August 30, 2022

The brief from today:

São Paulo cash in on Antony transfer

There has been substantial coverage in recent days of the impending transfer of Antony from Ajax to Manchester United. While the Brazilian winger is undoubtedly talented, the main source of attention is the astounding £85 million transfer fee (including add-ons) United have agreed to pay for a player that is still developing. While Ajax will rue the loss of a key player, such a windfall was far too difficult to turn down. Current Ajax manager, Alfred Schreuder, elaborated further on the figure saying the market has drastically inflated Antony’s value, and as a result, the club accepting such a figure was inevitable. Well, there’s another party that isn’t complaining whatsoever regarding the massive sum Antony has commanded, and that is his former club São Paulo. The 22-year-old winger came through the academy at São Paulo, and made his senior debut in 2018. Ajax would express their interest two years later, and eventually sign the Brazilian for £13 million. São Paulo were savvy during negotiations, however, as they inserted a clause in the deal that granted them 20 percent of whatever profit Ajax made on an eventual sale of Antony. The time has now come for São Paulo to reap the rewards, as even a conservative calculation, which discounts the £5 million add-ons of the deal, will still see Ajax earn a profit of £67 million. As it stands, São Paulo can expect to receive 20 percent of that figure, or roughly £13 million. If certain targets are later met, and the add-ons are triggered, then that £13 million will subsequently rise in value. Such a return, as well as the initial sale price when Ajax first came knocking, will now see the Brazilian side earn a minimum of £26 million—which could still rise with the add-ons—from their original sale of Antony. Surely this should be considered one of the biggest success stories of the current transfer window.

Antony (left) during his time at São Paulo

Question marks over 2025 AFCON

With the 2023 AFCON set to take place in Ivory Coast in January 2024, attention is now also being directed towards the 2025 edition. The reason for this early focus is because of the host nation Guinea, and their delicate political status. In September 2021, Guinea’s military staged a coup and took over control of the nation from President Alpha Conde. Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, one of the key leaders of the coup, would eventually be named as the Guinea’s interim president—a position he still holds today. Due to the state of affairs, there was suspicion the military government wouldn’t be amenable to releasing funds needed to organize the 2025 AFCON, which saw Nigeria even offer to be an alternate host. With the Confederation of African Football (CAF) set to pay a visit Guinea to observe the state of preparations for the continental tournament, Doumbouya has now confirmed that the government is fully committed to hosting, financially and otherwise. For now he is being taken at his word by CAF, and considering the announcement made by Doumbouya in May—which confirmed the military would remain in power for 39 months before transferring back to civilian rule—there isn’t much choice for CAF but to collaborate with him.

Mamady Doumbouya has been in control of Guinea since October 2021