Alvaro Fernandez Agent Says Palermo Interesting If Contract Offer Right
by Dave Clark on Dec 30, 2011 9:24 AM PST
in Sounders: Trades, Transfers and Rumors
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Every single agent should say that their player, particularly one of Alvaro Fernandez' quality, is interested in playing for Palermo, a team in a better league for more money. That Fernandez' agent did so is not a surprise. Palermo is a mid-table team in Serie A this season already on its third coach. They fired one in preseason and another just under two weeks ago. The club holds four Uruguay players and seven other Latino players. They are clearly used to working with this agent. Automated translation of the Goal.com article does make it seem like there is an ongoing negotiation with a decision date just prior to Seattle Sounders FC's preseason opening, but is dependent on agreeable terms. Fernandez is under contract so there would be a fee going to Seattle if MLS and the Sounders agree to the move.
For fans that want Seattle to make a huge splashy signing there is a requirement that the club open a Designated Player slot as it is likely that even if Mauro Rosales is not a DP there would only be room for a Youth DP. Fernandez finished 2011 as the team's second leading scorer (11 goals all competitions) and tied for fifth in assists (5 all comps) while playing in the third most games (39, 31 were starts). With Steve Zakuani's future in question a loss of Fernandez would be significant. When Zakuani is fully fit Alvaro is likely to be used as a super-utility man starting every game, but moving across the attacking midfield roles.
MLS teams with good players on the fringes of strong national teams will always deal with constant transfer rumors. While this one is not strong highly dependent on salary and other terms. It offers the flexibility to to Hanauer & Co to the entire world of players up for a potential replacement signing. Losing Flaco would also be the least damaging of any loss among a core player.
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It seems like losing Flaco would hurt most for the '11-'12 CCL
There’s no way Zakuani is 100% by the beginning of March, and anyone we bring in is going to be subject to some kind of adjustment period. Even if Zak was 100%, he’s played very little with Mauro, which could make a difference in play at the beginning of March. Ultimately, I know we will see our best players get transferred, and as long as we are prudent in negotiating a good transfer fee, losing any one player shouldn’t have a huge negative impact on the team in the long run. But in the short run, roster turnover can be difficult to deal with.
Fully agree
I think Alvaro v Santos is quite important.
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Alvaro
Not to mention he’s the only Sounder to have scored against a Mexican team.
by SounderBruce on Dec 30, 2011 10:31 PM PST up reply actions
I personally don't give much weight to this argument
While I’m sure it helps with comfort level, I don’t see that one statistic being a winning factor either way.
C. Ronaldo just scored his first goal ever against Barcelona last season (or perhaps the season before, and it was a PK none the less). Doesn’t mean ManUtd and Real Madrid are going to play a guy who has scored against Barcelona before instead.
I like Palermo...
This would be great, I don’t want to lose El Flaco but it would be a step in solidifying Seattle’s philosophy of acquiring and developing players (which thus far hasn’t borne much fruit).
Story different by sources
The Uruguayan version of this story has a player named Rios as the primary target of Palermo, and Fernandez listed as an ‘also interested’. The Italian link has both listed. The amount 3.5M Euro’s was mentioned with Rios’s name, no amount with Fernandez. Sounds a bit like throwing a lot of names against a wall and see what sticks. If they want him, there’s likely to be a decent transfer fee which would help, and no doubt the FO already has options in mind.
this sounds about right
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by Jeremiah Oshan on Dec 30, 2011 10:45 AM PST up reply actions
It makes me understand the Sivebaek rumors more.
