The transfer market, another victim of the Coronavirus

Although the transfer market does not have the same impact as in previous years, several teams have decided to closely follow the performances of promising footballers who played well this season.

In fact, such is the uncertainty of the consequences for the world of sports, that FIFA is considering extending the dates of the long-awaited summer market . In this way, it would start in July, but it would not end in mid-August, but the proposal is to finish it in late January, which would mix it with the winter market.

The future of the markets

It should be noted that in the past winter market, several clubs were very modest when it came to making player purchases, and the millionaire transactions that we are used to were not seen, and it seems that for a time we will not see them.

Added to the above is what the former president of Bayern Munich, Uli Hoeness, told the German magazine Kicker, “After this outbreak, the world of football will be different, the price of transfers will fall, (…) it is something that cannot be imposed but I cannot imagine that in the coming years there will be signings for 100 million euros ”.

In addition, it must be taken into account that the losses are in the million-dollar figures for those clubs that are in the affected countries, at this point the majority, since the leagues have been canceled. Which means zero income from stadium attendance, zero income from transmissions, and little income from merchandise sales, three of the main income sources of the clubs.

The first measures

To face the economic crisis, several soccer teams made the proposal to their soccer players to reduce their salaries to alleviate the situation a little. In this way, in the Bundesliga, the administrative players, among others, of teams like Bayern Munich, decided to reduce their salary by 20 percent. On the other hand, Borussia Dortmund also stated that the players on their roster would reduce their salary, but the club did not stipulate by what amount.

In Spain, teams like Barcelona had some disagreements in the reduction percentage. Initially, it was proposed that it would be 70 percent, a figure that displeased both the players and the coaching staff. To offset the percentage, a 30 percent reduction was proposed, a figure that seems not to be accepted, because as stated by the TUDN media, the salary will be reduced with or without an agreement. Meanwhile, the Blaugrana team confirmed its first two cases: these are Ramón Canal, head of the Catalan club's medical services, and Josep Antoni Gutiérrez, medical manager of the Spanish handball team, as La Vanguardia said.

In Italy, one of the countries most affected by the virus, the topic has not yet been touched. The president of the Italian Association of Footballers (AIC), Damiano Tommasi, considers it "premature" to talk about reducing wages. In this way, and according to the official statement on the website, "it is a sign that we are not aligned with the country's problems: we are talking about whether it will be possible to conclude the championships and we still cannot quantify the economic damages. It is an issue that we will discuss in due time, certainly not now that there are production sectors in Italy that are in more critical situations. "

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The solutions

Given the situation, one of the possible solutions, and the one is most reasonable at the moment, is to barter and it is expected to be the common denominator for a period of time. In this way, it is expected that the Transfermarket portal will be the basis for making the exchanges since the price of the players is controlled there. For example, if Madrid wants Mbappé, one of the most talked-about rumors, it would have to match his salary of 200 million euros, which would mean the arrival of Hazard (100 million), Varane (85 million) and Reiner (25 million ), to mention a few, to PSG.

In the case of Barcelona, one of the teams with fewer players and more affected by injuries, the signing of a striker is vital. Lautaro Martínez, the Argentine player of Inter, is one of the names that fits most for the team, and to be able to bring him they would have to match his price (80 million), with two or more players who are currently on their roster.

For the first time, it will be an interesting market beyond the bombastic numbers and speculation, as we will see an innovation in the changes that the teams want to make and it will be an easy method to trade more than two players at once.