BoldNørden

Danmarks førende fodboldekspert ;) | Football Editor @KickoffRep

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

"With an expected fee between £10m-£15m, this would definitely not be a bad signing in itself.

The problem lies in how he fits in with Newcastle's high ambitions. He is a good and Premier League-proven midfielder. He just isn't spectacular and is considerably worse than Bruno Guimaraes, who is one of the best midfielders in the Premier League.

If they reinvest the remaining cash from the Guimaraes deal well, then this signing could be very good. But they have failed to attract multiple players to their club this transfer window so far, and therefore I am worried for them. I am worried that they will be forced to overspend on good but not great players, leading to a "waste" of the big cash intake."
- @boldnorden

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

⚫️⚪️Newcastle are reportedly eyeing a move for Pierre-Emile Højbjerg to replace Bruno Guimaraes.
This follows reports of Victor Froholdt only being willing to leave Porto for a bigger destination than Newcastle.

"Højbjerg is a solid midfielder and a brave leader but he isn't at the level that a club like Newcastle should be signing. With many years of Premier League experience, he would definitely do a fairly good job but he isn't exactly an amazing replacement for one of the best midfielders in the Premier League. He doesn't have the potential resale value of Victor Froholdt either."
- @boldnorden

[BoldNørden @boldnorden]

James Trafford to Leeds is a perfect example of taking advantage of the market inflation.

Manchester City bought him for £27m, then sat him on the bench for a year, before selling him for £45m. It seems really weird but at the end of the day, it's just good business.

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

🗺️🇪🇺I don't see a future with Infantino in charge of FIFA.
He clearly doesn't have many of his own people on his side, and also UEFA seemingly won't lift their boycott of FIFA tournaments unless he steps down.
Without UEFA, FIFA won't function so in the end, there are only two outcomes:

1. Infantino steps down and UEFA lift their boycott.
2. UEFA goes on without FIFA, ultimately changing football forever.

Sure is it, that change is coming.
-@boldnorden

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

If he ends at Barcelona instead, his impact would also be almost impossible to define.

The impact he has on a team can't be quantified, but he has proven throughout his career that it is without a doubt huge.

If the deal is completed, he would in fact make Barcelona my favorites for the Champions League this season.

[BoldNørden @boldnorden]

Vurdering af Yirenkyi til Coventry👇

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

🇬🇭🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿Caleb Yirenkyi is a very exciting signing by newly promoted Coventry.

He is a young midfielder, also capable of playing in defence, who is expected to slide instantly into their starting lineup.

He's got the physical capacity for the Premier League, being an incredibly hard-working player, both on and off the field.

As the Danish Superliga's biggest sale ever, and Coventry's most expensive signing to date, expectations are high for the young Ghanaian.
But his mentality is on point, and with a potential as high as his, this transfer should ultimately prove to be good business for the Sky Blues.

(Photo: Bryan Berlin / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

⚽️➡️Today's Transfer Summary:

🇲🇱Mamadou Sangaré -> 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿Brentford (€48m)
🇬🇷Konstantinos Koulierakis -> 🇮🇹AS Roma (€16.5m)
🇵🇹Antonio Silva -> 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿Bournemouth (€25m)
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿Tommy Watson -> 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿Leicester (Loan)
🇲🇦Redouane Halhal -> 🇮🇹Venezia (€5m)
🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿Danny Welbeck -> 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿Chelsea (€6m)
🇧🇫Herve Koffi -> 🇧🇪Union SG (Loan)
🇳🇬Kevin Akpoguma -> 🇮🇹Frosinone (Free)
🇳🇴Tobias Guddal -> 🇨🇿Sparta Prague (€4.5m)
🇦🇷Tobías Andrada -> 🇦🇷River Plate (€9.5m)

Record Signing:
🇲🇱🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿As Brentford's record signing, expectations are high for Mamadou Sangaré. He has improved his game every year, and Brentford clearly believe that he can take another step and adapt to the Premier League.

Bargain:
🇵🇹🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿Antonio Silva's price dropped significantly due to his contract nearing expiration and a dip in form.
Bournemouth may have found a bargain in him, as he is still young, highly talented, and can be molded into their system.

(Photo: Bryan Berlin, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

🇩🇰Newly promoted Lyngby have been very impressive to start the season. After the first two 3F Superliga rounds, they're sitting on just one point. The performances have been really convincing, though.
Chance-wise, they deserved to win both games, and although they haven't collected many points, the future looks bright if they can keep this up.
-@boldnorden

#sldk

[BoldNørden @boldnorden]

En lille LaLiga optakt👀👇

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

With #LaLiga starting in just over two weeks, we have taken a look at each team's net spend so far.

Using those figures, we have looked at what they reveal about La Liga's financial state, which clubs to look out for and what they tell us about the upcoming season in general.

It is worth noting that net spend is not everything. For that reason, no conclusion drawn in this post is absolute, but it gives an indication of how each team has prepared for the upcoming season so far.
Some are rebuilding, some are profiting and some are aggressively trying to become ready for the next step:

1. CA Osasuna: +€36.5m
2. Levante UD: +€24.9m
3. Sevilla FC: +€15m
4. Elche CF: +€14.5m
5. Real Betis: +€8.65m
6. Athletic Bilbao: +€6m
7. Real Sociedad: +€4.5m
8. Villarreal: €2.5m
9. Celta Vigo: +€0.1m

10. (Promoted) Malaga CF: -€0.3m
11. Valencia CF: -€2.25m
12. (Promoted) Racing Santander: -€2.9m
13. Deportivo Alaves: -€4m
14. Rayo Vallecano: -€5m
15. RCD Espanyol: -€5m
16. Getafe CF: -€8m
17. (Promoted) Deportivo La Coruna: -€25.5m
18. FC Barcelona: -€88m
19. Real Madrid: -€92.5m
20. Atletico Madrid: -€101m

(Numbers per, transfermarkt com)

The adjustment:
First of all, it is no coincidence that the three promoted teams all have a negative net spend. Adapting to a stronger league usually requires significant investment, naturally leading to a negative net spend.
Especially Deportivo La Coruna has made major investments in their squad, as they enter their first season in Spain's top division after an 8-year absence.
Overall, this trend isn't shocking.
Still, even with each promoted team having a negative net spend, the money spent is still far below the investments we see from promoted teams in the Premier League.