I don’t see him as a RB (except as a backup to Johannsson), so maybe they’re looking at somebody to provide midfield depth in case they do move Flaco. You’d have Neagle/Zakuani on the left; H. Badger at holding mid, and Mauro/Evans/Sivebaek rotating between attacking mid and RM.
by The King of Norway on Dec 30, 2011 11:47 AM PST up reply actions
If we can get max allocation dollars then I say we take the deal
Gving Hanauer and company a million dollars in cap space and 2 DP slot spaces would be pretty interesting. That give sthem the ablility to sign a young DP a replacement for Alvaro and even with buying down Rosales cap hit they should still have enough money to make a significant upgrade in the teams depth. I would miss Alvaro but given the way MLS Cap works this seems like a no brainer. Your basically trading one DP for 2 DPs and a 200-300k player.
by Neem on Dec 30, 2011 9:54 AM PST reply actions 1 recs
The problem is that you have to identify those players
Fernandez is a solid contributor for the team, and especially important in CCL matches. In the long run getting the maximum allocation for him would enable us to improve the team, but in the short run it probably wont be so. If Fernandez goes, we will be a weaker team in March than if he stays. Therefore a summer transfer would make much more sense for the Sounders. But of course we may not get to choose.
At this point I think there is still a high probability that Fernandez will play the whole 2012 with the Sounders though. We’ll see.
I disagree
The transfer windows is about to open up and we have 3 full months before the Santos game. We can pay a transfer fee for both DP slots and we’ve obviously been scouting Scandinavia pretty thoroughly. At any given time Adrian and company scout a multitude of players just because of this type of scenario. I think the players have probably already been identified given the way our front office works. Yes losing Flaco would hurt but being able to upgrade 2 other spots while building depth would more than make up for it IMHO
Only 10 weeks until the Santos game
At best, given the nature of how long negotiations take place, we’d have a replacement for Flaco in, say, 4 weeks. That only gives the team 6 weeks to get on the same page, and zero real competitive games to do so.
We can safely say Sounders have already started looking
They won’t be starting negotiations from scratch, I promise.
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by Jeremiah Oshan on Dec 30, 2011 10:51 AM PST up reply actions
that said
I think having Flaco in March is preferable to not having him.
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by Jeremiah Oshan on Dec 30, 2011 10:51 AM PST up reply actions
Yes, they scout 1-3 window out
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Even not negotiating from scratch...
…it still takes time.
Exactly
I’m sure that they did not start from scratch to look for a forward to replace Nkufo and White when they both became unavailable early last season. Still they failed to sign somebody during the summer transfer window. And they still haven’t, despite the fact that we only have four forwards (Montero, Ochoa, Fucito, Levesque) signed for next season.
Five with OBW
and the following mids have played forwad at various times – Evans, Rosales, Neagle, Estrada, Cato
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This getting beside the point, but
I’m not going to take into consideration a player who may not get healthy enough to play next season.
Of course there are players on the roster that could play forward in a pinch, but we should make the need to resort to those solutions unlikelier to materialize than it is now.
by AAAA on Jan 1, 2012 6:46 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs
Both legit points
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There is only two months and a week to the Santos match on March 7
And we’d better have new players training with the team at least a month before that. We essentially have only January to acquire new players. Moreover, since the transfer window closes at the end of January, it is possible that a Fernandez transfer would not be done until the last day of January, leaving us almost no time to get replacements.
I agree with Neem on this
As much as I like Flaco and want to see the team beat Santos in March, this is a no brainier for the long term success of the Sounders. Forget the implications for the Santos series, and look at the bigger picture of the coming season. Let’s walk through the salary cap math that Neem is talking about.
1. Flaco is traded for a transfer fee of anything above $667K. This number is roughly the maximum amount of a transfer fee the can converted to AM. Additional money is useful, but not as relevant to this discussion.
2. Now the team has $335 K of open cap space, $667k in AM and an open DP slot. Just like Neem said, one million in cap room.
3. First thing AH does is buys down Mauro’s contract below DP level with the AM they already have. So now they have 2 open DP slots and the AM to fill them. After using half of the AM from Flaco’s fee to clear the cap room for DP number two, they team still has $335k in AM.
