Read today that they cost one million as a pair and are on a 4 year contract. However, there is a clause which means they could be released next summer (if they prove to be good for a hopeful 70 million between them). However when they are sold MSI will gain a substantial share of their sale price! Not sure how true this is, read from The Sun, which is also covering reports on the take over bid.

£1m for 2 of them?? Blimey, they cost Corinthians £15m apparently. someone touched on the subject of whether Pardew wants them or not earlier. That's interesting as there were no paper rumours about his interest whatsoever, and usually there is something, so the popular belief that there are other forces at work may be a correct one

Ofcourse Pardew would've wanted them..why wouldn't a club like West Ham wants 2 world class players?

Because, if Pardew was unaware of a takeover, there's no way he would sign 2 players who cost the club, by conservative estimates, £15-30 million. This would plunge the club into severe financial difficulty, something they have only recently come out of. And, going by the fact that South American players want high wages, the rest of the package would come at a hefty price too

This is by far the most baffling transfer ever.
I've read that they both must play every game and other strange stuff.
Also that MSI are being investigated for money laundering and Corinthians where they are cloasely linked are in financial hardship at the moment.

The story today is that all the top clubs turned them down as well as Portsmouth but i guess Harry has enough heat at the moment what with the inside information gambling accusations.

So that means there must be more to this deal than a loan type ownership. There must have been something about the deal and or MSI that made them not want to have two fantastic players at their clubs.

I find equally bizarre calls for transparency and induviduals only for any possible West Ham takeovers. If that was legally enforcable then surely that would have to apply to every transfer and club takeover.

Rmember when football was a simple game and the transfer market was easy? I'm getting totally disillusioned with the whole Premiership greed business. Give me an afternoon at Cardiff in an old fashioned ground watching some decent football

quote:

Originally posted by AndyCardiff:
Rmember when football was a simple game and the transfer market was easy? I'm getting totally disillusioned with the whole Premiership greed business. Give me an afternoon at Cardiff in an old fashioned ground watching some decent football

The way you lot are going you'l be one of the Premiership greedsters before too long
Yeh it just seems that now a transfer is no longer a simple exhange of money for flesh and bone but with a whole lot of under the table shenanigans thrown in.

I think its been prevelant for a long time but the press have only just realised.

When i worked for a bank in the 80's we had a lecture on what to look out for when reporting and trying to spot money laundering activities. The lecturer back then mentioned that the kind of organisations that were the worst were those that accepted a lot of cash. He specifically mentioned football clubs because they took cash for tickets and nobody could easily check the real attendance figures.

Very few clubs have been caught doing it but some have.

quote:

Originally posted by zeds:
The way you lot are going you'l be one of the Premiership greedsters before too long

God knows what Scam Hammam and Peter Liesdale will be like in the big league. They weren't much cop with money last time they were there

^That would be interesting.
Apparently Tevez and Mascherano have both signed 4 year contracts, which makes the takeover link even more plausible.