Telling a player to leave mid-season because he refuses to sign a new contract

[Daysleeper]

What does everyone think of this? It seems most people from what I have read agree with benching a player for the season if he doesn’t wish to renew.

Dembele wants insane wages that Barca shouldn’t offer him. But they’re also fighting tooth and nail to finish top 4 in La Liga. Dembele is still good enough when he plays to help them achieve that. I feel like Barca can’t afford to not play him considering how badly they want to finish with a CL spot.

What do you guys think? Is it wrong to bench Dembele or Barca are doing the right thing here?

https://amp.marca.com/en/football/barcelona/2022/01/19/61e80d0d46163fb7b78b45f3.html

 

[We need an rvn]

A player has every right to not sign a new contract. If a club get themselves into a situation where the player has 6 months to go on his contract and decides he wants to leave on a free, well then it's the club at fault I guess. To let him rot seems like a club not treating its assets fairly, which won't go unnoticed by other players.

And don't forget we're in the exact same situation with Pogba. A high profile signing that hasn't justified the money. Add Lingard to that as well, but he's an academy player so a bit different (but we could have sold him over the summer for £20m+ if we wanted to)

 

[Zen]

Nah, this is more or less the future. This is simply the only card Barca have left to play to try and get any value really since I doubt he's really wanted in Xavi's plans.

Pogba and Mbappe are doing the same, but to a less dramatic point of view. It's none of these players faults that whatever team paid XX money for them, and for the most part, they are honouring their contracts.

 

[Withnail]

Well it depends on performances. If he's the best performing, fittest player in his position on any given day then I want him in the team as it should mean the best outcome at the end of the season.

You're still paying the guy. Why cut off your nose to spite your face?

 

[NoLogo]

Nah, this is more or less the future. This is simply the only card Barca have left to play to try and get any value really since I doubt he's really wanted in Xavi's plans.

Pogba and Mbappe are doing the same, but to a less dramatic point of view. It's none of these players faults that whatever team paid XX money for them, and for the most part, they are honouring their contracts.

Really looks like a lot of players are doing it these days. I'm not sure if they are after a big signing on bonus if they come on a free, or if it's due to transfer sums being so high that they can't really leave any other way? I mean, Kane pretty much will only get out of his contract if he runs it down, no team is going to pay the €200M+ it would take to buy him out of that contract.

 

[Zen]

Really looks like a lot of players are doing it these days. I'm not sure if they are after a big signing on bonus if they come on a free, or if it's due to transfer sums being so high that they can't really leave any other way? I mean, Kane pretty much will only get out of his contract if he runs it down, no team is going to pay the €200M+ it would take to buy him out of that contract.

Combination of both I'd guess. The absurd money has probably brought the system to breaking point...

 

[DWelbz19]

Eh. A club is entitled to bench the player as long as they’re paying him the wage he signed a contract for. If they want to intentionally bench a player at the cost of their own success, so be it.

The player is entitled to sit on his arse all he wants. It’s a bit annoying, but that’s the fault of the club in the first place.

 

[Apokalips]

To be honest, the whole Dembele asking for crazy wages sounds like Barca propaganda to sound like victims (as they've been trying to do all year).

Barca have constantly been trying to use the media to pressure players to reduce wages and have been spinning stories as if some players have been happy to basically pay out of their own pocket for the privilege to play for the mighty Barca.

 

[Oly Francis]

A player has every right to not sign a new contract. If a club get themselves into a situation where the player has 6 months to go on his contract and decides he wants to leave on a free, well then it's the club at fault I guess. To let him rot seems like a club not treating its assets fairly, which won't go unnoticed by other players.

It's not necessarily the club's fault. PSG has been trying to extend Mbappé for 2 years now but he just refused. But yeah, it's the player's right to do so, it rebalances a little the relationship between clubs and players, they're not slaves and employement law does apply.

 

[Daysleeper]

To be honest, the whole Dembele asking for crazy wages sounds like Barca propaganda to sound like victims (as they've been trying to do all year).

