Tuesday 9 July 2013

Does Money Win You Trophies?

In 2009, Cristiano Ronaldo cost Real Madrid £80m, which is a world record held to this day. In contrast, back in 1996 England legend Alan Shearer's move from Blackburn to Newcastle cost the Toons a mere £15m compared to todays transfer fees.

With money being an ever present icon in the modern day football, it begs the question, does money win you trophies? Dmitry Rybolovlev seems to think so. The Russian tycoon, who owns AS Monaco, is ranked 119th on the Forbes list of Billionaires and has a net worth of  $9.1bn. With Monaco only promoted to Ligue 1, they have splashed the cash by spending £126.72m on players. Most notable was the purchase of Chelsea target, Radamel Falcao from Athletico Madrid for £52.8m.

Along with big price tags, come big egos.
The vast amounts of 'loose change' at the manager, Claudio Ranieri's, disposal will set the incoming season's objectives sky high. In order to succeed, Ranieri will have to create a legacy at the club. Along with big price tags, come big egos. His authority will have to be asserted in a similar fashion to 'The Special One' or Sir Alex Ferguson, or an all too familiar outcome could happen much the same as Manchester City. Team cohesion is essential for any team to succeed whether it is in Sunday league match or at the pinnacle of  the football game, the World Cup.

Team Cohesion is vital.
A prime example of this in action is Vincente del Bosque's Spanish side. In his time in charge, he has won the World Cup and the Euros. What amazes me about the Spain is that 80% of the squad play for either Barcelona or Real Madrid, 2 highly competitive rivals. When these 2 meet in the world renowned 'El Clasico' everything is left on the pitch. 110% is given. With the tension on a knife edge, it also leads to the odd rash challenge. In fact, in Jose Mourinho's reign at Madrid, there have been 6 red cards in El Clasico games compared to Barcelona's 2. Yet when the chosen players from each side merge to form Spain, (along with Fernando Torres, Alvaro Negredo, and Robert Soldado, plus others) complete harmony is observed with each player knowing eachother as if they played for the same club. If a side wants to be successful they need a mentally strong manager that can control the players, along with the winning mentality.

'Shrewd Spenders'
Dutch outfit, Ajax, and rising stars of German football, Borussia Dortmund have employed the youth system tactic and it has paid dividends. Ajax are returning to their old dominance over the dutch Eredivisie having just secured their 3rd title in a row, while Dortmund are on the rise after winning the 2010/2011 and 2011/2012 Bundesligas - their first after a barren spell since the 01/02 season. In terms of transfers, both have been given the label of 'shrewd spenders' with the 'Sons of God' (Ajax) spending just over £21m since 2010, while selling £25.5m worth of players in the 2010/2011 season alone. In contrast, Manchester City spent £52.8m on Fernandinho and Jesus Navas in the month of June.

A good eye for talent
The blonde bombshell, Mario Gotze, joined Dortmund's youth academy at the age of 8 and played an influencial part of Dortmund's 2011/2012 Bundesliga triumph. Last month, he joined arch enemies Bayern Munich after his €37m release clause was triggered. Mario Gotze, along with Robert Lewandowski and Marco Reus, show that Die Borussen have a good eye for the raw, hidden talent.

Both these youthful teams were in the group of death along with Spanish moneybags Real Madrid and England's high flyers, Manchester City in last season's Champions League. Many thought that Madrid would claim pole position leading into the knockout stages with City coming behind in second. This was not to be. Ajax recorded a notable 3-1 victory over Man City at the Amsterdam ArenA while Dortmund failed to lose a single game on their way to the top of the group. Dortmund got to Wembley after a 4-3 aggregate victory over Real Madrid, but only to lose in the final to Bayern Munich. Both Ajax and Dortmund along with other teams have showed us that there is more to football than money.

Blue Moon
My final point is one on Manchester City. Six years ago, City finished ninth in the Barclays Premier League, but on the 1st September 2008, Abu-Dhabi United Group completed a takeover worth a reported £200m. Since then, the boys in blue have climbed the Premier League table to become regular title contenders. In 2011, they lifted their first silverware in this era with an F.A. Cup victory. The 2011/2012 season saw arguably the most exciting conclusion to a season ever with Sergio Aguero securing the title in the dying embers of the season - their first in 44 attempts. While many people turn a blind eye to this, the fact is, money brought them to where they are today.

Football clubs are becoming richer and richer which will increase the spectacle for neutral fans. Sometimes money is not the answer as Ajax and Dortmund have modelled, but the City story tells us that a little money doesn't hurt anyone. In my opinion, yes money does win you trophies but only to a certain extent. The players in that club need to work together to have any chance of silverware. There needs to be confidence. The manager must have the full backing of the players and vice versa. And most importantly, they must act like a family to each other.

Thank you. Feel free to leave a comment below with regards to how I might improve this as it is my first one or else future topics that I could write about.