Why are Premier League clubs ‘missing the boat’ in the transfer market?

With the January transfer window spending not even at £20 million in the Premier League thus far, there is certainly a talking point that comes from managers and clubs who are desperate to add reinforcements to their clubs during the winter and even summer markets. There seems to be a considerable lack of awareness for the bargains that can be had on the continent—as Newcastle has so far proved—and, as it’s been proved in the past, the best answer does not always lie within the English leagues.

Newcastle recently pulled off a surprise move for Freiburg’s free-scoring striker Pipiss Cisse to complement the already hugely impressive Demba Ba. Picking up the Senegalese striker for a fee in the region of £9 million may prove to be an excellent piece of business on the part of manager Alan Pardew; while at the same time, Premier League clubs who are seeking similar goal scoring options are looking to players such as Bobby Zamora and Andy Johnson. Not a slight on these players by any means, as Zamora especially has done well in recent times for Fulham.

But the questions start to be raised when there are notably more effective players moving between clubs for far better value for money. The signing of Cisse is only one of many impressive bargain signings Newcastle have pulled off in recent seasons. Yohan Cabaye, a double winner in France last season, was prized from Lille this past summer for £4 million, while at the same time Jordan Henderson moved from Sunderland to Liverpool for close to £20 million. Different players, of course, but there is bound to be eyebrows raised when you compare the impact both players have had on their side’s this season.

Does it highlight a lack of knowledge about the foreign leagues? Or is it simply that age old question of whether a talent from another league, no matter how good, can adapt to the pace and power of the Premier League. There are perhaps far too many managers who are not willing to take the gamble on options that are readily available in foreign markets. Yes, there are also talents to be found in the lower leagues in England and player’s such as Jordan Rhodes are well scouted. Yet the inflated prices for English players should be enough to deter managers from signings players who may not be as good as those abroad.

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An interesting factor in much of this is that the players who are moving between clubs, and mostly between club’s on the continent, are capable of adding that something extra to a team who are struggling to cross the finish line to the Premier League title or even avoid relegation. Lille’s major summer departures last season only totalled a fee around £20 million as Adil Rami joined Valencia following his agreement last January and Gervinho and Cabaye arrived in the Premier League. Inflated fees for players who have a proven record of making a difference? Absolutely not. Similarly, Valencia completed a hugely productive summer of business following the departures of Joaquin and Juan Mata. Yet teams such as Manchester United and Liverpool have had to look ‘in-house’ to acquire talents they believed would help them reach their respective targets. Of course it’s all relative, but Valencia are currently sitting in 3rd place in La Liga and ahead of Atletico Madrid who spent 40 million euros and rising for Falcao, and Newcastle up until this moment in the Premier League have looked much more assured of themselves than Liverpool, who added players in similar areas of the pitch but dwarfed the spending of Alan Pardew’s side.

Will Newcastle’s impressive eye for a bargain abroad catch on with Premier League managers in similar positions, or will what seems to be a lack of confidence for foreign leagues continue to play a part in the way we see business done in this league.

While Alan Pardew is not equipped with the financial backing that regular title contenders have, he has, nonetheless, taken great steps to improve the quality of players coming into this league while not breaking the bank. It’s an impressive feat to have pulled off more than once, but it is also massively refreshing for a manager to successfully introduce players into the Premier League who have fared so well in other countries.

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