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UEFA may believe that Premier League clubs are spending like there is no tomorrow, but in reality it seems crunch time has hit the top flight.
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The madness that is Manchester City aside, even the Big Four of Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal appear determined to avoid splashing the cash willy-nilly this summer.
Of course, there are still 26 days to go in the transfer window, but maybe the elite teams in England are beginning to heed the words of Arsene Wenger.
Known as ‘The Professor’, the Frenchman, who has a degree in economics, has steadfastly refused to get involved in paying over the odds for players, warning of potential financial ruin.
This summer he has already boosted the Gunners’ coffers by £39m with the sales of Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure to City.
And that figure is set to rise to £45m when defender Philippe Senderos joins Everton.
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Yet all Wenger has spent is £10m on centre-back Thomas Vermaelen. Typically, yesterday he told Bordeaux he is only ready to pay them £5m for striker Marouane Chamakh while the French club want three times that.
“In five months, if he doesn’t prolong his contract, Chamakh will be free to talk to any club and Bordeaux will not get anything,” said Wenger, “In the current context, to me, it is over. Let’s say that at the moment it is terminated.”
Such talk is often just bluff, but there seems to be a trend in the Premier League for clubs not to get caught up in the hype caused by mega-spending by Arab-backed City.
United may have sold Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid for £80m and also lost Carlos Tevez to City, but you don’t see Sir Alex Ferguson desperate to reinvest.
Similarly, Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez has been quiet and with Xabi Alonso on his way Madrid for £30m, the Anfield bean counters should be happy this summer.
Chelsea’s Roman Abramovich was the first tycoon to shake up the transfer market. In 2005 Wenger pointed out the Russian’s willingness to pay whatever it takes had ensured players like Shaun Wright-Phillips, who joined the Blues for £21m, were costing double their true value.
With Toure going for £14m, Adebayor £25m and Joleon Lescott likely to arrive from Everton for £20m it seems something similar is happening at City.
But Abramovich is refusing to play ball this time.
“Yes he wants to sign Franck Ribery from Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid’s Sergio Aguero but this time he is not going to pay silly money,” said a source close to the billionaire.
The indications are that apart from City and Real Madrid, clubs are beginning to think long term about the impact of ridiculous fees and massive wages.
So maybe UEFA chief executive David Taylor was in fact, preaching to the mostly converted yesterday when he warned: “There are a number of English clubs where the value of the club itself has fallen significantly and they are effectively on the market.
“We hope that the clubs themselves will not suffer in any significant way from this but who knows? We’ve seen what has happened in recent years with a number of very high-profile clubs, Leeds United for example."
#bodycopy a { font-size: 12px; }
The madness that is Manchester City aside, even the Big Four of Manchester United, Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal appear determined to avoid splashing the cash willy-nilly this summer.
Of course, there are still 26 days to go in the transfer window, but maybe the elite teams in England are beginning to heed the words of Arsene Wenger.
Known as ‘The Professor’, the Frenchman, who has a degree in economics, has steadfastly refused to get involved in paying over the odds for players, warning of potential financial ruin.
This summer he has already boosted the Gunners’ coffers by £39m with the sales of Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Toure to City.
And that figure is set to rise to £45m when defender Philippe Senderos joins Everton.
GOING TO SPEND MORE THAN ARSENE WENGER ON YOUR TEAM?
SIGN UP TO DAILY STAR FANTASY FOOTBALL NOW!
Yet all Wenger has spent is £10m on centre-back Thomas Vermaelen. Typically, yesterday he told Bordeaux he is only ready to pay them £5m for striker Marouane Chamakh while the French club want three times that.
“In five months, if he doesn’t prolong his contract, Chamakh will be free to talk to any club and Bordeaux will not get anything,” said Wenger, “In the current context, to me, it is over. Let’s say that at the moment it is terminated.”
Such talk is often just bluff, but there seems to be a trend in the Premier League for clubs not to get caught up in the hype caused by mega-spending by Arab-backed City.
United may have sold Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid for £80m and also lost Carlos Tevez to City, but you don’t see Sir Alex Ferguson desperate to reinvest.
Similarly, Liverpool boss Rafa Benitez has been quiet and with Xabi Alonso on his way Madrid for £30m, the Anfield bean counters should be happy this summer.
Chelsea’s Roman Abramovich was the first tycoon to shake up the transfer market. In 2005 Wenger pointed out the Russian’s willingness to pay whatever it takes had ensured players like Shaun Wright-Phillips, who joined the Blues for £21m, were costing double their true value.
With Toure going for £14m, Adebayor £25m and Joleon Lescott likely to arrive from Everton for £20m it seems something similar is happening at City.
But Abramovich is refusing to play ball this time.
“Yes he wants to sign Franck Ribery from Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid’s Sergio Aguero but this time he is not going to pay silly money,” said a source close to the billionaire.
The indications are that apart from City and Real Madrid, clubs are beginning to think long term about the impact of ridiculous fees and massive wages.
So maybe UEFA chief executive David Taylor was in fact, preaching to the mostly converted yesterday when he warned: “There are a number of English clubs where the value of the club itself has fallen significantly and they are effectively on the market.
“We hope that the clubs themselves will not suffer in any significant way from this but who knows? We’ve seen what has happened in recent years with a number of very high-profile clubs, Leeds United for example."