Great Post. The fact that Barca would net 26 mill euros is a bit off isn't it? They owe him 24 mill. It's like me buying a 1000 car on loan. Paying 750 off then selling it for 1000 and then saying I'm loosing 250 because I owe it to the bank. Can you pay 1250. That money is not theirs. It's Frankies.
The bought him for 75 mill over 6 years ago. So I presume that money is paid off. If they sell for 50 they get 50 profit + will save on his future salary of 15 mill a year or whatever it is.(the money owed to him is neither here nor there and shouldnt be included in the calculations) Thats 50 + 2 years at 15 mill = 30. That will mean 80 mill in the bank. For a club thats bankrupt and dont particularly need him I would think that would make a lot of sense. Or am I talking sht?
Well they bought him for 75m euros in Jan’ 2019. His original contract was for 5 years through June 2024. So I will assume his original amortisation schedule was 15m a year, and as of this summer his book value would have been zero. That’s assuming it wasn’t amended upon the extension/deferral amendment they signed two years into his deal. If so then he would have had 45m book value left to be amortised out over 4 years at 11.25m a year, meaning his remaining book value would be 22.5m euros as of this summer. This would be a very Barcelona thing to do, and whilst I am not hugely familiar with the mechanics of adjusting an amortisation schedule in football, I do believe it is possible under these circumstances.
With that in mind, let’s say that his book value is still 22.5m. We also have to add in another 11m somewhere in the add ons that were a part of the original transfer fee. I believe I read these had mostly been triggered when Barca won the league, and with his appearances. Lord knows how these factor in, but let’s say there’s up to another 4m in amortised player acquisition costs remaining (without data I’m just guesstimating at this point).
If Barca sold him for 50m euros, and had to pay him his deferred wages (8m), his loyalty bonus (16m), and his deferral incentive (1m), that would be 25m out the door immediately, given them a net on his transfer of 25m.
If his fee has been fully amortised including add-ons, then Barca will bank a net profit on their accounts of 25m for this season, and free up 14m of gross wages per year. This isn’t income, but it is a reduction in their wage bill.
If Barca were able to change the amortisation schedule to go over the additional two years of his deal, as described above, then they will only post a net profit on this years accounts of 2.5m.
If the previous is true and they still have 4m (for example) of add on player acquisition costs still on books, then they’ll post a player trading loss of 1.5m. Etc etc.
In all situations they would save 14m a year in base salary. How much transfer fee they can post as profit (this isn’t cash flow, it is accounting profit for the purposes of spending regulations) is entirely dependent on the amortisation schedule of his original transfer fee. It’s worth nothing that while amortisation of transfer fees are now capped at 5 years (a result of Chelsea’s spending spree and 8-9 year amortisation schedules), at the time of De Jong’s “extension” there was no such cap. Existing amortisation schedules (including Chelsea’s) are grandfathered in.
To reference your original maths, you banked 50m for Barca on a 50m fee. This is possible if (a) his original transfer fee in lauding add ons has already been amortised, and (b) he forgoes (or is paid by a new club) 8m in deferred wages, 16m in loyalty bonus, and 1m in deferral incentive. It’s hard to imagine a player willingly walking away from 25m, or another club willingly playing that to secure a transfer on top of the transfer fee, signing on fee and agent fees. All FDJ has to do to collect all that money is stay at Barca, collect his 25 plus another 28 in base salary, plus another 5m potentially in performance related wages, and then leave on a free.
When fit he plays. If he was in the wilderness there, he might be inclined to strike a deal, but he loves the city, loves playing the club, is first choice when fit, and basically holds all the cards. You are right that Barca will save 28m in base wages by moving him on, and another 25m in deferred wages and loyalty bonus if they pay him off for the transfer fee. If they are broke then it’s the only sensible option. To sell him for 50m or so and pay him off and move on. If he stays they are paying him a minimum of 53m over the next two seasons and then likely losing him for free, unless he extends. But when does sense prevail at Barca? My current understanding is that they’ve been trying to force him out so he forgoes the 16m loyalty bonus, and get another club to pick up the remaining 9m he’s owed. Good luck with that.
TL;DR: I don’t have a fecking clue.