I understand it because I am a football fan myself. I am above all a journalist, and I become a sports journalist out of love for everything that is sport (well not cricket though).
As a kid always wanted to know if my team, River Plate, were going to sign any players that I liked or if they were going to sell the ones I didn’t like.
Remember being so happy when they bought the Uruguayan and original “Principe” Enzo Francescoli.
I also remember that back then, we already understood that the people who write the news do just that. They write them. They have their methods, their contacts and their ways to know what was going on.
But it was not a sports journalist who brought Francescoli to River Plate, it was the will of the selling club to sell, the will of the buying club to buy, and the will of the player to move to his new club.
We journalists, love to have great information, get the scoop, be the first ones who told you something, as our work consists on investigating and finding out. It is only natural that when we do find something is going on, we want to tell you all about it.
However, if we tell you that xx club is after zz player, and then xx club ends up not buying him. Is not our issue. We don’t do the deals, we can only report that talks are taking place and that there is interest, etc.
Why am I saying this? Who am I referring to?
Well let’s look at the Vertonghen situation. Arsenal held 2 weeks of talk with player and agent and agreed terms. Then Arsenal and Ajax start discussions, and the London club agrees in principle to a €10m (£8.1m) fee with the club. All it remained there was a medical and a signature. Basically a done deal.
I spoke three days ago with an Ajax director to ask when the announcement will be made.
His answer was that, Arsenal, after agreeing a fee, were trying to change terms with the player, and with them, that they felt they were looking for excuses not to conclude the deal.
He also said, that they then started listening to other offers, and Tottenham has come along and they are advancing well on the negotiations.
Since then, the player himself has come out and talked wonders about Spurs, which the Ajax director believes is to show his disappointment with AFC more than because his “true love” with the White Heart Lane team.
Then last week, a nearly €20m (£17.5m) agreement with Rennes was reached for M’Vila.
Before the 2 clubs (Arsenal and Rennes) agreed the fee, the North London club and the player had agreed personal terms (£60k a week)
The player and his agent say that last week. Is not that M’Vila is not a wanted a man. If they wanted other clubs to make offers, saying that everything was set and ready for Arsenal, would have been a stupid move.
Arsene Wenger has come out now and stated that it is not true, that nobody from the club even spoke to M’Vila’s people or his club.
Arsenal are doing something that they have not done often. Discuss and sign players early.
Problem is that when all this talks began, top 3 spot was looking certain. Now that, with one game left, that 3rd spot is still not guaranteed, paying £17.5m for a player does not make the same sense, as Champions League income is required to sustain that sort of investment.
So 2 players that were ready to sign on the dotted line and join the club are now in danger of being lost to other teams, and in the case of Vertonghen to Arsenal’s local rivals.
Vertonghen went from 99% done to totally lost
M’Vila could still happen, but don’t think his people are very pleased with AFC at the moment.
We, at Pasion de Multitudes, are looking at Arsenal, in a different way now.
We are looking into what players could the club sign if they make it to the top 3 and what players could they sign if they don’t.
In our next chapter we will discuss those players and try to enter the mind of probably the most complex and frustrating club when it comes to buy and sell players.