Lucas Moura, one of Brazil's most promising youngsters, recently signed for Paris St. Germain. His transfer fee stands at a whopping 45 Million euros; making him the most expensive teenager of all time. There is no doubting the potential of Lucas, but should United have attempted to match the transfer fee?
Maybe.
Sir Alex declared that he was astounded that a teenager could cost that much money, stating that football had gone mad. He has also previously cited City and PSG's ability to outspend everybody as a problem in the game. Is he being a bit hypocritical - given that United have spend big money on players like Veron, Berbatov, etc. previously?
Yes and no.
Yes - A transfer fee converter reveals that Rooney's (who was 19 at the time he signed for United) transfer fee would be equivalent to ~60 million in today's transfer market. So, when Sir Alex claims he cannot understand how PSG could spend massive money on the young Lucas, he is clearly being a touch disingenuous.
No - And this is what other fans do not understand. No United fan believes that big-money signings have not been a big part of United's success. All we are saying is that United is different in that the big signings supplement an already established set of players that united have developed. Let's look at some examples -
1. While Van Nistelrooy (19 million) was a big part of United's success in 2002-2003, there were already established United players present - Beckham, Giggs, Scholes, the Nevilles, etc.
2. While the likes of Berbatov (30 million) helped United win the premier league, United already had developed Ronaldo, had Giggs and Scholes from the golden generation and had Fletcher, OShea, Evans, etc. from within the club.
This is what makes United different from Chelsea - who do not develop their own players and from Arsenal - who win nothing.
So back to the Moura thing. Why have United missed out on him? I think a lot of United fans have said that it's because of the Glazers. However, the evidence does not support this claim - United have spent big money on Anderson, Nani, Hargreaves and Berba since the Glazers took over. It has also been revealed that United had agreed fees for both Moura and Hazard - which is the part of the transfer for which the Glazers are immediately accountable - the approval of transfer fee.
So, having ruled out the Glazers, we are left with SAF, Gill (the chief executive) and agents. It is my opinion, that is is the combination of those three that has lead to our inability in the transfer market. It is widely accepted that the role that agents play has gotten out of hand. Agents continue to demand incredible bonuses for brokering deals and it seems like this will only continue to get worse. SAF's fault is his stubbornness. While he is willing to approve large transfer fees, he balks at the idea of paying 5 million to an agent - yes, he is probably ethically correct - but he has to live and operate within the times. And the times are - the more marketable the player - the more his agent is going to make. Gill is a decent enough fellow (despite what the MUST people will tell you), but he must improve his negotiation skills if United are going to succeed in the transfer market.
Now we are left with the whole RVP saga. I certainly hope that RVP signs - but, I must admit, I remain very pessimistic about it all.
Maybe.
Sir Alex declared that he was astounded that a teenager could cost that much money, stating that football had gone mad. He has also previously cited City and PSG's ability to outspend everybody as a problem in the game. Is he being a bit hypocritical - given that United have spend big money on players like Veron, Berbatov, etc. previously?
Yes and no.
Yes - A transfer fee converter reveals that Rooney's (who was 19 at the time he signed for United) transfer fee would be equivalent to ~60 million in today's transfer market. So, when Sir Alex claims he cannot understand how PSG could spend massive money on the young Lucas, he is clearly being a touch disingenuous.
No - And this is what other fans do not understand. No United fan believes that big-money signings have not been a big part of United's success. All we are saying is that United is different in that the big signings supplement an already established set of players that united have developed. Let's look at some examples -
1. While Van Nistelrooy (19 million) was a big part of United's success in 2002-2003, there were already established United players present - Beckham, Giggs, Scholes, the Nevilles, etc.
2. While the likes of Berbatov (30 million) helped United win the premier league, United already had developed Ronaldo, had Giggs and Scholes from the golden generation and had Fletcher, OShea, Evans, etc. from within the club.
This is what makes United different from Chelsea - who do not develop their own players and from Arsenal - who win nothing.
So back to the Moura thing. Why have United missed out on him? I think a lot of United fans have said that it's because of the Glazers. However, the evidence does not support this claim - United have spent big money on Anderson, Nani, Hargreaves and Berba since the Glazers took over. It has also been revealed that United had agreed fees for both Moura and Hazard - which is the part of the transfer for which the Glazers are immediately accountable - the approval of transfer fee.
So, having ruled out the Glazers, we are left with SAF, Gill (the chief executive) and agents. It is my opinion, that is is the combination of those three that has lead to our inability in the transfer market. It is widely accepted that the role that agents play has gotten out of hand. Agents continue to demand incredible bonuses for brokering deals and it seems like this will only continue to get worse. SAF's fault is his stubbornness. While he is willing to approve large transfer fees, he balks at the idea of paying 5 million to an agent - yes, he is probably ethically correct - but he has to live and operate within the times. And the times are - the more marketable the player - the more his agent is going to make. Gill is a decent enough fellow (despite what the MUST people will tell you), but he must improve his negotiation skills if United are going to succeed in the transfer market.
Now we are left with the whole RVP saga. I certainly hope that RVP signs - but, I must admit, I remain very pessimistic about it all.
