In a more or less direct way, almost all First Division coaches talk these days about the need to strengthen your workforce during the winter market. And the sporting directors, from their offices, work to the best of their ability to satisfy the wishes of those who lead their team on the pitch. The reality, however, is stubborn: three weeks after the hiring window opened, there are only 14 new faces among the 20 First Division teams.
“It’s the same story in all the markets since the pandemic started. You receive many calls from clubs about players who are or may be on the market, but they usually tell you that before signing they have to give out to other players. And since almost everyone is in that situation because of the salary limit, it is provoked a funnel, a jam, which is paralyzing almost everything”, explains a representative of soccer players.
In short, almost all clubs have the need to let out before letting in. Part of the money from CVC (15% of the total) was destined to give more air to the teams with their salary limits, but most of those who needed it already opted for consume it in advance in the summer market, so the room for manoeuvre, in general terms and with few honorable exceptions, is minimal.
The case of Barca
On many occasions, clubs have to juggle to square its operations with the economic requirements set by LaLiga. The most extreme example is that of Barça, which has had to loan Coutinho to Aston Villa and agree to an extension of the instrumental contract with Umtiti in order to sign up Ferran Torres Now try to renew downwards or release Dembélé to be able to satisfy Xavi with the addition of a striker.
Already last winter market, January 2021, negative records were broken in the First Division. The investment then barely reached 21 million euros, spread over four transfers: Carlos Fernandez to the Royal, Papu Gómez to Seville, Capua to Villarreal and Solar to Celtic. It was LaLiga’s lowest mid-season spending since 2013.
This year, the figures will not be so low, in fact they have already been widely exceeded, due to the signing of Ferran Torres, for whom Barcelona has paid around €55 million to Manchester City. Apart from the Valencian striker, the one from Tecatito Corona to Sevilla (some Three kilos) is the only transfer that has moved money to date. And, predictably, there will not be many more.
tripper’s departure
These numbers currently place the Spanish as the second league in the world that has spent the most money this month, behind the unattainable Premier League (close to 150 million). To England, by the way, the only player who has left money in the coffers of a Spanish club has left: Kieran Trippier, for whom Newcastle paid Atlético for some €15 million.
Apart from Ferran and Tecatito, the other three definitive contracts registered in LaLiga until Friday afternoon have been at zero cost: Dani Alves to Barça, Jason to Alaves and Orbelin to Celtic. Seven transfers have also been registered: Villar, Óscar and Mayoral to Getafe, vilhena in Spanish, Faith, Alcaraz and Idrissi to Cádiz, Rafinha to Real Sociedad and Escalante to Alaves.
“But, as always, in the last days there will be a acceleration. Surely it will not be like in the pre-pandemic markets, in which the last day was crazy for a lot of clubs, for a little more movement there will be, “anticipates another player agent. In the last winter market, 12 players they were enrolled on the last possible day and another seven during the final week.
