"The budget? Around 15 million euros, I guess." Morse rubbed his hands together, answering Li Shiguang's question somewhat embarrassedly.
15 million euros?
This is truly poverty!
Upon hearing the price, Li Shiguang was taken aback and immediately realized that even if he had agreed to the old man's offer of 50 million euros to buy Torres a few days ago, he would definitely have to take out a loan or pay in installments to afford the transfer fee.
It's not that 15 million euros can't buy a striker.
However, it's important to know that Liverpool's goal is to qualify for next season's Champions League, and the competition for the top four in the Premier League is arguably the fiercest among all European leagues.
Just look at the current standings.
Chelsea, in fourth place, has 41 points.
Fifth is Manchester City, with 40 points.
Liverpool have dropped to sixth place after losing today's match, with 39 points.
Behind Liverpool are Everton and Aston Villa, both with 36 points.
Portsmouth and Blackburn Rovers are ranked eighth and ninth respectively, with 34 and 33 points.
Putting aside the roster's value and the team's current form.
Judging from the points standings, with more than half of the Premier League season remaining, these teams all have a chance to compete for a top-four finish!
Liverpool's current attacking line can only be described as weak.
Since the start of this season, Kuyt and Crouch, who joined Liverpool last season, have seen their form decline rapidly. Voronin, the Ukrainian who joined on a free transfer in the summer and wears the number 10 jersey, has also failed to live up to expectations, scoring only two goals in the first half of the season. As for the two young right-wingers, Lindfield and Ryan Babel, they currently lack the ability to directly threaten the goal in the penalty area.
In this situation, Liverpool actually lacks a striker who can finish attacks in the penalty area.
But it is obvious.
Wanting to buy a striker with this ability during the winter transfer window, the €15 million price tag mentioned by Morse is simply a pipe dream!
After sitting down again, Li Shiguang took a sip of water before looking at Morse and slowly saying, "Alright... I won't say any more. David, I do have a suitable candidate here, and Leeds United has already made an offer to his current club..."
"You made an offer!?" Morse, confused, interrupted Li Shiguang. "What kind of suitable candidate are you if you made an offer!? You're just going to buy it and then resell it to me!?"
“Uh…” Li Shiguang rolled his eyes, not expecting Morse to be in such a hurry. “Let me finish. I’ve already assessed this striker’s abilities, and they’re definitely not a problem! It’s just that the price… his current club is asking for 22 million euros, which I think is a bit expensive. And if you were to buy him alone, you definitely couldn’t afford it. In that case, I’m thinking of pooling our money and buying him together!”
"Are you kidding me?!" Morse shook his head repeatedly upon hearing Li Shiguang's plan. "Do you think this is Serie A? That two clubs can own a player at the same time?! If we really do that, the fines will probably be higher than the transfer fee if the FA finds out!"
Li Shiguang had already thought of what Morse was talking about.
At this moment, he remained calm and composed, a wicked smile playing on his lips: "Hehe, rules are rules, but there are loopholes to exploit... For example... you lend me 11 million euros personally, and after I buy him, I loan him to Liverpool. Your 11 million euros will then be considered the loan fee, right? Anyway, it's your personal loan, so the FA can't trace it back to us, can they?"
"As for how you plan to handle this money internally, I'm sure you can come up with a million ways to solve it without me having to tell you, right?"
Li Shiguang's words were like a revelation to Morse. He had been in English football for almost 20 years, and how come he had never thought of such a method before?!
However, it's not surprising that Morse couldn't have thought of this.
The key is that the owners of Premier League clubs are all billionaires, so who would be willing to lower their status to do something like this?
Only someone like Li Shiguang, who entered the field halfway through his career and has no bottom line when it comes to player trading, could come up with such an incredible method!
Old Deng stared wide-eyed at Li Shiguang, who had a wicked grin on his face, and for a moment he didn't know what to say.
But the battle-hardened Morse quickly realized what was happening.
Li Shiguang was saying that Leeds United would buy the player and then loan him to Liverpool, which would mean that Leeds United would still own the player.
If the striker Li Shiguang mentioned is indeed very capable, then he could certainly solve Liverpool's immediate problem. However, in the long run, it is not a very worthwhile deal.
Anyway, the two of them had already gone this far in their conversation.
Morse didn't mince words. Thinking of this, he immediately expressed his thoughts to Li Shiguang: "Li, your method is indeed feasible... but I feel that Liverpool will ultimately suffer, since the ownership of the player still belongs to Leeds United."
“That’s true.” Li Shiguang nodded matter-of-factly. “But David, you need to understand one thing first. I just think it’s a little expensive, not that I can’t afford it! You’re the one who can’t afford it, okay?”
"That's true..."
"And I also have to remind you of something: if Liverpool doesn't strengthen their squad in the winter transfer window, and they don't even qualify for the Europa League next season, that would be a vicious cycle you can't afford..."
"That makes sense..."
"besides..."
"Can't you fucking let me finish what I'm saying?" Under Li Shiguang's relentless manipulation, Mors finally snapped. "How could I not understand what you're saying?! But from any perspective, Liverpool is losing money on this deal!!!"
Hey?
When did this old man become so hard to fool?
He gave Morse a strange look.
Li Shiguang knew that he probably couldn't swindle the 11 million euros just by talking.
His eyes lit up, and an idea came to him. He decided to give Morse something practical.
"David...haven't you always wanted to buy Fernando?"
Although he didn't understand why Li Shiguang suddenly brought up Torres, Morse was obsessed with Torres, so he quickly complained: "I want to buy him, but you just ask for 80 million euros. Do I look like I can come up with 80 million euros?"
“That works.” Seeing that the old man had taken the bait, Li Shiguang’s wicked smile widened. “After we work together to acquire this player, I can sign a supplementary agreement with Liverpool.”
"What supplementary agreement?"
"Two years from now, Liverpool will have the option to buy Fernando. If he wants to leave, I will not accept any offers from other teams, but will notify you immediately. Even if his value increases, I will still sell him to you at the current price... What do you think of this proposal?"
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