Former Tottenham director of football, Damien Comolli, has claimed that the transfer market this summer is going to be impacted much more severely than people think, due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Comolli has suggested that only three clubs might be in a position to spend money at all this window, while adding that most others will be trying to complete loan deals and player exchanges.
Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: “An agent was telling me the other day, that there are actually only three clubs in the Premier League will be able to spend money next summer in the transfer window.
“I don’t know if this is correct but usually when agents tell you things like this, they usually get intel.
“We might see very little transfer activity, we might see swaps, we might see loans and I think we are going to see a massive decrease in transfer fees and transfer activity, at least transfers involving money.
“The longer this crisis goes on, more clubs are going to be in a financially difficult situation. The first thing that will be impacted will be player remuneration, the second thing will be transfer fees.”
Comolli spent a little over three years at Spurs and oversaw signings like Dimitar Berbatov, Gareth Bale, and Luka Modric before parting ways in 2008.
MORE SPURS STORIES
The 47-year-old predicted that the Lilywhites could be hit harder than others due to the debt they owe on their stadium.
He also claimed that Jose Mourinho is unlikely to be handed a big transfer kitty if the club fails to qualify for the Champions League.
Comolli added: “If they are not doing well in the league, if the transfer market is difficult for them. If they are not qualifying for the Champions League, people should understand that they have to be very, very cautious.
“Remember the whole debate at the time where Arsenal had to pay for the Emirates, for the building of the stadium, and people were criticising why they don’t spend money? They did not have money to spend.
“It was very simple and I think Tottenham are in a situation where they have some money to spend I am sure, or they will have had without the virus, but that virus will create a situation for them because they have got this huge debt.
“It’s healthy debts because have built a stadium and have this incredible asset, but they still have to pay for it.”
The Frenchman, who went on to serve as the director of football strategy at Liverpool from 2010 to 2012, also insisted that the Premier League may have to consider playing games behind closed doors until the end of 2020.
He said: “There are millions of fans who cannot come into stadiums and will be happy to have something else – at night or during the day – to think about, away from the virus and all the issues they’ve got to think about,” he added.
“I think having football on TV would be a positive, personally. I wouldn’t be surprised if we can’t play without any fans until the end of 2020 – not just the end of this season. People say we shouldn’t be playing behind closed doors to finish this season, but what about next season.”
Spurs Web Opinion
I believe the club will be looking for bargain deals and free transfers this summer rather than making big money moves. Unfortunately for us, a lot of clubs will be in a similar position and so free agents will be extremely sought after. Hopefully, having Mourinho at the helm can help convince one or two to pick us over other clubs.
Keep up to date with all the latest Tottenham news and opinion by following SpursWeb’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.
