Chapter 691: Joining Forces with Brothers
As the dark horse of La Liga last season, many stars within the Atletico Madrid team attracted the attention of numerous clubs. They themselves also had a need for further rejuvenation, so selling players to raise funds became a common occurrence.
However, no one expected that they would first finalize the transfer of their absolute core, Diego Costa, who moved to Chelsea for ��32 million.
Rumors of his transfer had been circulating since late last season, mainly due to Atletico's smaller scale and lower salary structure.
For players, a larger platform and higher wages are always goals worth pursuing. Loyalty is commendable, but not necessary.
The most important factor that prompted Atletico's top management to let go of Costa was the team's performance in the Champions League final. Even without the Brazilian, they fought until the last moment, missing the crown by just 12 seconds.
From this perspective, no one is indispensable. As long as Simeone is still there, the team's competitiveness remains intact.
In addition, the Blues also took away defender Filipe Luis, contributing another ��20 million transfer fee to the Red and Whites.
With relatively ample funds, Simeone first secured the signing of Bayern's high-scoring striker Mandzukic, for a transfer fee reaching �22 million, to fill the gap left by Diego Costa's departure.
As for another forward, Villa, being advanced in age, had no intention of continuing to play in the top five leagues for either the club or himself. So, they mutually terminated the contract, and the 33-year-old Spaniard will head to the United States for a new adventure.
This vacancy was filled by forward Griezmann, who had performed exceptionally well at Real Sociedad and made his debut for the French national team at this year's World Cup. Naturally, his value soared.
In the end, Atletico Madrid secured the French forward with a transfer fee of �30 million, setting a new record in the club's history. Both Simeone and the management see him as the future attacking core.
In terms of goalkeepers, failing to keep Courtois, Atletico Madrid brought in Slovenian goalkeeper Oblak from "black horse" Benfica for �16 million, setting a new record for goalkeeper transfers in La Liga.
In the Premier League, as the newly crowned league champions and Champions League semi-finalists, Manchester City's performance was satisfactory enough to temporarily meet expectations. The management hoped to consolidate the squad more, so they made fewer moves compared to previous years.
They first spent ��13.2 million to bring in Brazilian midfielder Fernando from Porto, then brought back Fernando from Porto for ��7.04 million and Zuculini for ��2.2 million.
These were all their transfer moves, and apart from a few senior players leaving on a free transfer, they did not sell anyone.
The slight changes in the squad caused strong dissatisfaction from Cristiano Ronaldo, who keenly felt that the competition in both the Premier League and the Champions League would increase significantly. Without engaging in an arms race, it would be difficult to maintain their performance.
However, his influence on the management was very limited, and many of his suggestions were shelved, further deepening the gap between him and the team.
As the team with the most severe decline, Manchester United couldn't even participate in European competitions next season. Therefore, they made heavy moves in the transfer market, with a group of talents such as Luke Shaw, Herrera, Di Maria, and Rojo joining.
Manchester United spent nearly ��150 million in the entire summer window, showing their financial strength.
Chelsea also burned over ��80 million on transfers, followed by Liverpool and Arsenal. Overall, the Premier League still invested the most in the European football transfer market.
And the distribution of funds among the clubs was relatively even. Even Aston Villa, who ranked lower, could spend tens of millions on transfers. It's not like La Liga's Barcelona, where one club spent over a billion, and other smaller clubs even sold players without buying replacements.
In Serie A, Juventus made the most significant moves, mainly focusing on economical deals. Most of their expenses did not exceed �10 million, with the most expensive transfer being the �18 million acquisition of 22-year-old Morata from Real Madrid.
He had always been hovering between being a starter and a substitute. With age and skill development, his status obviously couldn't meet the demands, so he wanted to go to a place where he could have more opportunities.
The Milan duo didn't have many changes. As an investor in Inter Milan, Wang Feng didn't really mind increasing the summer window funds. However, he couldn't invest too much time and effort into this aspect of work himself. Perhaps he would have leisure time to play football manager only after retirement.
In the Bundesliga, Bayern Munich "traded young for old", controversially swapping Toni Kroos for Xabi Alonso, but the club quickly threw out other transfer work to cover it up.
Borussia Dortmund suffered a major blow as their key striker, Lewandowski, chose not to renew his contract with the team and instead joined Bayern Munich on a free transfer.
This move caused strong resentment among the Yellow and Black fans because as early as a year ago, the Polish striker had vowed in interviews to stay with Dortmund, and the management was also optimistic about keeping him.
No one expected him to make such a sudden move. At the age of 26, Lewandowski was in his prime, and Dortmund was left with nothing.
Former core players like Gotze, Lewandowski, and Reus, now only "Little Rocket" Reus remained, struggling to support the team alone. The days of the Yellow and Black relentlessly challenging Bayern were gone.
Although Reus was only 22 years old this year, he had already competed in top five leagues and world-class stages like the Confederations Cup. What's even more commendable was his clear self-positioning; he often made the best choices.
On the other hand, his good friend De Bruyne seemed a bit confused. Both of them joined Chelsea at the same time. Reus actively sought a loan move immediately and established himself at Werder Bremen.
The Belgian midfielder also followed his good friend's footsteps to join a Bundesliga powerhouse on loan later. Together, they pushed the team to 9th place in the league, close to European competitions.
Their choices, however, were completely different. Reus strongly demanded his agent to negotiate a buyout clause, and in the end, Werder Bremen spent ��9 million to permanently keep him at the club, under the same conditions as Wolfsburg, "Please consider his past and current performances. Even if sold in a few years, the club can still make a profit."
In this situation, De Bruyne naturally chose to join forces with his brother. They would be together to create brilliance!
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