I get that part. But why should a player with more than four years remaining on his contract have the power to force a move?
Okay, sorry. Regardless of what soccer we are talking about , I'm willing to give a pass for one of my more favorite songs in highschool... LOL - yes I'll admit to it....
If he had not made an absurd example, perhaps the point would have had more traction...but Barcelona to Sheffield? Really?
So are newspaper editors/owners, tv station owners, etc. If I asked you to name me the (1st World) country I am thinking of where they restrict the practice of their business the most in order to toe the line of their owners (secret)/ sponsors, etc ... where would you think it is that I refer to.......??
Let's just have it your way then and only move Barcelona to Torremolinas.... and while we are at it, let have a Herta Munchen and, well, here's a doozy... Liverpool FC to Salford... If you want to expand West then by all means do - except that to do it naturally would require some growth branding, which would diminish sales for a time, and we can't have that .... None of which explains the Oakland Raiders in Las Vegas. What about the recent poisonous nonsense concernign the Colombus Crew?? Or the nasty blacklist which seems to be operating (also secretly) on Colin Kapernick at the present moment for doing what (and let's be serious here) to any decent minded person in another country would seem like the "right thing" but to the powers that be in America, absoultely the "wrong thing". You don't get to be one who stands against any of the trigger items that allow these b@stards to generate their war-like ferocity (under the fantastically mind-distorted guise of some kind of worldly benevolence) whenever the need arises.... Nope - you don't get to do that and not expect some punishment in the land of the free and the home of the self-absorbed wanker ..... of course, that's just an opinion.
The usual reaction of someone shocked by a truth they hadn't previosuly considered. Look - when you can point out why it's nonsense, I'll be ready to re-evaluate my opinions.... (which by the tone of your comments) are likely somewhat shrewder than your own.....
yes, you most certainly could. As you could soon for Raiders fans and Colombus Crew fans .... Essentially my point. (When you strip away my disgust at the Militarist ties to it all, of course. But that's a separate issue.)
Well, the clubs capitulate for the sake of general harmony, i think, amongst other things - and it seems that behind this there is the notion that the player can simply choose to not perform - in which case the club loses a chunk of his value at sale.....
The major difference between US sports and European Soccer is the movement of teams in and out of the top tier. In soccer, this is done through performance on the field (which is the result of off field performance) with pro/rel and CL qualifications. In the US its done as the result of off field performance (which is tied to on field performance) and expansion/relocation. Cities lose top tier teams primarily because the city/local market cannot sustain the team at the necessary level to be competitive. These cities typically fill the gap with minor league teams which can be more effectively supported by the local city. It's really no different than soccer teams from small cities which were once the best in europe, but can't really compete anymore (Villa, Forrest, Glabach).
Not to mention that those teams are still near their fans... Small market only has part to do with it; the numerous examples of cities vying for franchises by outright paying for state-of-the-art stadia speak to that. Even an example like the Warriors leaving Oakland, or even the Lakers leaving Inglewood, leaving their roots to get a new stadium in a more fashionable location for no other reason than money, is pretty messed up to the community that lifted them up for decades.
One other key difference is the travelling fans. Very minimal is the US... Helps further with the sanitizing of the atmosphere....
Seeing lots of rumors out there... Liverpool have been linked to: - Naby Keita (rebuffed by RBL for early transfer) - Mahrez (rubbished by all sides) - Lemar (90M pound pricetag quoted somewhere, ouch) - Alisson (would be surprised if they were in for keeper already, expect a bid like this in summer) - Strootman (doesn't make sense for Klopp's system IMO) - Rakitic (same as Strootman) - Pulisic (young, talented, not enough of finished article for me, is worth a lot more to BVB than Liverpool so this just seems like BS/recycled rumors)
I know it's early in the window, but it's been very quiet, not much has happened - any club - so far.
For a while, Cbus was the largest city in the US w/o a major sports team. It didn't need one It had Ohio State football, etc, plus there are two other MLB teams in Ohio, and two NFL teams, not to mention NBA. "Soccer" is a sport that is tolerated in the US, so for Columbus to have some messiness with a soccer team wouldn't surprise me. The owner has no real ties to Columbus -- he's from The City -- and Austin is a slightly larger market than Cbus.
That's what happens when you fail to establish yourself as a destination club. Too bad. The kid was really good.
VVD turned down City and Chelsea to play for Liverpool. Oxlade-Chamberlain turned down Arsenal and Chelsea to play for Liverpool. Naby Keita signed for Liverpool despite every club in Europe wanting him. Klopp has made us a destination club.
I think Klopp is playing the long game with Lemar and Keita. Ideally it would be great to get one of them now
Per Jason Burt of the Telegraph and Jonathon Northcroft, there is a mystery player we've been linked within the past, but not currently linked with who is looking likely for January. Some suggested names: Brandt, Draxler, Pulisic, Kovacic, Dahoud.
That's some desperate cherry picking that ignores said player's concerns about playing time had they chosen a different club. It also ignores quality. Keita is really good and developing, VVD is promising and Ox is far from a world class player. None are currently in the same class as Phil, Suarez, Torres (at the time), Alonso, etc. In addition to those, there is an extensive list of world class players that wouldn't even consider Liverpool as a destination, and that again, cannot be ignored. Before rushing into such overt conclusions, wait and see the club's ability to retain Keita in a few years, for example. That should give you a clue as to whether things have improved in any substantive way. It's not just about acquisitions but also about retentions. Klopp is doing good things at the club and I really wish he turns the club into a destination club. Unfortunately, that's not just up to him. His style of football is very attractive for players and fans alike but that is only one piece of the puzzle. I'm hoping for the best but as of right now, we are not a destination club. That's just reality.