4. The team can go get 2 senior level DPs and bank $335k in AM while also proving that the Sounders are a springboard to a league like Serie A. That’s the definition of a no brainer. Yes, they have to find the DPs and integrate them into the fold, but being able to bring in two +$335k players is not going to hurt the team in the long run. Yes, it might make the Santos series more challenging, but it was always going to be a challenge regardless.
5. Now let’s look at that extra $335k in AM. Say the Palermo deal is close to being done behind the scenes and the Sounders can complete the deal before the Superdraft. Now the Sounders can dangle AM along with draft picks in a bid to move up the draft order. They probably could put together a deal for any player they want. Say Andrew Wenger or any other GA candidate. With Flaco gone maybe they target Rowe. All depends on their new DPs.
Or perhaps they use that $335k in AM to bring in a couple of solid other players. With that money they could have both the Tico and Johannson at RB with money to spare.
Folks this is the candy store we’re talking about. It’s the dream scenario. A player we love getting a shot at the brass ring and the Sounders getting to enter the season loaded for bear.
by Abbott Smith on Dec 30, 2011 1:34 PM PST up reply actions 8 recs
Excellent Post
One of my fears is that people in this city get too attached to players and so when a player makes a move that is better for their career and in this case the organization as a whole it is pretty much a no brainer.
The goal of this team is to get young DP’s to transfer for allocation money so we can buy down contracts and use that extra money to have a better team.
And the most important part, the Seattle Sounders as a Spring Board to a league like Serie A.
Excellent post Abbott.
by python6114 on Dec 30, 2011 2:31 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs
Couldn't have said it better.
I’ve tried to say this in past pieces.
Every time I thought of a new thing to do with the money, ala the trading up, you brought it up.
Great post.
Only thing about it is it has to happen NOW.
That is if we are talking about the draft.
Draft is the 12th so if the Window opens Sunday, we have less than two weeks for the transfer to be figured out, although I believe we have some allocation monies now that we may be able to move knowing that we would have some coming in.
Yes, speed would be important if the team wants to leverage the Draft options
But as you point out they probably have some wiggle room. My guess is that the final financial figures don’t have to balance until a date near the start of the season. Teams have to have the flexibility to trial players in the preseason. So they can borrow some of their banked AM against the draft if the deal for Flaco is almost finalized. But I would also expect them to be cautious in this scenario. They won’t count their AM until it’s in hand.
Remember that the draft is only one of their potential uses for the AM. Albeit an intriguing potential use given the pending draft.
by Abbott Smith on Dec 30, 2011 5:21 PM PST up reply actions
Thanks guys but Neem deserves credit too.
I simply elaborated on Neem’s post.
by Abbott Smith on Dec 30, 2011 5:22 PM PST up reply actions
Yeah but you did a much better job of it then that Neem guy
Seriously though what it illustrates is that Allocation dollars are the currency that makes the MLS go round. You can use it to augment your team, trade it to move up in the draft, buy down DP and large salaries to fit under the cap or even use it to trade for other MLS players eg OBW and Tyrone Marshall in years past.
by Neem on Dec 31, 2011 8:54 AM PST up reply actions 3 recs
My only question is....
What happens if you buy down Rosales’ contract to sub-DP and bring in two other dp’s to fill the open slots? Are they only 1 year contracts, next year we wouldn’t have the money to pay all 3 DPs plus Rosales without making major cuts unless we magically got another huge sum of AM.
by Adam Waltering on Dec 30, 2011 4:01 PM PST up reply actions
The only real issue is paying Rosales
DP finances are interesting. The team can carry 3 DPs at full price. Doesn’t leave a ton of room on the rest of the roster unless you have AM. But the team can do it. The issue is then having enough AM to buy down Rosales contract for the second year.
The other option is that one or both of the new DPs are DPs because of their transfer fee. Seattle has shown a tendency to want to acquire developmental DPs rather than aging veterans looking for a swan song. If one of the players has a base salary under the DP level, the team could simply shift the DP tag to Mauro after using the DP tag this year to cover the transfer fee.
by Abbott Smith on Dec 30, 2011 5:14 PM PST up reply actions
I thought the team had the option
The team chose not to with Flaco because his base salary was basically DP level.
by Abbott Smith on Dec 30, 2011 10:44 PM PST up reply actions
Flaco is awesome.
