Price tags don't matter anymore in modern day football
It is often very rare that the world record transfer fee is broken and also for clubs to break their record fees, or so it used to be. Bloated transfer fees is now the norm - £10m players are now going for £30m and money is getting thrown about everywhere by everyone, however the amount being paid no longer matters.
Just four years ago, Simon Mignolet moved from Sunderland to Liverpool for £9m and recently, Jordan Pickford made a similar move to Merseyside rivals, Everton for £30m. After the heavy criticism Mignolet has received in his time at Anfield, there was a sense of deja vu when Pickford joined Everton, despite several eye-catching performances for a struggling Sunderland side.
The age of the pair at the time of their respective big moves is also similar with Mignolet being 25 when he joined Liverpool and Pickford, 23, upon joining Everton this summer. The two deals seem almost identical but the price difference is huge, this is just one example of the effect of an inflated market.
The money clubs receive from television deals is increasing each year as they all compete to get the best and most games broadcast live on their channels but as they compete, the amount of money also increases and the results of this have been obvious in the last few seasons.
Also read: 5 transfer records that will be broken this summer
The side effects of these mega TV deals on the market has slowly emerged, but this summer it has already escalated rapidly with the lesser teams flexing their financial muscles. The most recent example of the aforementioned being Bournemouth, who smashed their club record fee on Nathan Ake, signing him for an astonishing £20m - money they just simply would not have had a few seasons ago.
As well as smaller clubs having more money to spend it has also hiked up the price tag they put on their star assets as they no longer need to sell for the money. Southampton, in recent years, have been something of a feeder team to the top sides with last years top six containing a total of nine former Saints players, an amount that has seemingly caused a change in Southampton’s stance this summer.
They insist that they do not need to sell and that star players such as Virgil van Djik will not be leaving unless their valuation is met which in the Dutchman’s case is a mouth-watering £70m. The strong stance Southampton and many other clubs are beginning to take regarding sales highlights the effect of the TV money - the playing field is even and everyone can afford anyone.
Last summer, Manchester United forked out a world record £89.3m for Paul Pogba. A season later and United have three trophies to show for it albeit not three of the flashiest competitions but silverware is nonetheless. Pogba may not have been the most productive last season with just five goals and four assists in the Premier League leading to plenty of criticism for the size of the price tag, but it is highly likely that when Pogba retires, he will be judged on what he has won instead of the stats he mustered. The message to other clubs is clear - if a player is going to take you to where you want to be, pay up.
Whereas players used to be judged on how much they cost the club compared to their end product, that idea has now changed and the fee dished out for the player has become irrelevant. A big example of this is Jack Wilshere’s loan to Bournemouth last season. When the deal was struck it came as a shock for many as it was unthought of that Bournemouth could attract such quality even if just on a temporary deal, but Wilshere struggled and was heavily criticised for poor performances.
What was originally a great deal turned into a failure even if it cost Bournemouth nothing. Another example is the success of Sadio Mane at Liverpool last season; the Reds paid a staggering £34m which had many doubting and rivals laughing, 13 goals and 8 assists later, Mane is a bargain.
Players will come and go for fees that they are and are not worth, but in today’s market, the money means nothing as long as the player performs on the pitch.