Barca have constantly been trying to use the media to pressure players to reduce wages and have been spinning stories as if some players have been happy to basically pay out of their own pocket for the privilege to play for the mighty Barca.

I think there is absolute truth to the 40M a year Dembele is asking. His camp absolutely would have said something to refute. Far too many good sources are reporting it.

 

[giorno]

Dumb, desperate and classless. So long as the player is professional, treat him like everyone else

 

[IrishRedDevil]

Good. Show the greedy diva’s the door.

 

[crossy1686]

Move them on, it's not fair on the lads who aren't holding the club to ransom over a wage bump or guaranteed playing time. You start caving to that sort of behaviour and well, you end up in a situation just like Manchester United...

 

[OmarUnited4ever]

I think there is absolute truth to the 40M a year Dembele is asking. His camp absolutely would have said something to refute. Far too many good sources are reporting it.

Dembele's camp not refuting the rumors doesn't make the rumors an absolute truth, you know that

 

[MadMike]

If a club get themselves into a situation where the player has 6 months to go on his contract and decides he wants to leave on a free, well then it's the club at fault I guess

If a player doesn't renew his contract or receive/accept transfer offers, it is the club's fault? How did you figure that?

 

[Rozay]

If a player remains professional it is silly and self-sabotage to bench him. As for the fans, views will vary based on the conduct of the player and whether or not they like him. Many of our fans have openly declared that Pogba should never play for us again long before his final 6 months, for example due to questions over long term commitment. From a fan perspective, views need to change from an outdated romantic view that everyone wants to be a lifer at a club. But I agree with the fan requirement that a player needs to at least give their best.

 

[OleGunnar20]

I think there is absolute truth to the 40M a year Dembele is asking. His camp absolutely would have said something to refute. Far too many good sources are reporting it.

What's that, upwards of 700k a week?! Madness.

 

[Reapersoul20]

Why shouldn't the players hold out for a big payday signing on fee by letting their contracts expire? I have often wondered this. It used to just be for safety as the market was more volatile but if you're a top top player now it seems like you stand to make a lot more from running the contract down and effectively collecting your transfer fee as your signing on fee.

 

[Skills]

I'd prefer it if we got rid of transfers, and just let players leave a club with a 1 transfer window notice.

 

[Nick7]

I can understand managers refusing to count on a player with one foot out the door to be fair. Worth playing Dembele, or a young player that’s committed to the club? I’d go for the other player in a heartbeat.

 

[Redlyn]

A club can decide not to give a player a new deal and a player can decide not to renew. Both should be professional about it and each dont owe anything to the other party.

 

[duffer]

Strange way to go about selling an asset "we really don't want this anymore" doesn't leave you in the strongest of negotiating positions.

 

[duffer]

A club can decide not to give a player a new deal and a player can decide not to renew. Both should be professional about it and each dont owe anything to the other party.

Yep. Chelsea have had almost our entire defence's contract running out this season (Azpi, Rudiger, Silva and Christensen) but they've all been trusted and treated respectfully.

 

[Pickle85]

A club can decide not to give a player a new deal and a player can decide not to renew. Both should be professional about it and each dont owe anything to the other party.

Exactly this

 

[Robertd0803]

Yep. Chelsea have had almost our entire defence's contract running out this season (Azpi, Rudiger, Silva and Christensen) but they've all been trusted and treated respectfully.

Imagine if Chelsea decided to treat them like Barca are treating Dembele

Theres a middle ground but Barcelona are somewhat unsurprisingly going about it the wrong way.

 

[carvajal]

They shouldn't. If he doesn't want to play on your team it´s his loss. And if you want to put him aside, at least don't make it public.
What does seem reasonable to me is that the coach says "Dembele, I want to do a project for two or three years and knowing that you won´t be here, I prefer to give minutes to other players"

 

[Cheimoon]

Yep. Chelsea have had almost our entire defence's contract running out this season (Azpi, Rudiger, Silva and Christensen) but they've all been trusted and treated respectfully.

And obviously that makes the most sense if you have a good player on your hands.

