As a fan it’s easy to look at a transfer fee and assume that it’s paid upfront and that’s it done, but most “big money” moves see the payments split into installments over a number of years.
In the big world of football you can argue if £10m is “big money”, but it’s absolutely massive to a club like Derby County when you consider their financial situation just now.
The Telegraph have reported on the latest with their situation, and there are some details that also concern Arsenal as it’s claimed that around £8m is still owed to the Gunners after Krystian’s Bielik’s move to Pride Park.
It’s indicated that the transfer is a club record and it’s expected to reach over £10m once the entire fee is paid, while Arsenal have been assured that they will receive the money despite the Rams going into administration.
The fee is also an issue for Derby when it comes to finding a buyer as they’ll need to take on that transfer debt and make the payments to Arsenal, while it’s also thought that money owed from other transfers brings their transfer debt to over £10m.
It’s such a mess for Derby supporters and it’s also suggested that they were late with one of the payments to Arsenal earlier in the month, so that’s also been added to their charge sheet from the FA as they try to work through this.
At least the supporters were given some hope on the pitch after their recent 1-0 win over Reading, while they’re only 7 points away from safety despite the points penalty so it would be some achievement from Wayne Rooney if he can lead this team to survival again.