Thanks for that inside view of MLSE. It's much better getting facts than people's fears (based more on when Teachers owned MLSE, not the current ownership, and Ballard's ownership of the Leafs).
TFC don't have to crazy spend like before to have a winning team, but top 5 would be my expectation.
I thought that too but I get what he is saying. I mentioned similar a while ago while on about our payroll. Operating costs are a write off they want the MLSE brand and their properties (Leafs, Raps, TFC, Rock, those other guys) to have their individual franchise worths continue to ascend yearly and that's what makes the private shareholders happy. The only way for that is to have the gate , advertising, TV, and sponsorship revenue always increasing just like any big business. Hard to do if you pull a FC Dallas.
perhaps I should have taken more time over my point. There are ways that soccer teams around the world have learned to set the groundwork when they are entering difficult negotiations with an aging star player, Barcelona being one example - and Real Madrid being another. There are others, Man U comes to mind, that include laying the groundwork well ahead and having a clear plan for replacing the player or perhaps changing the team play and bringing in two or three players that suit a slightly different style..TFC did not do either of these things with Seba, and it creates a real concern that the rumours we are seeing - like Menendez - are for players that arent really part of a well thought out plan for 2018. I wasn't comparing Seba to Messi; I was comparing the way Barcelona's managment were artfully laying the groundwork for a difficult next negotiation with Messi with the way Toronto did not with Seba.
I have no doubt they said that and even believe it. But they also have said and believe that they can cut TFC's payroll and still win championships. That is possible, of course. But success is not guaranteed in that model by any means, and there is significant risk in trying to rebuild a roster (as we saw last year - all the new additions except Auro failed) - particularly on the fly as is happening now. The next signing will be interesting. Vanney already has said it will not be good enough to replace VV; it clearly wont be good enough to replace Seba. How good will this player be and what position?
I think they figured he would stay. Also we are not privy to what gets said behind closed doors. He may have been warmer to the idea of $5M before Ibra got his new deal. Right after that was when Seba's talk started up again (coincidence?). No doubt it was a surprise but guessing we have no back up is pointless until we see what goes down and then the timeline of it comes out. As for Menedez, I don't see him as having anything to do with Giovinco. That probably started when they couldn't get Janson on another loan for 2019.
Yes it is privately owned so I can't actually speak to what the internal shareholders get each year (although the MLSE owners are publicly traded companies), but the thing I took away was that MLSE didn't just want teams in each league, they want to be the "big' team in their respective leagues. They want to win, because winning drives brand equity which drives up the value of MLSE. It was put to me like this, the Pitts Pirates might win the world series next year, but you'd still rather invest in the Yankees ownership group than the Pirates, because the Yankees are a big brand that wins".
As a Toronto sports fan, I anticipate many years of trying to be at the top rather than just accept the money and give mediocrity (which seemed the business plan previously). So hopefully this turns into new and better players for TFC.
Rumour from even worse Source (galaxyghoul420 on reddit)
"There's some rumours on twitter but nothing concrete.
While we are talking rumours though, I heard from a friend that works at MLSE that they are pursuing Stephan El Shaarawy as their DP signing.
He has a similar career to Giovinco's and also fits the 'star player' look."
I was always under the impression that the long term MLSE goal is to become something like YES since they own all the teams and the two main TV network providers.
They might want to cut payroll but they still aspire to be one of the top spenders in the league. Last season they were the top spender by a long margin. Perhaps they don't have to spend that much more than everyone else to still be winners. But wanting to spend money doesn't necessarily mean you will win. So we will see what the new braintrust can come up with. I don't fear a lack of spend, just a lack of competency (but that is yet to be determined).
Man of glass meets long-haul commercial flights and turf fields.
Great player though. When on the field.
and he is pricey...20-22 mil transfer fee.and 110k a week euro i guess.
I think what he is saying is true. It makes perfect sense from a branding perspective (think of LA Galaxy due to Beckham and their band recognition). MLSE may be going to a "cheaper model", but I think that means inline with the spending of an Atlanta United. TBH, it all isn't that bad if that's the route they are going.
But to go back to the share price / dividends, I work for a private company and they also give out shares to employees as part of their compensation package. They then also provide dividends on these shares each year to employees. So that said, it is possible that MLSE have an internal share price (which is pegged to a formula that is calculated off of their financial statements) and they could pay dividends to whomever their shareholders are.
maybe a loan..since he has been on loan before.and we have done biz with Roma before.
Looks like El Shaarawy was pretty injury free for the past 3 years though.
It's sad that whenever you want to sign a guy you have to consider charter planes and fucking turf in the decision making
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Toronto is nearing an agreement to land Marc Gasol, league sources tell ESPN.
I would agree, if he was a TAM player he would be perfect. However, I imagine he would cost us a pretty big transfer fee and his salary would be pretty high. To top it off, he's been injury prone a lot of his career causing some concern (he's gotten better over the last couple of seasons but still, it is a concern).
I do not see the benefit of TFC spending a large transfer fee and salary to lure him over.
Guaranteed it's to make as big a splash as possible at that CN Tower, opening day of MLS window, new jersey announcement day.
By then the Matthews hype will have faded and the uproar over Gasol/J.V will also be in the rear view. All eyes on TFC.
Also if they do look at this board, seeing pages upon pages of hysteria over no news will make them very,very happy.
Last edited by Ultra & Proud; 02-07-2019 at 05:10 PM.
El Shaarawy crossed my mind earlier. He has actually had over 30 appearances each of the last two seasons. His major injury problems are behind him. Unfortunately it stunted his development, he'd be a regular national team player if he'd been fit after breaking out in 2013.
He's leading Roma in goals, the time to buy him was two years ago, not now.
Are people genuinely delusional or what? A $1.5m TAM deal, you're having a laugh. He's a regular for one of the biggest teams in Italy and has been great the last couple of seasons. Nor has he had a serious injury in almost 4 years, I'm not sure how that is injury prone. His stats are almost identical to Giovinco's, if not slightly better. He'd instantly be our best player and one of the best in the league. On a TAM deal, jaysus fucking christ.