I would hate to lose him. I agree with the above that he will be greatly missed against Palermo. He is the best finisher on the team and if Santos holds us to one or two chances, he could put one of them away, ala Monteray away.
"The fans are excited. And the stadium, well, it ignites with explosion."
Flaco Loss Would Hurt
Similarly to how this team looks substantially better with Mauro on the pitch, I would say there is definite across the board impact from Flaco’s presence. I think Flaco and Mauro are the two best players on the team right now (sorry Montero). I know Castrol Index isn’t really taken seriously, but Flaco is #2 on that list in all of MLS, and his finishing is clinical. I don’t see why he isn’t considered a lock to start every game in the middle or wing even with Zak back. He is just a fantastic all around player with deep skill.
Like everyone is saying, losing him would hurt at the start of the season and in CCL, but I think it would be difficult to find a replacement with similar skill at his price point. It’s also not a given that DPs come to MLS capable of adjusting so quickly to the league. I would hate to see him go, especially because my only Sounders jersey is a Fernandez one….
flaco was the right player at the right time
with steve z.‘s injury. a player of flaco’s quality will be tough to replace. he’s a threat on goal every time he gets the ball in the final third. there are so many of those players around…
It's fine either way
Don’t believe the rumor, but if it happened the transfer fee would give us flexibility.
by python6114 on Dec 30, 2011 10:28 AM PST reply actions 1 recs
You used so many less words than i did
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Some of us
Can only aspire to be eloquent journalists.
MLS Int'l 3.0
Once again, we are treated to the US Soccer world changing before our eyes. We have two MLS players being loaned out to the EPL with those teams genuinely believing the players can help save their seasons. You have many MLS players training (likely trialing) in Europe. The EU press is all over the MLS on the transfer rumor mill. And the MLS is raiding genuine young talent from the Euroleagues, with SSFC leading the way currently. I am truly curious to see what happens starting Sunday when the door swings open. How many MLS players have a good chance to head to Europe in this window? For us, I’m not sure on Flaco to Palermo, but we have a lot of legitimate targets in addition to Flaco: Montero, HoneyBadger, Neagle, and possibly Rosales (we just re-signed Friberg too). This is only going to get crazier for us.
by Brougham Hooligan on Dec 30, 2011 10:43 AM PST reply actions
European press all over MLS on the transfer rumor mill?
I have not noticed this. Examples?
Ream, Henry, Donovan, Beckham
Shea, John, Gonzalez, Fernandez
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I'm not going to check the others right now
But I’m pretty sure that Fernandez has not been mentioned in the European press.
I talked to someone who read it at an Italian site
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Still a far cry from
European press being all over MLS transfers.
BTW, I also read it on a few Italian sites that quoted the goal.com article.
Tis the silly season indeed
Don’t forget the Montero to Ajax: http://www.sounderatheart.com/2011/8/3/2341261/Ajax-Fredy-Montero-Seattle-Sounders-transfer-rumor. And the MLS list is growing exponentially: recently Adu, http://espn.go.com/sports/soccer/news/_/id/7399695/mls-player-freddy-adu-train-spanish-club-rayo-vallecano;
Here’s the list of those training as well:
MLS players on loan or training in Europe this offseason:
Juan Agudelo (New York Red Bulls), Stuttgart and Liverpool
Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Kaiserslautern
Teal Bunbury (Sporting Kansas City), Bolton Wanderers
Bill Hamid (DC United), West Bromwich Albion
Sean Johnson (Chicago Fire), Everton
Perry Kitchen (DC United), Freiburg
Jeff Larentowicz (Colorado Rapids), Bolton
Zac MacMath (Philadelphia Union), Everton
Andy Najar (DC United), Tottenham Hotspur
Amobi Okugo (Philadelphia Union), Freiburg
Zach Pfeffer (Philadelphia Union), Hoffenheim
Tim Ream (New York Red Bulls), West Bromwich Albion and Bolton
Robbie Rogers (Columbus Crew), Kaiserslautern
Omar Salgado (Vancouver Whitecaps), Fulham
Brek Shea (FC Dallas), Arsenal
by Brougham Hooligan on Dec 30, 2011 11:10 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs
I know that there has been rumors
But that is a long way from saying that “European press is all over the MLS on the transfer rumor mill.”