I think what you see here with Barcelona is the result of the insane transfer fees that have been paid in the last few years. These have coincided with a development in which players realize that they have more power if they get short-term contracts that they let run out. That's obviously not great for a club that paid a huge fee for said player - which is also why I wouldn't be surprised if either those huge fees will disappear, or if this player power will be countered with different contracts. (Maybe longer duration or something around automatic one-year extension if there is no transfer agreement with only a few months left.)

 

[Ali Dia]

Dembele is asking for huge money after delivering nothing. The Chelsea defenders won the CL last year. I think Chelsea are being smart and sending out a solid message for the future. Let the players test the waters, no panic. Most of them will find what they have at Chelsea is competitive and will stay around for not totally crazy money. They are playing for a good manager in a good city and the team is doing well enough. Unless someone like Bayern or PSG comes in for Rudiger or in our case PSG or Real for Pogba with massive money the players are probably better off staying put from a sporting and financial perspective. PL is where the money and hype is after all.

 

[roonster09]

Club and player can discuss and reach some conclusion, like Xavi saying he wants players with long term commitment to be in 11 or something like that.

If a player is very injury prone then it makes sense to plan without the player. But if we are talking about key players like Rudiger or Lewandowski at Dortmund then it makes sense to play them.

Also it's player's career and they have short careers. They should do what's best for them, at least professionally.

 

[The Boy]

The club have the right to bench the player, the player has the right to not sign a new contract if he thinks he can do better elsewhere as others have said that's fine everyone can stay professional, it's a job at the end of the day.

What is disgusting here is Barcelona saying he must leave in this window,, they are acting appallingly.

 

[Sky1981]

Nobody put a gun in your head to make you sign works both ways.

Both are unprofessional (not renewing to get a bumper sign on fee, and benching them to make a point) but you play by the sword, you die with one

 

[Bebestation]

I've always felt that a "Player's Loyalty" is a very underrated aspect of Football.

Wastes of money, loss of seasons due to sudden changes of mind, lack of players giving their all on the pitch and some not at all etc.

 

[simonhch]

I don’t think clubs can fork out huge sums in transfers and have players leave on frees. In Dembele’s case they made a huge investment in him, thinking they’d develop him and have his services for years and years to come. He’s spent a massive portion of his time there injured, being paid his huge guarantee. To ask for gigantic wages on his renewal, well, it honestly stinks. It’s his right but he’s not a player I’d want around the club, and I wouldn’t want our club to touch him with a ten foot pole. I think that just in the same way a player technically has the right to do this, the club have the right to bench him, isolate, or force him out. To foster and entrench a mentality amongst players that they are more than contracted employees. They are people who will go above and beyond and believe in the institution.

The result of this will be that clubs forking out massive transfer fees will probably insist on something like a 5 year contract plus an option of an additional 2-3 years which can be exercised at the club’s discretion. That will be the price to protect their investment. Pay 200m for a player and effectively tie him down for most of his career. It’s inevitable. Too many players are running down their contracts now and leaving for free.

It will probably see the death of massive transfer fees, which is great, but only if it doesn’t translate into wages doubling for players. That money needs to go to grass roots football, cheaper tickets, stadium redevelopment etc. That said I’d prefer it went to the players before the owners.

 

[Redlyn]

I don’t think clubs can fork out huge sums in transfers and have players leave on frees. In Dembele’s case they made a huge investment in him, thinking they’d develop him and have his services for years and years to come. He’s spent a massive portion of his time there injured, being paid his huge guarantee. To ask for gigantic wages on his renewal, well, it honestly stinks. It’s his right but he’s not a player I’d want around the club, and I wouldn’t want our club to touch him with a ten foot pole. I think that just in the same way a player technically has the right to do this, the club have the right to bench him, isolate, or force him out. To foster and entrench a mentality amongst players that they are more than contracted employees. They are people who will go above and beyond and believe in the institution.

The result of this will be that clubs forking out massive transfer fees will probably insist on something like a 5 year contract plus an option of an additional 2-3 years which can be exercised at the club’s discretion. That will be the price to protect their investment. Pay 200m for a player and effectively tie him down for most of his career. It’s inevitable. Too many players are running down their contracts now and leaving for free.

