It’s no wonder smaller clubs cannot compete in the transfer market. Extortionate transfer fees make it impossible for Huddersfield Town, Southampton, AS Monaco and others able to buy the best players.
Transfer fees have been rising worldwide. The transfer of a player used to be a simple affair and relatively inexpensive. However, the big clubs in all leagues now seem to be paying over the odds for their players.
Extortionate Transfer Fees Make Competing Impossible for Smaller Clubs
AS Monaco
Kylian Mbappé moved from AS Monaco to Paris Saint-Germain for a staggering price of £116 million. This transfer backfired on Monaco though. Having won the Ligue 1 title in 2016/17 season, gaining a season in the Champions League.
However, in the 2018/19 season, Monaco only managed to avoid relegation by two points. The Ligue 1 side did invest the money used on the sale of Mbappe, however, the most expensive replacement was Aleksandr Golovin bought for a mere £27 million.
Some could say Monaco brought this on themselves. It is the prices that are the issue. Agents and players demanding the highest wages. The playing field is very uneven.
With prices rising substantially, smaller clubs will be priced out of the market. Clubs like Huddersfield & Southampton can never compete with Liverpool, Manchester City, etc with transfer budgets.
Transfers costing over £100 million, even £50 million were unheard of years ago. In the market today, player prices are rising to extortionate rates. Liverpool paying £66 million for a goalkeeper in Alisson Becker is just one example.
With the success of Liverpool in the Champions League, it could be argued that this was a value for money signing. It is still far more than the smaller clubs can afford to spend.
Transfer Cap
Some clubs are struggling to even exist, take Bolton Wanderers for example. The League One club has gone into administration. Yet, top six Premier League clubs are spending vast sums of money on individual players.
The funding is not spread evenly even in the top flight. TV money etc is received by clubs, yet some still struggle. The Bolton example is perfect for this. Instead of eye-watering transfer fees why not cap the fee. Instead of paying big money for star players such as Neymar, Philippe Coutinho use the extra to fund the lower leagues.
Rather than see clubs go into administration or struggle on with barely any funds for bringing in good players. Helping the smaller clubs to compete can only be good for football. The same teams winning all the time may be good for their fans. It’s not good for the game overall. Neutrals will get fed up of the same team winning all the time.
How can it be fair for clubs like AS Monaco, Huddersfield Town, Southampton etc to not be able to compete for the best players? Improving squads at all levels is good for the game. Uneven competition has got to stop. Making the transfers more realistic will help grow the game in the longer term.
Huddersfield Town record signings have been around £10-£15 million and they were whilst in the Premier League. Before promotion, the most expensive player the Terriers had was Christopher Schindler. £1.8 million was the price paid to bring the German over to the Championship.
Not saying that all transfers are to be the same price. That would not work. However, a cap needs to be placed on the fees. It won’t be long before there is a £200 million-plus transfer and that is just wrong.
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