Rooney to PSG?
Rumors surfaced earlier today that Qatari owned French “powerhouse”(I use that term quite lightly for obvious reasons…it’s Ligue 1) have put away €150m to help secure the capture of Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney. This is quite possibly the most shocking transfer rumor to hit football in some time.(Probably since Rooney’s superstar teammate Ronaldo left for Real Madrid a few years back) So what is the probability of this transfer happening, and what would it mean for Manchester United, the Barclay’s Premier League, and the rest of the footballing world?
Probability – 25:1
Okay, I’ll admit, I’m not a bookie or a Vegas odds maker, but I feel like these odds are pretty dead on. They’re far off enough to say two things – he most likely won’t be prised away from the northwest English club, but that it’s not that far off of a jump.
Wayne Rooney is THE Manchester United talisman, and is the heart and soul of the team, and quite possibly English Football as a whole.(EPL and FA) In many ways, the argument could be made that he is the best all around player in all of world football, something that my cohort Joe Champey and I have discussed a lot recently. More on that in a moment. He means more to Manchester United than any player in the EPL means to their respective team, the true definition of MVP, and with a total of 35 goals in 44 games this season(all competitions), it’s hard to argue. Odds of Manchester United wanting(key word) to sell him are near nil, but it’s not entirely up to the club. In a lot of ways, transfers are not only a two-way street, but a three-way. Get your minds out of the gutter for a moment.
The €150m that PSG has supposedly put away isn’t entirely for the transfer fee. There are plenty of other things that get factored into that, whether it’s agent fees, buyout clause, or maybe the most important, player wages. Remember back in 2010 when Manchester United had a press conference, and Sir Alex Ferguson let the world know that Wayne Rooney wanted to quit the club? Yeah, it wasn’t too long ago, and yes shortly after that statement he did sign a ridiculous 5 year deal that made him the world’s third highest paid player. He made a statement, or his people did rather, that he isn’t drawn to money, but ambition. Does that mean he’s married to the club? In no way shape or form. Paris Saint Germain are part of the nouveau riche in world football, led by Qatari billionaire owners. Two things the club do not lack as of late are money, and ambition, so Wayne Rooney wouldn’t have to choose from either. He will be faced with playing in the lowly French Ligue 1, which isn’t the most appealing league as late.
Partner Manchester United’s attachment to the player, Wayne Rooney’s recent desire to leave the club(2010), and PSG’s money and ambitious goals for the immediate future, and you have 25:1. As stated, it’s not that far of a leap if he does indeed get snapped up by the Parisian club.
What would it mean for Manchester United? – The World
It’s that simple. He is the aforementioned heart and soul of the Manchester club, and among the most popular players in the world, making him that much more valuable. As I said, Joe and I have talked extensively about how he is the best all-around(key word) player in the world. He brings the tenacity of a bulldog, the endurance and tendencies of a box-to-box midfielder, the power of a target man, and the silky smooth touch of lotion in front of goal. When you have a player of his nature, you’re guaranteed a bottomless gas tank, a forward who can score 25-35 goals a year, and a player who will tirelessly attack and defend. If Manchester United surrender his services to another club, it will not be worth it. Not to mention, he’s just as valuable off the pitch as he is on – he sells shirts.
What would it mean for the EPL? – Two Easier Games Per Team Per Season
We don’t really need to get too in-depth with this explanation. It’s really that simple. He is feared by all defenders in the Premier League, and if they say they’re not, they’re either liars or they play for Manchester United. He can do it all, as I said above, and without him on the pitch, EPL teams can revel in what must seem like drastically easier, and different games against the Red Devils. Sure Chicarito, Berbatov and Welbeck can score, but none of the three cause the havoc that Rooney does.
What would it mean for the world? – A New World Footballer of the Year
It’s no secret that Ligue 1 isn’t as powerful as the English Premier League, Bundesliga, Serie A, or La Liga, and is probably on par with the Portuguese League – Competitive, but a couple standout teams. As we’ve seen with La Liga over the past few years, the “best players in the world” reside there, and put up massive statistics, but it’s likely because of the lack of competition involved in their division. Look at Ronaldo, Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Ozil, and more in the two el Clasico squads. There is no way that in the English League, Bundesliga, or even Serie A, that these guys could score more than 40 goals in the league, or set up as many goals as they do while in La Liga.
If Rooney were to sign for PSG, I would all but guarantee 50 goals in a season, and because of that he’d likely be crowned the best player in World Football, a crown that he somewhat already deserves. His exploits in the EPL are indicative of his ability to succeed at any level, and of his ability to dominate a league like Ligue 1.
If there is any player at the moment in the world that warrants a massive transfer fee, it’s probably Rooney. I wouldn’t bank on it happening in any way, but do not be surprised if the Qatari owners do everything in their power and pull out all the stops(out of their wallets) to land the Liverpool born superstar.
Underrated Cup of Nations
Every time an international soccer event comes into being the rankings are always European teams, USA, South American teams with some African teams sprinkled midst the top ten. These teams immediately get written off in the grand scheme of things, and no matter where Brazil is ranked, they always come in as a top contender. Spain, Germany, Argentina (who always under performs), Portugal (who also under performs), and a few other international teams are always in the top ten. But Ghana, Cameroon, Ivory Coast and usually one other rag tag club like Nigeria or Egypt have a strong showing, but lack the consistency to make real noise.