It will probably see the death of massive transfer fees, which is great, but only if it doesn’t translate into wages doubling for players. That money needs to go to grass roots football, cheaper tickets, stadium redevelopment etc. That said I’d prefer it went to the players before the owners.

I think isolating a player over his contract is equivalent to a player under putting in low effort and being a disruption to force a move. Unprofessional behaviour.

The player is doing exactly what they agreed to do from the start, sign with you for x number of years. Just don't spend massive transfer fees on a short contract because there are no guarantees beyond that.

 

[We need an rvn]

It's not necessarily the club's fault. PSG has been trying to extend Mbappé for 2 years now but he just refused. But yeah, it's the player's right to do so, it rebalances a little the relationship between clubs and players, they're not slaves and employement law does apply.

True in this case, they seem to have tried their best to get him to sign and probably on huge money too. But at the same time PSG have shots themselves in the foot that they didn’t accept the £170m offer or whatever was last summer as this has been fairly obvious (from the outside at least) that he will go to Madrid and wasn’t going to sign

If a player doesn't renew his contract or receive/accept transfer offers, it is the club's fault? How did you figure that?

In the sense that from the inside (via talks worth the player and agent) it would have been obvious for a while that this is how it would have played out.

Take the above mbappe for example. The club could have taken £170m last summer and now he walkes away for free (most likely).

But my point was more that they shouldn’t be throwing someone so publicly under the bus just because they’re in a huff he’s not signing a new contract nor anyone willing to pay what they are asking for

 

[kouroux]

Context matters a lot tbh, Barca feel like with the money spent to buy him and the years they've paid him for basically being a medical patient that they've earned some loyalty from his side. I can understand where they're coming from, specially considering their financial problems tbh. The money Dembele, I doubt he'd find that at a serious european club

 

[LoneStar]

Well it depends on performances. If he's the best performing, fittest player in his position on any given day then I want him in the team as it should mean the best outcome at the end of the season.

You're still paying the guy. Why cut off your nose to spite your face?

It should come to this. The club should not act out of some misplaced emotion, but rather on logic. If you have a star player, or someone who can make a difference AND the player is giving it his all on the pitch, then play him. You’d still have to pay him either way.

On the other hand, if they are not integral, then make it very clear to them before the season that they would get no gametime and potentially won’t train with the squad in their final season. So force them to make a decision before the season starts.

 

[We need an rvn]

Context matters a lot tbh, Barca feel like with the money spent to buy him and the years they've paid him for basically being a medical patient that they've earned some loyalty from his side. I can understand where they're coming from, specially considering their financial problems tbh. The money Dembele, I doubt he'd find that at a serious european club

True, there could / should definitely an element of loyalty because of the injuries and actually how little he has played for them, but you could flip that around and say I got injured playing for you, I signed a 5 year contract and am feel to leave after that as I want a new challenge no matter what happens over those 5 years.

But there's a lot we don't know about this situation in my opinion too. The board mess and how it's played out over the last few years with all the leaks etc, players taking pay cuts because the club is in such financial mess (and yes, a lot are on crazy contracts), nor do we know what Barca are actually offering him. Their offer might be degrading in his eyes, despite his injuries etc.

 

[macheda14]

A player has every right to not sign a new contract. If a club get themselves into a situation where the player has 6 months to go on his contract and decides he wants to leave on a free, well then it's the club at fault I guess. To let him rot seems like a club not treating its assets fairly, which won't go unnoticed by other players.

And don't forget we're in the exact same situation with Pogba. A high profile signing that hasn't justified the money. Add Lingard to that as well, but he's an academy player so a bit different (but we could have sold him over the summer for £20m+ if we wanted to)

No we couldn’t. There were multiple reports we asked for 30, then lowered it to 20 and even West Ham weren’t willing to match that.

 

[AndySmith1990]

If the player is professional, trains hard, and wants to play and try their best, then there's no reason not to make use of them until they leave. However if they sulk, have a bad attitude, and just can't be arsed, then bin them off and make them clean the toilets for the remainder of the contract.