As a good friend of mine recently put it; “Is this real money?” He was of course referring to the staggering amounts that Premier League clubs are spending this summer, and more specifically the £50m that Manchester City somehow forked out for Kyle Walker. It is a ridiculously pricey transfer for someone that certainly isn’t even worth half as much as what he went for but hey, welcome to football in 2017. But this transfer especially makes the mind wonder.
As I’m sure you all know, Juventus defender Leonardo Bonucci reportedly agreed a shock switch to AC Milan in a deal worth €40m, which puts the Walker fee further into oblivion. It really is a scary world we live in when none other than Kyle Walker, a man who literally couldn’t get a game for Spurs, is worth a hell of a lot more than arguably the world’s best centre back. In other words, Spurs have got away with murder here. What a bit of business from Pochettino, how on earth has he managed that?!
In stark contrast lie Manchester City, who have quite simply been mugged off by the footballing world. With a superb deal for Dani Alves all but secured last week, imagine their disappointment when the Brazil legend – and still one of the greatest full backs in football – went to PSG instead. What a rollercoaster it must have been behind the scenes in Manchester. In my eyes, City were the favourites to finally get their hands on the Premier League title again, but now I genuinely believe they’ve ruined their chances.
No disrespect to Walker but seriously, £50m for a player who sits on the bench? He’ll obviously jump straight into the side when he arrives, but only because there is literally no-one else at the club to challenge him. With Pablo Zabaleta and Bacary Sagna – both players I’d have ahead of Walker anyway – out the door, it’s almost Spurs 2.0, where Walker had no competition until Kieran Trippier arrived and started showing just how good he can be. It’s also the exact same setup in the national side, where the England right back slotted straight into a position that was crying out to be taken, and surprise surprise, he was of over-hyped because he’s English!
Another hugely terrifying thought is that Walker now completes the most expensive defence OF ALL TIME. It’s really not a list he should want to be on, because beside him sits David Luiz, John Stones and Luke Shaw. Now, when other world-class defenders – and indeed those in other positions – are winning trophies and being the best on the planet on a regular basis, yet cost half of what these geezers cost, there is something horribly wrong with football.
Yet more frightening revelations come to light when you realise that Barcelona’s new full-back Nelson Semedo has signed for a much lower fee and oh, will be much better and much more successful. It’s also intriguing to see how Man City as a club have inspirationally moved on to bigger and better things, like going from bringing in David Silva on the same day seven years ago for pennies compared to what they’ve just spent on bringing Walker in, again, cheers modern day football.
It sadly is a sign of the times, what with Premier League clubs breaking the bank to reel in bang-average players, and unfortunately represents everything that is wrong with the modern game. There is of course the diving and hooliganism, but perhaps now’s not the right time for that argument…but yeah, this Walker deal is a shambles. Andy Robertson to Liverpool for £40m is my next guess as they search for their solution for an actual left back in a desperate panic in the coming days…