Neagle a target for transfer?
umm, no
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He does have an IRL passport
so work permit is not an issue. All I’m saying is its possible.
by Brougham Hooligan on Dec 30, 2011 10:57 AM PST up reply actions
everything is possible
but Lamar playing in Europe this year is a pretty long shot.
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by Jeremiah Oshan on Dec 30, 2011 11:32 AM PST up reply actions
fair enough
I was more talking about somewhere above, say, Finland.
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by Jeremiah Oshan on Dec 31, 2011 12:49 AM PST up reply actions
Hence the smiley
And it is a long shot that he would want to go to a league that is clearly worse than MLS.
But Josh Wicks?
:D
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Not a pure snow bunting :D
But he is actually considered one of the best keepers in the Finnish league.
Exercised an option on his contract
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No, he was sold after the option was exercised
Without exercising the option he would have been a free
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Also, is Henry loan done?
I thought it wasn’t final. Donovan is only loan to EPL right now that is official, right?
Wenger says it's done but there is a hold up regarding injury insurance
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Hot off the Twitterverse
Joshua Mayers-
Henderson said Montero and Fernandez get the most outside interest from other clubs, but a couple other Sounders get some as well.
by Brougham Hooligan on Dec 30, 2011 11:21 AM PST up reply actions
Why is Flaco so under-appreciated?
“Losing Flaco would also be the least damaging of any loss among a core player”. I have to disagree. I’d rank him as our third most important midfielder behind Rosales and Alonso. He is our top scoring midfielder and no midfielder on the roster will make up for his loss.
More importantly, he wins games for us. I’m not a stat guy, but Monterey and KC 2010 come to mind.
the assumption would be that he'd be replaced from outside, not from within roster
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by Jeremiah Oshan on Dec 30, 2011 11:32 AM PST up reply actions
Replaced with a goal scoring midfielder, or a DP striker? Or both?
by NateFrom120 on Dec 30, 2011 11:50 AM PST up reply actions
I suppose both would be a possibility
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by Jeremiah Oshan on Dec 30, 2011 1:53 PM PST up reply actions
I'd rate losing him behind losing Montero
and probably Parke and Hurtado as well. If Zakuani was healthy behind him too
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What do you mean by "core player"? I agree about Montero
I assumed you meant top 13 or so players. For me he is in the top 5 most least replacable behind Alonso, Rosales, Gspurning, and Montero.
While Parke and Hurtado are very important, they are easier to cheaper and replace than a goal scoring midfielder. Z is a question mark, but if he gets back to his early form of last year I’d rank him #1.
by NateFrom120 on Dec 30, 2011 12:17 PM PST up reply actions
I think the team is weaker at CB than attacking midfield
so the losses of Parke or Hurtado would have a greater impact on the squad than Fernandez though I think he’s a better player.
so I have him 7 or 8th and you have him 5th or 6th. And I think both of us have a core that is roughly the same size.
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It would be nice to have some more depth at CB. I don't see a lot of in-house options.
Also wondering if the team is pushing Levesque out to RB behind Johanssen or keeping him in the mix up top? Or both?
by DaveValleDrinkNight on Dec 30, 2011 3:18 PM PST up reply actions
CB and the ForMidFender.
