For the $$$

I guess its back to the drawing board for Michel Platini. The current president of UEFA has tried to reign in wages and transfer spending of clubs ever since he took over the running of UEFA. Unfortunately for him, the football clubs of Europe do not share his noble goal.

Anyone who believes otherwise can just look at England. By the end of the mid-season transfer window, English clubs spent a total of 225 million pounds…in a month! A record fee was paid by Chelsea who paid Liverpool $79.5 million for Spanish striker Fernando Torres. Liverpool then used the money on young English striker Andy Carroll who joined Liverpool from Newcastle for $56.5 million. What this about the United Kingdom being in a recession?

Now before anyone scream about football going money mad, there’s exactly a method to the madness. Chelsea and Liverpool are both in bad form and in real danger of not finishing in the top 4 in the English Premier League. Being out of the top 4 means no Champions League place next season, and that means no big payday next year.

So in their mind, it’s better to spend the cash now to ensure a top 4 spot at the end of the season. Even if it looks like a panic buy! Some will argue that Andy Carroll is a promising young striker who is only be 22, so he’s for the future but he also only has 1 England cap, has played only 41 EPL games, and is currently injured! $56.6 million for an injured striker who is only in his first full season?

That has panic written all over it. But Liverpool managed to finish in the top 4 by the end of the season, it will still be money well-spent.