One of the craziest transfer windows we’ve seen in the history of football slammed shut on Friday. The way things are going, in this era of over-hyped transfers, overpaid players and over-inflated fees, it looks like the madcap market is here to stay. For a few years to come at the very least.
This is a trend that seems to be taking an upward trajectory: with new money pouring in from all corners of the world, owners seem increasingly willing to sign on blank cheques to buy players. Some very good, some not so.
Manchester City, as part of their defensive overhaul, signed three new full-backs for a combined sum that runs just shy of £125 million (Rs 1,039 crore). Kyle Walker (£49.5 million, Rs 411 crore), Danilo (£27 million, Rs 224 crore), Benjamin Mendy (£52 million, Rs 432 crore) and goalkeeper Ederson (£36 million, Rs 300 crore) are now part of the most expensively assembled defences in the world.
It is easy to baulk at these numbers. Prudence didn’t seem to be one of the watch words at the Etihad this summer. It did, though, at the San Siro, where AC Milan, their coffers buoyed by new Chinese investment in the summer, spent far less than City.
Prudent spending
Mendy, who has just four caps for France, is now the world’s costliest left-back. On the other hand, Milan’s new left-back, Ricardo Rodriguez, who has played 43 times for Switzerland, was signed from Bundesliga side VfL Wolfsburg for a comparative snip at £16.2 million (Rs 134 crore).
It’s a trait that Milan bucked only once this window but they were always going to have to pay over the odds to prise Leonardo Bonucci away from rivals Juventus. The 30-year-old cost them £37.8 million (Rs 314 crore) but Milan know they have signed an accomplished, world-class player.
Bonucci is sure to thrive in the heart of the Rossoneri defence for years to come, given the relative longevity centre-backs enjoy, and the extended career that defenders in Serie A are known to have. Former Colombian centre-back Mario Yepes, for example, signed for Milan aged 34, and played with them for three seasons, before becoming the oldest outfield player (aged 38) at the 2014 World Cup.
That one splurge aside, Milan have paid comparatively modest sums for the other defenders they’ve brought in. Centre-back Matteo Musacchio – who partners City’s Nicolas Otamendi for Argentina – was signed for another tidy £16.2 million (Rs 134 crore).
Right-back Andrea Conti’s instrumental presence in Atalanta’s unexpected and unprecedented fourth-place finish – thereby earning them the right to qualify for the Europa League – will also justify the relatively modest £22.5 million (Rs 187 crore) fee paid to the Bergamo club, even with young winger Matteo Pessina moving the other way.
Further up the field, coach Vincenzo Montella has signed the very talented Bayer Leverkusen attacking midfielder Hakan Calhanoglu for just £19.8 million (Rs 164 crore), Lucas Biglia for £15.3 million (Rs 127 crore), and Fabio Borini – who will be eager to once again thrive in his homeland – on loan, with an obligation to buy. Borini is currently valued at £4.5 million (Rs 37 crore), and truth be told, it will cost Milan little more than that to sign him permanently.
No more a one-horse race
While the Premier League does bring with it a crazy, roller-coaster unpredictability that sees many teams challenge for the title and Champions League spots every year, Serie A has always been slightly stale if you don’t appreciate defensive nous as much. The Italian premier league just got a lot more insipid, with Juventus expected to romp to the title every year.
However, with both Inter and AC Milan revamping their squads and laying a foundation for the future, and AS Roma re-entering the fold as genuine title contenders, the Bianconeri will not be allowed to run away with the Scudetto this year. Throw dark horses Fiorentina and Atalanta into this mix and you’ve got a pretty heady battle for the top four in Italy.
In fact, it’s been a while since we’ve seen a really enthralling, nail-biting Serie A match – one that harked back to the days of Alessandro Del Piero, David Trezeguet and Pavel Nedved facing off against that famed defensive triumvirate of Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Nesta, and Gennaro Gattuso; where teams would play a deadly snake-and-mongoose game for 89 minutes, only for a killing blow from one of them to be delivered right at the very end.
It’s not the madcap, hell-for-leather unpredictability of Norwich 4-5 Liverpool but a far deadlier, more lethal brand of football, where even the smallest mistake will be ruthlessly punished. AC Milan last won the league title during the 2010-’11 season, and the halcyon days that predated the Rossoneri’s slow decline is what the club are aiming for, and the supporters are hoping to see, this season.
AC Milan have proved that it is indeed possible to get quality players on a budget, even in such a grossly inflated transfer window.
All you need to know is where to look.
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