Kaka and City, £100m, an insult to all the poor struggling to reach the end of the month
Way back in September, when Manchester City were sold to Abu Dhabi United Group Investment and Development Limited, I just knew that football, the game as we know it, would have changed. How could have it stayed intact with quotes like this from Dr. Sulaiman Al-Fahim on Robinho:
Real Madrid were estimating his value at $160m (£90m) but for a player like that, to actually get him, will cost a lot more; I would think $240m (£135m). But why not? We are going to be the biggest club in the world, bigger than both Real Madrid and Manchester United.
Now as much as I thought that they meant business when they took over City, I would have never thought that Kaka or any other player in his right state of mind would have signed for them, especially now that they are fighting to avoid relegation, but then, who can say no to £100m? A.C. Milan would be fools if they rejected such an offer and so would be Kaka who apparently will get £500,000 a week.
Make no mistake, the Brasilian is yet to sign, but regardless of his decision, there are some aspects of the story which I would like to write about. The first one is Kaka playing in the Premiership, something which would definitely consolidate the English Premiership’s position as the top league in European football and I would be delighted if that happens. However, if Manchester City think Kaka will turn their miserable season in something special, I’m afraid they are wrong. I’ve seen Kaka in more than one occassion this season and he’s miles off the form which saw him win the Golden Ball.
And remember, sooner or later, the Abu Dhabi businessmen will have had enough of this “hobby” and they will turn their attention to something new. What will happen then? Where will City be? Just look at Chelsea this season: they didn’t bring in as many players as they used to do, maybe because of the economic crisis, and in fact all their records were torn apart and they are no longer as dominant as they were.
Next in the list is of course the price tag: £100m. Now I don’t want to sound melodramatic or anything like that, but if you think of all the people in the world fighting famine and poverty, that price tag and the £500,000 per week offered to the Brasilian just for chasing a ball and hopefully putting it in the back of the net, is simply disgusting. There’s no need to think of the dramatic situation in Africa, just think of all the families living in “normal” countries where poverty should not be a problem, yet they struggle to reach the end of the month. And it’s not just the game of football I’m blasting as this is something which goes beyong football since such insane wages are in every sport, in movies, in music, everywhere.
And finally, to all of you Gooners reading this, be proud of the team you support, be proud of the fact that our most expensive player in the history of the club is Wiltord, who signed for £13m and think twice before asking Wenger to spend, spend and then spend more. You know, if Arsenal ever turns into a Manchester City, ready to pay £100m for a player, I’m not sure if I would still be here writing on this blog. But until then, I’ll be a proud supporter of a team who at least for now – unlike Chelsea and Manchester City – keeps on showing respect when cash is to be spent.
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one of the best piece of articles ive ever read. Good job. Gooner 4 life.
I agree with you, but isn’t 5 million also a lot for a football player? And I don’t see anybody complain about that. Ofcourse 100m is much more than 5m, but 5m is still alot for a normal guy…
It is mate, it is, even £1m is.
Thank you for this beautiful post. I support what you have said here 101% ^_^
Thank-you for some very sensible words. This is the best article Iv read for years.
Exploring the economic ramifications of the global economy by using the Man Citeh Fantasy Football Bonanza is indeed admirable but admittedly foolish. While it’s without a doubt better to take the moral high ground and blast the sheiks for splashing mind-numbing money for players instead of progressing the world community, it’s how business works. We might as well salary cap every celebrity and athlete while we’re at it because 50 Cent doesn’t need a house with 10 bathrooms and 15 bedrooms, but it’s the lifestyle. The same can be said about the military budget of any country. Why does the U.S. need to spend billions on the military when they’re in an economic downturn – it’s really a moral dilemma for which there is no hard and fast guideline. Rather than trying to bring this transfer fee out of the realm of football, it is much more reasonable to investigate the impact that this will have on football itself. This is quite possibly the beginning of the Abramovich era reborn. I quite literally blame Roman for the current state of the football transfer market and why we cannot get Arshavin. Citeh will exponentially increase this problem. When Abramovich first came out and dropped a cool 150M on Drogba, Carvalho, Essien and Ferreira it sparked something in the football unconscious that we have not recovered from since then. It stands to reason that players like Arshavin and clubs like Zenit see themselves as having an equal opportunity to price their players at some inexcusable amounts because they can compare their stars to the likes of Chelsea’s. It’s easy to see clubs now saying to themselves “If Kaka can go for 100M, then Arshavin must be worth at least 20M because he’s similarly skilled and in demand”. Citeh will further inflate an already bloated market and further plant the seed of player comparisons among the football community, which will lead to my aforementioned thinking. While unrealistic because of the nature of football being played under the rulings of different countries, a salary cap is the only thing that will save football. We have already seen many clubs, who have rich and deep football history and roots flirt with administration – West Ham for example and not too long ago Roma and Lazio. Football cannot continue in the way it has with tens to hundreds of millions of dollars being so casually exchanged for a single player. The governing bodies have to all consult and recognize the eventual possibilities of the transfer market. It is no surprise that the current top four clubs all have a billionaire backing them. This is the unfortunate inevitability of the future of football, with clubs prostituting themselves in order to find some rich financier to keep them afloat and provide funds for a transfer kitty. The likes of Arsenal and Everton will continue to struggle from financially attracting top quality players because players can go to other clubs, even inferior ones, for more money while not caring if they have to fight a relegation battle with that club. The quality of football will deteriorate if this becomes the standard.
Wenger when we wanted to sign Wright-Philips:
“I like him but we are in a market where you let Chelsea make decisions and then come in after. There is a price for Chelsea and a price for everybody else and that is why we have to wait until they decide”.
That was then, with Chelsea. This is now, with Manchester City.
Nothing changed, really. Just read that Hughes defended the cost of the Kaka deal. Oh well, It was a selfish world back then, and still is.
[...] City’s failed 100 million euros plus bid for AC Milan’s Kaka now begs the question: should there be a limit on the amount of money a [...]
[...] City’s failed 100 million euros plus bid for AC Milan’s Kaka now begs the question: should there be a limit on the amount of money a [...]