Personally, I thoroughly enjoy African soccer. It’s physical, there isn’t as much diving, there’s a ton of speed, and there are a lot of underrated players that are featured in large matches. Although you can expect the countries with political turmoil or invariable unrest to perform incredibly poorly, you can expect some dirty tackles, flashy moves, and deep threat shots.
Kevin Prince Boateng, Samuel E’to, John Mensah, Gervinho, Yaya Toure, Didier Drogba, Emmanuel Adebayor, it’s obvious that this tournament won’t lack talent. The problem is that this tournament will lack coverage. Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, and Chile all have more notable players, and a stronger international fan base than anyone in Africa. And those teams are full of finesse players who flop at the nearest sign of a tackle.
I’m by no means saying that no one in Africa flops, and I’m not saying there aren’t hard nosed players in other countries. I’m saying Africa has a different style that most other countries. Asia probably plays the most pure form of soccer, but really lacks the talent to be really entertaining. South America and Europe play almost the same way, finesse, technique, but a lot of flash and bang. North America just lacks a depth of teams. It’s really just two teams deep so it’s really hard to judge full quality of these teams. Africa is physical. It has the flash of Europe, though not as much, it has the talent of South America, though not clustered onto one team, and it has the fundamentals of Asia, but not consistently. It’s the smorgasbord of international soccer. Unless you consider Antarctica. Best football in the world, am I right? I believe the African Cup of Nations to be the most underrated international soccer tournament because it is such a mixture. Politically, you have guys like Drogba who stopped civil war in his country, but for some reason Obama won the Peace Prize that year. This is also the one time where you really get to see a positive side to Africa other than Blood Diamond, and all the Somalia footage. Africa is an area of rich culture and depth, but that gets so overlooked because of the way the media portrays Africa.
Give it a shot. It’ll be more entertaining that you think.
Soccer Talk
I’ll start off by saying that styles vary from league to league. Of the main European leagues, Serie A, La Liga, Ligue 1, Bundesliga, and Premiere League, it’s pretty obvious that the styles of the clubs often reflect that of the country. But the styles are very different. Serie A is the dirtiest league in Europe. You think about all the great Italians that you can, even current players, Pirlo, Materazzi, Cannavaro, etc. These guys may not be as a dirty as some others, but they aren’t clean players by any means.
Ligue 1, of France, is a greatly competitive league, but if we were to rank teams, their best teams would be a in B+ category. More suited for their top teams to make it to the round of 16 in the Champion’s League and not much else. Ligue 1 is fairly close in competition, the soccer is great, and there’s a lot of great players. It’s the one league where the majority of the national team players play outside the country. Though there are exceptions to their great players sticking around. They also feature a fair amount of young and talented Belgian players which is a plus. But, for most it’s not a career league. Continue reading →
Is Albert Pujols the $300m Man?
So I’m a little late to the party. All the negotiating, or the lack thereof anyway, is all over. The season is about to start, and Pujols refuses to negotiate while he’s playing, which is a pretty classy move as far as I’m concerned. So when negotiations fire back up, is he going to get that 10 year contract that he covets so badly? And more importantly, will it be worth it?
Colin Cowherd was on his show a few weeks back vehemently denying that Pujols is worth the money and incessantly kept referring to him as a “power hitter.” Anyone that considers themselves a baseball fan and subsequently follows the sport closely, can tell you that Pujols is anything but a “power hitter.”
Alright, so the guy hits for power and does it well, but that doesn’t take away from the fact he has a career batting average over .330. That’s a rarity for any hitter, let alone a guy who consistently hits over 30 home runs and knocks in over 100 RBI every year. He’s arguably the best player in the game, and the best player the game has seen in the past ten years. He’s a lock for a top ten finish in the triple crown categories every year and has a stellar glove at first base to boot.
So let’s get away from the debate about players’ salary and talk about their worth relative to the league’s all but established pay scale. Curt Schilling has been the voice of reason.(at least that I’ve heard) He was on Colin Cowherd’s show recently and when Colin pressed him with the question about Pujols being worth the likely $300m price tag, he said “He’s the best player in the game and deserves to be the highest paid.”
Does he deserve a 10 year contract? Does any athlete really deserve 10 years? That’s maybe the only flaw in Albert’s case. 10 years is a mighty long time, especially given that baseball contracts are guaranteed. The Mets still owe Bobby Bonilla $30m for crying out loud. This isn’t like the NFL where you can void a contract with little to no consequence. There are only a few athletes I can think of off the top of my head that would deserve a 10 year deal: LeBron James, Derrick Rose, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Sidney Crosby(not Rick DiPietro), and Albert Pujols.
A deal(to me) seems like it’s imminent between the Cardinals and Pujols’ people. Even if he was to enter free agency with the intention of actually testing the waters, there aren’t many teams with a need for a first baseman that could actually afford him. The Yankees have Mark Teixeira, the Red Sox have Adrian Gonzalez, and the Phillies have Ryan Howard. The Angels are a possibility, but they already have such a high payroll. He means so much to St. Louis and is the lifeblood of that organization.
They would be a little out of their mind to not come to some sort of deal with Albert. He’s only 31, in his prime, and far from the end of his career. Oh yeah, he’s also probably going to end up as the greatest player in the history of the game. I guess I failed to mention that part.
Tim Herb – Senior Writer
Black and Blue Sports 