The surprise:
Atletico Madrid's spending may just be the biggest surprise. They've outspent both Real Madrid and Barcelona. It is worth noting, however, that Florentino Pérez is closing in on a €120m deal for Yan Diomande (per @Plettigoal), although Atleti's activity is still remarkable.
At the same time, you also have to wonder about their remaining capacity to make additional signings.
But even so, that doesn't change the fact that Atletico Madrid is making ambitious moves, improving an already talented squad, showing just how seriously they are taking the title challenge this season.

The noteworthy:
For the rest of the window, watch out for Osasuna and Levante. Both have made huge profits so far, but whether they reinvest that money in players or use it elsewhere remains to be seen. What is certain, however, is that both teams have the funds needed to reshape their squads ahead of the upcoming season, if they choose to do so.

The bigger picture:
One final observation is that numerous teams sit above zero. This reflects the big and growing financial gap between the Premier League and the rest of European football. Most La Liga clubs simply don't have the financial resources of Premier League teams, and therefore they struggle to compete.
In fact, last season there were 13 La Liga teams with a positive net spend while there were just 5 Premier League teams.
A testament to the financial dominance of English football and the growing inequality that is spreading throughout European football.

With one month left, these figures will inevitably change. But when it is all said and done in May 2027, the decisions that are made over the coming weeks will define the entire season.

[BoldNørden @boldnorden]

👏Virkelig flot start af Lyngby på årets Superliga sæson.
To meget imponerende præstationer selvom de kun står tilbage med 1 point.

[BoldNørden @boldnorden]

@F_Abolhosseini RIGTIG godt køb af Brøndby.

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

🚨UEFA will boycott the World Cup, if Infantino follows through on his FFE plans.

🇪🇺FIFA simply can’t continue with their plans if this is the consequence.
Without the European nations, the World Cup will lose an incredible amount of revenue, while FIFA wouldn’t get the same investments in FFE either.

Overall, a huge power move from UEFA.
And a crucial one for football.

(Photo: Steffen Prößdorf, Wikipedia Creative Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

[BoldNørden @boldnorden]

UEFA står endelig op mod Infantino!

[BoldNørden @boldnorden]

Hold da kæft…

Det er sgu stærkt klaret AGF.
BRAVO👏

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

🇵🇱🇩🇰What a comeback from AGF against Lech Poznan!!!

Losing 1-4 last week after a red card, an exit seemed certain. But now, they are leading 3-0 in Poland and are sensationally heading to extra time in the Champions League qualifiers.👏

Goals from Bech, Arnstad and Tingager.

[BoldNørden @boldnorden]

Det må simpelthen ikke blive ved og UEFA må sige endegyldigt stop!

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

This fight is crucial for football as a whole. FIFA simply cannot be allowed to continue like this!

UEFA, being the most powerful confederation, MUST therefore stand their ground and save football from money-hungry Infantino!
-@boldnorden

[BoldNørden @boldnorden]

@Mortenrf Han er jo en voksen mand. Det er ikke som om at FCK har fuldt ansvar over hans handlinger.
Det er jo ikke dem som har sendt ham ud af landet.

[BoldNørden @boldnorden]

@FootballMo55538 @KickoffRep How on earth can you think that FIFA is doing great?

[BoldNørden @boldnorden]

🚨👀👇Hvorfor Infantino skulle skamme sig:

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

Opinion Piece on Infantino’s response to criticism:

“Infantino’s response is just another example of the enormous narcissism that defines him as a person.
It’s a shameful response to the well justified criticism of the increasing power that politics seem to be having on FIFA and, thereby football.

Instead of actually addressing it, he dismisses it as pure hate and then proceeds to praise himself and FIFA for another successful World Cup.

This constant ignorance to the obvious problems ends up creating an environment, in which disagreement has no place. This in turn leads to even more power in Infantino’s own hands. It’s honestly disgusting to look at.”
- @boldnorden

(Photo: Bryan Berlin, Wikipedia Creative Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

Opinion Piece on Infantino’s response to criticism:

“Infantino’s response is just another example of the enormous narcissism that defines him as a person.
It’s a shameful response to the well justified criticism of the increasing power that politics seem to be having on FIFA and, thereby football.

Instead of actually addressing it, he dismisses it as pure hate and then proceeds to praise himself and FIFA for another successful World Cup.

This constant ignorance to the obvious problems ends up creating an environment, in which disagreement has no place. This in turn leads to even more power in Infantino’s own hands. It’s honestly disgusting to look at.”
- @boldnorden

(Photo: Bryan Berlin, Wikipedia Creative Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0)

[The Kickoff Report @KickoffRep]

FT: ⚪️FC Copenhagen 3-2 Lyngby BK🔵

“A few great individual actions led the big favorites to a win, despite a terrible general performance.
Lyngby was dominant throughout the game but Meling and Elyounoussi dealt them an undeserved loss in the end.

Terrible showing from the Danish “giants” and things aren’t looking great, ahead of the crucial game against Polyssia in the Conference League Qualifiers on Wednesday.”
-@boldnorden

#fcklive #sldk