You’d be forgiven for not realising it’s been a whole three weeks since Die Liebbschaft lifted the world’s most coveted trophy, but three weeks it has been. In that time we’ve seen players move, deny any rumour of moving, and follow it up with a pose in front of a camera, wearing a shiny new kit. The world of transfers is extremely tricky business, filled with a web of lies and deceit to navigate, faith to place, and decisions to make. However, with Brazil 2014 disappearing in the rear-view mirror, it certainly hasn’t left without making its impact.
THE TRANSFER MARKET
For some, the weeks following the greatest competition of them all are as exciting as the weeks leading up to it, not bubbling in anticipation of the spectacle, but rather the result of it. Which player is on the move, which links are being made, which club needs the money, which club needs that one world-class player added to their ranks; all of these questions are raised, delved into, denied, and then raised again. Often it is only through the glimpse at Sky Sports’ morning bulletin that our hopes and dreams are fully vindicated, or in some cases, squashed. Contrasting point of views are the norm on all forms of social media – some obviously more informed than others – and it is no different in the world of transfers. Post world-cup, those views are circulating tenfold.
So how exactly has the World Cup shifted the sands of World Football? Here we take a look at the key changes in the beautiful game following Brazil 2014.
GERMANY
It’s no surprise that the Germans head the list of major permutations in World Football, and the reason for it is blatantly clear; they are the best in the world.
They’ve shaken up World football and dictated the game for the next four years, and the transfer market, likewise, had been altered by the German victory, not necessarily by the demand of its players but the way teams will play. Players akin to the likes of Bastian Schweinsteiger and Sami Khedira who can dominate midfield play with a physical presence while setting their team on the front foot with a sweeping surge of blistering play are the cream of the crop right now. Lars Bender, Christoph Kramer and the aforementioned Sami Khedira are in demand right now, chased by the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool – that’s only in England. The likes of Paris St. Germain, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich – the top clubs in Europe, have already set big name transfers in the ilk of Die Mannschaft.
Toni Kroos has found shores anew at Real Madrid, Matthias Ginter has found prominence at Borussia Dortmund and Marco Reus has been linked to the shores of Merseyside. Germany is on top of the Football World, and its players will reflect that. The shuffle is occurring, and if there’s anyone who’s going to have money thrown at them, it’ll be the Die Mannschaft.
JAMES RODRIGUEZ
It should be no surprise that Real Madrid came in guns ablaze to take the headlines in all sports papers across the world. The World Cup’s golden boy, standout performer, and Golden Boot winner was up for grabs, James Rodriguez, was a key target for any club – supposing the club in question had a spare 80 million Euros just lying around somewhere. Thankfully, all it took was one quick look behind the staff-room couch in the Bernabeu and the money was practically thrown at AS Monaco for his signature.
Whether or not the 22 year-old is worth a whopping ₤63 million is beyond the question as far as Los Blancos are concerned; their main concern is re-creating the now-infamous Galacticos of the early 2000’s. Where Real Madrid once has Luis Figo, David Beckham, Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane, they now boast a complement of Gareth Bale, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and James Rodriguez. All it took was six games for James Rodriguez to suddenly appear on the radar of the biggest club in World Football, though in reality, all it took was one game from Luis Suarez to properly engineer the move. As soon as Barcelona went in for the Uruguayan, Real Madrid were in to one-up their Spanish counterparts.
Have they? Time, and a few El Clasico’s, will tell.
LUIS SUAREZ
While Germany went about winning its first ever – and indeed Europe’s first ever – World Cup victory on South American soil, arguably the biggest shakeup in the South American continent was the sudden inclination of one Luis Suarez to re-ignite an old news-maker, when he sunk his teeth into Giorgio Chiellini’s shoulder. One thing led to another, and Luis was on his way, departing the shores of Merseyside where he made a name for himself as one of the best players in the world and seeking pastures anew – incredibly good pastures, mind you. Pastures he’d dreamt about since he was a boy, his boyhood club and both the birthplace and dream destination of Sofia – his lovely wife – Barcelona.
His mental lapses – which caused him a raft of trouble in the past – were severely reprimanded, though Barcelona obtained the one signature they so desperately craved to complement their devastating front three. Neymar, Suarez, Messi. The world better watch out.
THE RESULT OF IT ALL
Let us not forget, however, that transfers will always have knock-on effects. One club’s loss is another’s gain, and vice versa, and every club – no matter how big or small, no matter its philosophies or position on the table – will always be looking to use whatever funds get thrown their way, in one way or another. Liverpool, for one, now embroiled with a sea of money following the ₤75m pound move of Luis Suarez, have injected pure, ruthless speed into their counter-attack and looked to shore up their defence, and with ₤40 million pounds still to spend (per Tony Barrett of the Times), they will seek a new striker to complement Daniel Sturridge.
Meanwhile, on the back of his excellent performance with the Dutch National team at the World Cup, Louis van Gaal has reportedly been told by the Manchester United board that he can break the bank on any number of players to get them back to the top, names including Arturo Vidal, Mats Hummels and Juan Cuadrado.
One target of both clubs – Angel Di Maria – is subject to heavy interest from Paris St. Germain on the account of James Rodriguez’ Galactic entry into Real Madrid, and Alexis Sanchez has already relocated to the busy city of London after the arrival of Luis Suarez to Barcelona. Those are but a few of the transfer dealings taking place on account of the World Cup; names such as Guillherme Ochoa (Malaga), Enner Valencia (West Ham) and Stefan de Vrij (Lazio) have all capitalised on the greatest tournament of them all to seek big-time moves, and you can bet there’ll be more where that came from.
The World Cup has had many residual effects, for some it is anguish, for other immense ecstasy, but for certain players the World Cup has provided a change of scenery, and a chance to impress once again.
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