The Sounders have depth at CB but I would also say that it is the most clearly stratified depth on the roster. There is a significant difference between 1st and 2nd string and then again from 2nd to 3rd string. I am hopeful that last year was a blip for Ianni and that Scott continues to grow, but only time will tell.
As for Levesque, I think he will continue to show up to work, give everything that he has and play where and whenever Sigi asks him. You want me to fill in for Arlo? Sure thing coach!
The first Formidfendannouncer…
by Abbott Smith on Dec 30, 2011 3:47 PM PST up reply actions
If the money from the transfer went to improve another position (say, target forward or Left Back)
Then I’d be perfectly content with say, Neagle stepping into the starting role. The drop off would be noticeable, but the improvement elsewhere would be well worth it (theoretically)
I like Neagle but I think he is a significant step below Fernandez
Neagle has improved but still disappears in some matches. Unless he improves this off season, I see him as a fill in starter when regular starters are tired.
I’m ok with the idea of selling someone to get a solid DP striker, just not our second leading goal scorer.
by NateFrom120 on Dec 30, 2011 1:38 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs
We played almost all of 2011 without our co-leader from 2010. We still led the league in goals scored.
This team will find ways to score.
you heard right
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by Jeremiah Oshan on Dec 30, 2011 11:48 AM PST up reply actions
I hate...
when you do that. It makes it seem like you have insider info. By hate it I mean love it, it keeps things interesting.
by Adam Waltering on Dec 30, 2011 11:51 AM PST up reply actions
I wish I knew how to quit you, Jeremiah.
But everytime you drop hints I feel the need to check SaH religiously.
Go banana!
by Disco_Stew on Dec 30, 2011 12:27 PM PST up reply actions 2 recs
Because he signed in Turkey?
He’s also hardly playing for that club.
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According to Wikipedia
He’s had 11 appearances and 1 goal for Bursaspor.
by Adam Waltering on Dec 30, 2011 12:01 PM PST up reply actions
Well...
Besides the fact that he’s a good striker who played for a good team during the 2010 WC is young and has good size, I don’t know how he’d help.
by Adam Waltering on Dec 30, 2011 1:00 PM PST up reply actions
I really didn't mean it sarcastically.
I didn’t pay attention to the Tagoe rumors the first time around so I don’t know much about him.
Love Flaco, but hope this transfer can happen.
This is something we should be rooting for. It’s development and transactions like this that help grow our rep as a great franchise. Future signings and their agents will see these type of moves and jump at the chance to play here. It’s good for both player and club.
by AVUrlacher on Dec 30, 2011 12:10 PM PST reply actions 1 recs
Winning a championship will also grow our rep as a franchise
Sell him after we win the Champions League, not before!
by NateFrom120 on Dec 30, 2011 12:25 PM PST up reply actions 2 recs
Short Term Pain
Long Term Gain’
it’s how you build a successful everything.
I think Flaco is more important than people think.
As far as replaceability, it would be hard to find someone who can play as many positions as well as he does. I’d say Ozzie, Rosales, and maybe Montero are more important to the team (even though I really like our center backs, I feel like if we had to replace them, it would be possible.) I also disagree that selling our best players increases our profile as a club. Do you consider Wigan to have a great reputation? They’ve sold plenty of good players on over the years. I’d rather see the best product for the Sounders on the field than have the “pride” that comes from seeing Flaco potentially succeeding at Palermo.
I don't know that Wigan has a great rep...
But I assure you that people consider Wigan an huge step up from any MLS team.
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by Jeremiah Oshan on Dec 30, 2011 1:55 PM PST up reply actions
because of their league
not because they sell good players
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by Dave Clark on Dec 30, 2011 1:56 PM PST via Android app up reply actions
I was mentioning Wigan
because they have a reputation for finding players and selling them on to other teams, not because I think Flaco wouldn’t go to Wigan in a second. They clearly do this to stay afloat at the top level, something we don’t have to worry about with relegation and all of the parity measures in our league. I’m just saying I’d rather have a reputation of being a team that wins instead of a place to look if you need to buy a promising young player.
