So the Michael Owen marketing bandwagon has hit the road running...The excitement at his potential return to action is matched only by the intrigue of Newcastle's claim for £6/7m from FIFA as compensation for Owen's World Cup collapse.
Oh, how we have missed Michael Owen...
We, as a Trading Team, have an issue with any professional footballer who chooses to spend his leisure time around the types of individuals that frequent casinos. We would not state that such a hobby guarantees corruption but, at the very least, it significantly increases the probabilities. Alongside our visual monitoring of such players and our analytical assessment of their performances, we access the common knowledge within the game through our array of contacts in the clubs. The conclusion - certain players/managers like to dabble in the markets either on their own behalf or on behalf of others. Regular readers will be aware that our Traders very closely focus on the corrupt players, managers and officials in the game.
Our prime issue with dodgy football people isn't the disruption of the betting markets (although some of the operators that are very careful with where they place their money can lead to some markets becoming indecipherable analytically) but the fact that people are paying through the nose to watch men who earn tens of thousands of pounds per week take an extra little earner on board while the fans chant their names... Scum!
Which isn't to suggest that Michael Owen is anything other than a devoted professional footballer and family man etc etc...
And, while I've got a few minutes in this hectic week, all this stuff about compensation for World Cup injuries... FIFA are offering Newcastle under a million which is markedly less than their claim for £6/7m. One aspect of Newcastle's strategy (ie greed) is indicated by the fact that the total FIFA fund for such eventualities is, by chance, £6.5m. And we'll have it all for Newcastle plc, please.
The clubs always moan about injuries on international duty but they never acknowledge the impact that the increased profile and exposure has on a players market value. A strategic transfer policy yields oodles of cash for the thinking manager around World Cup/Euro windows. The financial interaction is considerably more complex than the club chairmen and G14(18) would have you believe - FIFA/UEFA should charge the clubs for a percentage of any enhancement of player value through exposure at their competitions.
