2023-08-06 07:17:25
For many years, Argentine soccer got used to seeing, almost with resignation, how Brazilian clubs were reinforced with elite players, stars who generally left Europe to play in the giant neighboring country. The phrase spread in almost all the courts, bars and WhatsApp groups: “We cannot compete with Brazil.” The argument was soccer, but above all economic: the distance between one tournament and another also represented the distance between the two economies: the fragility of the Argentine peso against the appreciation of the real. While here they only aspired to sell to pay the bills, Arturo Vidal, Fernandinho, Marcelo, David Luiz, William or Luis Suárez arrived at the Brasileirao.
In the last week, that equation came to a halt. A pause in the midst of the crisis. The presentation of Edinson Cavani in Boca, plus the arrival of Manuel Lanzini at River and that of JuanFer Quintero at Racing upset a scenario that seemed permanent. The three are hierarchy reinforcements that could have gone to Brazil, the United States or Saudi Arabia, and nevertheless they arrived at Argentine soccer.
It is true: the three arrived free, so none of them had to buy their passes from a foreign club, which is almost a norm in today’s football: more and more footballers are migrating with the pass on their can. From international stars like Lionel Messi, local figures like Matías Rojas – who a few weeks ago went to Corinthians free from Racing – to Ascent players.
But Cavani, Lanzini and JuanFer will have high dollarized contracts, inappropriate for an extremely fragile economy like Argentina’s. Although the amount that Cavani will charge was not disclosed, those who know the Boca scene offer two contracts for reference: that of Darío Benedetto, who earns 1.2 million dollars a year; and that of Marcos Rojo, the highest contract on the campus, close to 2.5 million dollars a year. How will he pay for it? The explanation lies in the transfers of Alan Varela to Porto (9 million) and Luis Vázquez to Anderlecht (7.5 million), plus what was obtained from the sale of Mateo Retegui.
The political context also plays a role. In the second semester of an electoral year, Juan Román Riquelme’s bet is to win the seventh Libertadores. “By investing in important players, if you do badly, then you cushion the blow. It is not the same that you have gone wrong with Cavani than with Vázquez and Merentiel ”, analyzes a leader.
The River thing – Lanzini could be added to the return of Pity Martínez – can only be explained with the 2022-2023 balance that the board of directors has just approved, with a historic surplus of 6,500 million pesos. The club achieved this positive balance through sponsorship income, stadium naming, ticket sales and social fees. The sale of soccer players goes through another channel, which also explains the purchasing power that President Jorge Brito and coach Martín Demichelis have. River still receives income from the two best sales in its history: those of Julián Álvarez and Enzo Fernández. They are dollars that you manage with documents to benefit from the exchange rate (which always has to be the official one). Delaying your collection means securing a higher quote.
Racing is also a bet. It is different from that of Boca or that of River, but it is still a bet. After years of claims and complaints against Víctor Blanco for his austerity, the president of Racing tried to make a coup. The calculation they make in Avellaneda is simple: if Racing gets past the eighth and fourth rounds, the money that would come in from Conmebol pays for the effort they made to bring in JuanFer, Roger Martínez and the other additions. The problem will be if in the rematch against Atlético Nacional in Avellaneda he plays as he did last Thursday in Medellín.
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