My point...
Was that comparing us to Wigan is kinda ridiculous since we play in such wildly different situations.
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by Jeremiah Oshan on Dec 30, 2011 2:59 PM PST up reply actions
I think the point is that we should get a reputation as a club from which you can move on to better things after a few years
Right now foreign players do not look at MLS as something where they want to spend the rest of their careers. But if we can become a club that attracts young talent that wants to improve and eventually go to bigger leagues, we can become a powerhouse in MLS.
by AAAA on Dec 30, 2011 6:26 PM PST up reply actions 2 recs
winning greater than selling
winning & selling best
just selling means you aren’t good, see almost every tram in world
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by Dave Clark on Dec 30, 2011 1:56 PM PST via Android app up reply actions
call me a cynic
but I always shy away from the idea that even a team with money to spend and an impressive scouting network should sell parts of their core. Winning and selling is very, very rare. I’m not saying that it’s impossible, I just think it’s a risk we don’t have to take. I think our team is good enough to win the league as it stands now (which I guess would make me not a cynic!). It’s just that, with so many important players in important positions who are either relative unknown quantities or coming back from injuries, I’d rather keep around the pieces that we know what to expect from.
We could win, but not dominate
It’s very difficult for an MLS team to differentiate itself given the league parity constraints. It seems to me the key to building a dynasty (defined as a long-term league power) under current MLS rules is wise use of Allocation Money. (Academy use is the 2nd key, but ours is too new to benefit us yet.) I agree with Abbott above (who, in turn, was agreeing with Neem) that this could be a great deal for the Sounders.
It’s tempting to compare MLS to Europe in this scenario, but I don’t think the comparison holds due to the peculiar power of Allocation (i.e. Funny) Money. An Allocation Dollar is worth far more than a regular Dollar. If selling players leads to large influxes of Allocation Dollars and it’s sustainable due to a better-than-MLS-average scouting pipeline then the Sounders have developed a model for sustaining a cap-busting roster legally. They should patent it as a business process, much like a tax shelter.
Allocation money from transfers is really not that different from money from transfers in other feeder leagues
For example, in Scandinavian leagues teams can only get limited revenue in from ticket sales and merchandise, and the way to becoming a powerhouse is to be able to get extra revenue from successful player development and transfer fees. In those leagues, one good player sale can contribute a huge percentage of the player budget, just like in MLS the $625k in allocation is a huge percentage of the salary cap.
Player budget isn't a concern
At MLS levels I don’t think the Sounders are terribly worried about player budget. I know their expenses are higher than other clubs but I think we can assume they are cash-positive at this point. No, the reason Allocation Money is so important is it allows borderline DPs to have their salaries reduced to free up the DP spots for “special” players whose salaries couldn’t be bought down enough. This is differs from every other league am aware of and makes the acquisition of AM vital to keeping higher-paid non-DPs on the roster without blowing the salary cap. The best way to get AM is to sell players, especially with large transfer fees.
You completely misunderstood my point
The Sounders have a salary budget of about $2.5 million, as determined by the salary cap. However, if they can sell a player, they can increase that salary budget by up to $625k.
Similarly, many teams in European feeder leagues can afford to pay about $2-3 million in salaries. However, if they can sell a player to a bigger league, they use the money obtained from the transfer fee to increase their salary budget.
So the situations are completely analogous. The only difference is that the Sounders are artificially limited by the salary cap determined by the MLS, whereas in many other leagues teams are limited by the revenue that they can create. However, in both cases selling a player for a high transfer fee has the same effect of allowing a significant increase in the salary budget.
I don't think I missed your point
I’ll give you that the sale increases the salary budget, but that artificial limit makes all the difference in the world. You seem to be suggesting that European teams would want to be run profitably (or would need to be), but that’s most certainly not the case. As far as I know there’s nothing preventing a monied benefactor in Scandinavia from out-spending his peers to “buy” a cup and it would be presumptuous to think there aren’t any owners of means in those leagues.
