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' Cardiff City and Swansea City like a slap in the face '

Mon Jul 26, 2021 11:51 am

Fulham flex muscles to land £10m Liverpool star as financial reality hits Cardiff City and Swansea City like a slap in the face

Both Cardiff and Swansea were said to have registered an interest in signing Harry Wilson next season, but did not have a sniff when Fulham came knocking

So, Fulham dropped down from the Premier League and their first year of parachute payments from the top flight will see them net upwards of £40m. The same goes for West Brom and Sheffield United.




By Glen Williams


Monday 26th July 2021



One big takeaway as we hopefully edge away from this crippling pandemic — in footballing terms at least — is just how hard the finances will hit in the divisions below the Premier League.

The mega-rich top tier has been affected, of course, just like almost every other industry in the world, but the trickle-down effect is so much more impactful on the Championship and below due to its greatly reduced broadcast and sponsorship income.

Spending in the Championship is at a real low this summer so far. Of course, we usually see greater spending towards the end of the window, when Premier League clubs begin to make plays for big-money Championship purchases, then that money gets pumped around the league that way.

But even by regular early-window standards, it has been cagey. That is because of the simple fact there is no money to spend.

There has been an almighty scramble for clubs to secure early loans and free transfers, percentage plays in the market and far more prudent strategies have been implemented following what has been a simply horrendous 18 months or so.

Football clubs are on their knees, especially below the Premier League, and the impact will not be felt just this season, but in the years to come as loans and creditors are paid off.

There has been no footfall in stadiums for more than a year. No pies, pints or coffees bought inside Cardiff City Stadium or the Liberty Stadium since the beginning of March 2020.

There has long been a school of thought which suggests parachute payments from the Premier League create too much disparity. Those who subscribe to that notion will no doubt have their sense of persecution heightened this year.

The three teams coming down from the Premier League are supercharged more than any other year in comparison to other teams.



The Harry Wilson to Fulham move this weekend is evidence of that.

The 24-year-old will no doubt be one of the best players in the division next season and it would be extremely unwise to bet against him being a success in a top Fulham side.

The Wales international is a top-quality operator at Championship level. He showed that in his breakthrough season with Derby County, hammering in 18 goals, before impressing with Bournemouth in the Premier League.

He even shone in Cardiff City colours last year, despite playing in a system which was not conducive to any of his strengths, netting seven goals and contributing 12 assists.

Cardiff were keen to have him back next season, but there was no way in a million years they could fork out £12million for him from Liverpool. A loan, at best, was all that could be offered.

Swansea, too, were in a similar boat. They wanted Wilson last year and this year, but they were blown out of the water by financial demands.

That appears to be the new normal for the foreseeable future. Some might believe it to be a good thing, wanting football to hit the reset button to sort out its messy finances. On whichever side of the fence you sit, it cannot be denied that the gulf is vast now.

Parachute payments work like this: Relegated teams receive 55 per cent of the pot distributed to every Premier League club their first season back in the EFL. In year two, that number decreases to 45 per cent. If the relegated club had been in the top flight more than one season, it qualifies for a third year at 20 per cent.

For a representative figure, in 2018-19 it equated to £43m, £35m and £26m respectively.

So, Fulham dropped down from the Premier League and their first year of parachute payments from the top flight will see them net upwards of £40m. The same goes for West Brom and Sheffield United.

While this has been the case for some years, it feels different now. Championship owners have been forced to firefight to keep their clubs afloat during this pandemic, while the cash from international broadcast deals and eye-watering corporate partnerships continued to flow in the Premier League.

Matt Grimes could also be sold off, with Fulham once again thought to be keen on capturing the midfielder, while Connor Roberts, though currently injured, has also caught the eye of a number of teams in recent months.

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It would be seemingly unthinkable that any of the other 19 clubs not boosted by parachute payments could fork out anywhere near £10 for a player in this climate.




West Brom and Sheffield United are yet to make big plays, just adding a few free transfers and loans, but there is no doubt they will be ramping up their efforts soon, as Baggies boss Valerien Ismail said rather ominously.

"For sure we will show what we can do in the transfer market but at the minute there is no rush," he said at the weekend.

"We are working behind the scenes to prepare.”

Slavisa Jokanovic at Sheffield United is also linked with a few pricey moves, including Liverpool centre back Ben Davies.

By contrast, Cardiff have made three free signings in James Collins, Mark McGuinness and Ryan Wintle, while Ryan Giles has signed on loan from Wolves this year. To emphasise the point, in McGuinness' case Arsenal even cancelled his contract to allow him to leave on a free, instead opting to place a sell-on clause in his contract to recoup some reward if he is a success with the Bluebirds.

One gets the sense that even if Kieffer Moore is sold for a princely sum, not all of that would be reinvested in the squad and who could begrudge the club, and owner, that? These times are crippling and the landscape has shifted drastically.

Swansea have brought in Kyle Joseph and Liam Walsh on free transfers after the expiration of their contracts, while they did splash £1m on PSV Eindhoven forward Joel Piroe - perhaps a morsel of that Rodon money was put to use after all.

More investment is certainly needed down in SA1, that's for sure, but whether any money gained from potential departures is pumped back into the squad remains to be seen.

What is for certain, though is that both clubs are fortunate they can lean on their academies.

Swansea have produced so many good young footballers in recent years it has literally saved their club millions of pounds and we are likely to see more youngsters given a chance this season, providing the man who assumes control following Steve Cooper's departure has that mindset.



Cardiff has been a much slower burn in recent years, but under Mick McCarthy we are seeing the emergence of some talented academy products, many of whom will certainly feature in this upcoming campaign.

The days of £10m transfers in the Championship are over unless they are boosted by the injection of parachute payments.

Both Swansea and Cardiff will have to trust their recruitment departments, youth systems and managers to eke out every last inch of talent in hope of landing somewhere near the top of the table and give themselves a puncher's chance of Premier League millions. Swansea, of course, will have to find their man first after John Eustace's shock U-turn this weekend.

Either way, the signal of intent shown by Fulham landing Harry Wilson will likely be the first of many for the relegated three, while Cardiff, Swansea and the rest have to scrap tooth and nail to ensure they are prepared as best as humanly possible with a fraction of the budget.

Re: ' Cardiff City and Swansea City like a slap in the face

Mon Jul 26, 2021 11:53 am

So, Fulham dropped down from the Premier League and their first year of parachute payments from the top flight will see them net upwards of £40m. The same goes for West Brom and Sheffield United.