academy system.

To be honest I don't really care if we're part of it or not. If it starts as a PL2 we'll have a chance I guess, but it's unlikely that the big teams are going to want to bother playing clubs like Norwich.

And if Saudi money, or any other state, bought into our club, I wouldn't go again.

[glory.win or die. 270]

10 hours ago, A Load of Squit said:

Two days ago...........

European Super League: Juventus begin process to pull out of breakaway project

Think that just leaves R Madrid & Barca.

The money is coming from Saudi, wouldn't be surprised to see a new 'elite' competition being formed with Middle Eastern clubs.

 

Eventually every Club will be Saudi owned then they'll vote to relocate the clubs to Saudi Arabians 

[dylanisabaddog 4,947]

19 hours ago, Midlands Yellow said:

Didn’t Bellingham cost Madrid over €100m not including add ons? 

See my subsequent post