Some MLS teams, such as the Sounders, could afford to spend much more on players, even running at a significant loss if they chose to (we’re not the only team with a billionaire owner). Others are less-well capitalized and must stick much more closely to a budget. The salary cap puts them all on a (relatively) equal footing.
Allocation Money is special because of its relationship to DPs. If you have it you can buy down salaries to save DP slots for the really special players. As well, it is the only type of money that is directly tradeable in MLS. This and its scarcity make its more valuable than cash-in-hand, which is really only valuable to a team that is a) unprofitable and b) unwilling or unable to continue to be unprofitable.
The salary budgets in Scandinavian team are pretty constant year in year out
This is because the financial realities of football clubs in Scandinavia make for almost as strict a cap on the salary budget as the artificial cap is in MLS.
Many Scandinavian teams have “monied benefactors” supporting them financially, but they do not have super deep pockets, and hence sudden increases in the salary budget do not happen unless it is based on new income from player sales or success in the Champions League (or to a lesser extent in the Europa League).
I can also assure you that in Scandinavia clubs want to and need to be financially stable. A lot of clubs are heavily in debt, but they need to keep that somewhat in control, because the money that the “monied benefactors” can pump into the teams is limited. For the most part they are spending as much as they can. There are no ultra rich owners with unlimited resources.
Allocation money can also be used as a bonus
for players making the minimum.
Giving a low salary player a cash injection of 25% of their salary is a pretty big deal.
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Here's the thing, tho
As long as you’re not playing in England or Germany or are a top team in Spain or Italy, you pretty much have to resign yourself to the fact that your best players will move on at some point. If you are only looking for players without aspirations of playing in those teams/leagues, you are really casting a much smaller talent net.
Editor/writer at Sounder at Heart, MLS editor SB Nation. Follow me on Twitter. You'll Never Yacht Alone.
by Jeremiah Oshan on Dec 30, 2011 3:01 PM PST up reply actions 2 recs
Porto or Ajax are better analogies
Part of being a big fish in an intermediate pond relative to the global market for soccer is that the top team in the MLS is never going to be on par with the top leagues until MLS is. Wigan is a totally different species than the Sounders. They are a small market team swimming with the sharks in the EPL. Very similar economics to a small market MLB team with the added pressure of relegation. It would be more accurate to compare the Sounders to perennial powerhouse clubs in other intermediate markets like Porto. Porto has a tradition of winning its league and being a conduit.
Now add the fact that the current MLS rules significantly reward teams for being conduits and the whole playing field shifts. MLS isn’t like any other American market. It isn’t even close to one of the top leagues in the world. The team salary cap is less than 3 million dollars. And the global soccer market is the biggest sports network on the planet. It’s got it’s own economics and the MLS is finding its current niche. The Sounders are helping to define that niche with panache.
by Abbott Smith on Dec 30, 2011 2:51 PM PST up reply actions 3 recs
The important thing to remember
Is MLS is single entity if Palermo offers them a good enough price, it could help pay for all that money lost a year by the league having DC play @ RFK. It’s not only the Sounders decision in this one.
I don't think this is really true
I don’t think MLS can decide to accept a transfer while the Sounders reject it…
the league has never transferred someone against his team's wishes
Editor/writer at Sounder at Heart, MLS editor SB Nation. Follow me on Twitter. You'll Never Yacht Alone.
by Jeremiah Oshan on Dec 30, 2011 3:47 PM PST up reply actions
Have they ever asked a team to transfer a player when they would not have otherwise?
Like, the team initially rejects an offer but MLS kind of nudges them in the other direction?
I met a possum.
by s0merand0mdude on Dec 30, 2011 6:52 PM PST up reply actions
Not that has gone public
I am not a Supporter | I am not a Fan | I am a Sounder
Sounder At Heart Follow @bedirthan Dave's Twitter
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