Chapter 631: Chapter 630: Grosso exchanged for weak Adriano, Arsenal goalkeeper reinforcement should be Lehmann
And the Serie A champions, Inter Milan, were also looking for reinforcements in order to challenge for a third consecutive Serie A title in the new season!
They started by bringing in Demede from Ajax for twelve million euros.
Then they inquired with Manchester City.
They were interested in securing Manchester City’s left-back, Fabio Grosso.
They were impressed by Grosso’s offensive capabilities.
This towering one meter ninety-one fullback had scored more than five goals and provided over ten assists for Manchester City in all competitions last season!
He was one of the best performers at Manchester City last season.
He kept the German prodigy, Lahm, firmly planted on the bench, unable to get a game in.
After much haggling over the price,
Moratti even made personal calls to stir up the emotions with Maxa.
In the end, Maxa stated, "We will sell Grosso to you for exactly what we paid for him."
Moratti was almost overjoyed!
Grosso’s current market value is undoubtedly over fifteen million euros!
First of all, he is an Italian player, previously played in Serie A, and later adapted to the Premier League.
Don’t think it’s an easy feat.
Many players who are decent in League A fail to even make the bench in League B.
The ability to adapt seamlessly to multiple leagues is a talent in itself.
Secondly, Grosso is twenty-six this year, the age at which a player usually enters their peak performance phase.
From now on, the next five years will likely be his prime.
Buying him now would mean enjoying his best years.
This is the age at which a player is most worthy of purchase; it’s reasonable even if the price is a bit high.
Lastly, his performance last season was definitely that of a star level, and he was just officially called up by the Italian national team, becoming an international player.
Fifteen million euros is definitely not expensive; in fact, it’s possible that someone might be willing to pay seventeen or eighteen million.
Why would Manchester City sell for only two and a half million?
"Of course, the premise is Inter Milan trades the other half of Adriano’s ownership to Manchester City," Maxa was revealing his ace in the hole.
The sound of his calculations could be heard all over Europe.
However, Moratti did not hesitate for a second and agreed immediately.
Because Adriano, in this season, shattered Inter Milan’s illusions.
When they sent Adriano to Manchester City, they valued him at twenty-six million euros.
But after a season at Manchester City, although Adriano scored goals, provided assists, displayed some tactical contribution, and even won two championships,
But... compared with a host of talented players, Adriano was indeed a bit "weak".
Mainly because he did not show the improvement expected of him at the age when progression should occur.
Such players often show promise when young but may not turn out great as they grow.
The most obvious comparison is between Adriano and Ribery.
Both were "startlingly mediocre" at the beginning.
However, from the midpoint of the league season, Ribery gradually became the team’s starting right winger, secured his position, and his visible contributions to the team grew.
Adriano, due to Robbie Fowler’s sudden emergence, lost his "starting position in the cup competitions".
Although still a league starter, everybody knew that Manchester City’s real battlefields last season were the English League Cup and the FA Cup.
So, both in terms of progress and team status, Adriano was unsatisfactory.
His valuation had already shrunk to about twenty-two million.
This was still considering that Inter Milan would buy him back.
If other leagues were to buy Adriano, the price they’d offer might be similar to that of Grosso, around sixteen million.
Another player who had a similar fate to Adriano was Premier League starter goalkeeper Cech for Manchester City.
However, Cech’s valuation was not high to begin with.
Falling from four million euros to one million euros also didn’t feel as shocking as Adriano’s nearly fifty percent decrease.
So, the general ownership valuation of Adriano was roughly equivalent to... eight to ten million euros.
Add on the two and a half million for Grosso.
Manchester City effectively still gave Inter Milan an eighty percent discount.
This friend, was truly generous.
Last year’s deal was not in vain.
Ultimately, the deal went through smoothly.
"Inter Milan acquires Premier League offensive winger Grosso for two and a half million euros!"
"Grosso trade details exposed! Half of Adriano’s rights + two and a half million euros!"
"It’s a win-win trade! Manchester City effectively used Grosso for free for a year, and Inter Milan got Grosso at a discount!"
"Manchester City should have profited fifteen million euros from this deal! Instead, they reinvested everything back into Adriano, potentially seeing no returns!"
"Manchester City has invested a total of twenty million euros to obtain the complete rights to Adriano! But clearly, Adriano is not worth that price! Unless he fully realizes his potential, Manchester City might just break even!"
"Manchester City finally makes a negative trade! Has Adriano become Maxa’s Waterloo?"
People relished the trade between Grosso and Adriano.
And soon, there was another move from Manchester City.
"Himan’s performance visibly declined in the second half of last season! Arsenal’s urgent need to recruit a goalkeeper is imminent!"
"There aren’t many goalkeepers who meet Arsenal’s recruitment needs! They need immediate ability, not potential!"
"Considering the ages of players like Henry, Vieira, Pires, Ljungberg, and Campbell, Wenger can only buy experienced name players!"
"Wenger invites Deng Kai to dinner! The hidden agenda might not be the wine, but Lehmann?"
"Wenger finally plays the right card! After Deng Kai nods, Manchester City indicates willingness to let go of the Lehmann trade!"
"Mutual affection! Arsenal acquires thirty-three-year-old Manchester City goalkeeper Jens Lehmann for a staggering ten million euros!"
Sky Sports: "Manchester City has money in their eyes! They actually gave their best goalkeeper to one of their biggest competitors!"
The Times: "Manchester City’s trade is baffling! Without Lehmann, are they really relying on Cech? Even Caballero is more reliable than Cech!"
Manchester Evening: "Manchester United is very unhappy with Manchester City for sending Lehmann to Arsenal! Ferguson says the trade is simply nonsensical!"
Everyone thought Manchester City had made a foolish move.
Defeating Arsenal in the FA Cup final does not mean Manchester City is completely stronger than Arsenal.
Moreover, in the FA Cup, Lehmann’s exceptional performance was very important.
He saved two one-on-one shots from Henry.
Yet Manchester City readily supplied Arsenal with the last piece of the championship puzzle.
This really...
Similarly, Wenger, who profited from the trade, praised Deng Kai’s character afterwards: "Our deal with Manchester City was purely a business move, a transaction satisfactory to both sides."
"Of course, I reached out to Deng Kai and discussed this matter with him. But I was hoping he could see the win-win aspect of the deal."
"No team other than Arsenal would have offered ten million euros."
