The transfer fees demanded by clubs in England are getting more and more ridiculous.
This season, Crystal Palace have sold Andy Johnson for 8.5, Tottenham just sold Carrick for a minimum of 13 mil (going upto 18.6, although that’s highly unlikely), West Brom are asking 4 mil for Kuszczack and Wigan are asking 5.5 mil for Pascal Chimbonda. The one common thread in all four is that the player is hopelessly over-valued, and in the case of Carrick and Johnson, their new clubs are unlucky to have paid over the odds.
Consider, in contrast, Bellamy’s transfer to Liverpool. 6 mil for Bellamy is a bargain – he was worth at least 10-12 mil, and his purchase ranks right up there with that of Alonso in the list of quality buys for Benitez.
So far, Tottenham have conducted themselves quite smartly in the transfer market. They’ve spent money when needed (Berbatov), but they’ve also been able to get a good deal on Carrick and now have money to spend on a right-back and a left-winger. Downing, Petrov, Barry and Chimbonda are in their sights, but at present all four targets have clubs asking for outrageous transfer fees.
Chimbonda is not worth 6 or 5.5 mil at all – and while Wigan must be commended for their ballsy approach to the transfer table, they must know that having an unhappy player in the squad is no good. In fact, Tottenham are aware of this as well, so I’m hoping that they wait instead of just throwing money at this right-back (Gareth Barry is a better player, although whether he would come or not is a different case altogether).
Downing is one player I’d like to see at Tottenham – he’s fast, he can take on (and beat) opponents one on one, and he has a killer cross. His willingness to run at opponents was the highlight of his brief World Cup displays, and whoever signs him will have made a very good buy (yes, this kid IS worth 12 mil, or whatever they are asking).
What do you think? Gareth Barry and Downing, or Chimbonda and Petrov?
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