#summer transfer window

[elevenforheaven]

Apparently Eddie has said he hopes to keep Tino and Lewis long term, which sadly for me means that Sandro is probably going this summer. I had thought the tide had turned there and the signs were pointing to him staying. I just hope that the club leads the sale and not him, since the fanbase were so decent to him and I'd hate him to leave as if he wasn't also fond of them in return.

I commit to RPFing in a bubble that runs from summer 2023-spring 2026.

(At least Dan will never sign anywhere else. He might retire but he won't defect!)

[coachtfd]

Newcastle…

Convincing Barcelona to take Gordon of your hands for €80M…that’s a master stroke right there. 😂 If United overpays for Tonali, which is basically a given, have some fun this summer. 🍻🥂

[18thcenturythirsttrap]

Given that we could still do with more strength at the back, I do wish that Liverpool had been able to get the Marc Guéhi deal over the line, but I understand - given that the Igor deal fell through - why Palace wouldn't let Guéhi go.

[swaggypsyduck]

FUCKING FINALLY

[elevenforheaven]

An Arsenal account is claiming that Tonali was their first choice midfielder but his agent's fee and wage expectations were too high relative to his ability.

I shouldn't be happy about this.

But honestly, I have been trying to post something about how I think agent choices played a part in how Gordon and Tonali's moves happened and this might have made it click.

Tonali is without a doubt, the single most valuable and highly rated player represented by his agency. They mostly work with Serie A. He was likely their biggest payday ever, since it has to be assumed his next move will be back to Serie A as soon as his age/price drops enough that he's affordable.

Gordon is with a huge agency. He's far from their most valuable player. As opposed to Sandro's deal being the biggest of GR Sports's career, Gordon's deal with Barca probably wasn't the biggest one his agency worked on that week.

And I feel like (wait for the gods to prove me wrong), that Gordon got the best move for his career and Sandro got the best move for his wallet. Even if Sandro's biggest motivation was living in London and he isn't arsed about his football CV (seems unlikely for a man who needed five days without leaving the house to recover from Italy not qualifying for the World Cup), Arsenal are in London too. Even if there is, which I suspect given what we know about Tonali, there's a degree of "it's not Milan so it's always second choice" no matter where he plays (and I don't mean that badly, see also Dan Burn and Newcastle), I still think any sane footballer would have chosen Arsenal over Spurs this summer.

Now, maybe Sandro really did want Spurs because of RDZ, and this was the dream outcome for him. But it feels like, by having an agency that could afford to think of the bigger picture and not just the bigger payday, Anthony did better.

And I've worked with small firms that are amazing at what they do, so no shade on small players in big markets. I just think... that saying, "if you're the smartest/most valuable person in the room, you need to be in better rooms," is a lesson Anthony has internalised and maybe Sandro hasn't.

[elevenforheaven]

Amused that Sandro didn't mention his new club at all during his first statement. Wanted a new challenge, especially since having a baby, wants to work with RDZ and get the best deal for Newcastle and for himself.

Not even a pretence of wanting anything to do with the new club.

I kind of feel bad for Spurs but don't worry, that won't last.

[elevenforheaven]

...aaaand Man City have found another 100m down the back of the sofa, apparently. Now that move I wouldn't begrudge for Tonali but prodding Spurs and making Newcastle look bad to get it is still shitty behaviour for a side that's been kinder to him than he deserved at times.

[elevenforheaven]

Ok so like

I want to believe Sandro is a good guy because he has acted like one around his gambling ban and Newcastle's response to it.

I do not, currently, believe that he is a decent guy. He's showing signs of rat behaviour.

Part of me is like, the 100m is the loyalty. The contract extension to 2030 was for this exact purpose, so Newcastle's investment in him was protected after they took care of him through the ban.

Another part is like, he'd rather downgrade than stay, wtf does that say?

(And Spurs is a massive downgrade, sorry)

And also, he's said more nice things about Eddie and the leadership group helping him and the fans than almost anyone else. Hes said that Bruno and Joelinton sat up with him all night before the first match he was banned for. And I get that those things were never going to outweigh more money and more opportunities (he's not Dan Burn after all, ain't no one Dan but Dan), but *just* money - that feels slimy after three years of mutual arse licking.

All season when his performance hasn't been great, he's been rewarded at every turn. Eddie has stuck up for him and not just praised his playing but praised him as a person. And to be fair, Sandro defended Eddie as well.

It just feels gross that after such a long and good relationship, it looks like it'll end with "seriously anywhere but fucking here." Even if Spurs is an agent ploy to smoke out Arsenal, it's insulting to Newcastle to say that's preferable to us. The fact is, no one was interested at the price, and now suddenly his dream is to play for the 17th team in the league, for the opportunity of being managed by someone with no track record of winning anything but a Ukrainian Super Cup.

Like, I was genuinely won over by him hugging Eddie after his Villa goal and telling the press afterwards that he did it to quash any rumours about their relationship. And by him praising the team for taking care of him when Italy didn't qualify. And by him welcoming Bruno back to playing with a kiss. It all felt like someone who, OK, might well move on, but was being sound about the team while he was there.

And it just feels nasty for that to all evaporate with the offer of a few extra quid from a failing side with a mediocre manager.

I hope that it's playing out differently behind the scenes. Club sources have said all along that he's been totally professional and warm with everyone, so maybe it's a case of, he's known for a long time that they were keen to sell him (keen rather than willing, maybe) and his attitude is to get the biggest payday he can for everyone. I just hope that all the people who were kind to him when they didn't have to be, don't end up feeling like they made a bad choice.