Money Matters

Earlier this week another in an increasingly growing line of young South American talents made the switch to Russia. For clubs in Argentina or Brazil it has long been accepted that due to the differences economically between the riches on offer in Europe (as well as the financial power of European clubs) compared to South America that players will leave early and often.

Maxi Moralez has become the latest player to take on a new challenge in unfamiliar territory and will be well compensated for doing so. However, at what cost to the development of his career? Moralez makes the move fresh off an outstanding Under-20 World Cup for Argentina in which collectively his nation won the tournament, and individually he picked up the Silver ball having scored four goals in the process (including a crucial winner against Mexico in the last eight). It could be argued that he was in fact the player of the tournament above the much heralded Sergio Aguero who came in to the competition with a higher status and who also confirmed his undoubted quality.

Upon arrival back in Argentina, Racing Club assured fans that Moralez would be going nowhere for the time being and that the club would be able to enjoy his talents at least for another year; Moralez made his debut in 2005 and has played just over 50 games. Before you could say ‘Maximiliano’, Moralez was off to FC Moscow on a 5 year deal for a fee of around $7m. It was an offer the club had obviously accepted and a package that Moralez was all too quick to sign. The motivation for such a player at such an age is obvious and understandable. A financial package that will far outweigh what Racing could possibly have offered even if they wanted to. As well as an opportunity for Moralez not only to set himself up financially for a more luxurious lifestyle but also that of his loved ones.

Can a player be blamed for taking such an opportunity? No. Would Moralez’s development have been better served in Argentina for another year or two before a possible move to a more established European side in a country and league that may be more to his familiarity (like La Liga)? The answer to that will never be known, but recent history suggests Moralez may have made the wrong move.

Late last year, I documented the case of another two Argentines who had made the same kind of move – Fernando Cavenaghi and Clemente Rodriguez. Both Cavenaghi and Rodriguez were further ahead in their development as players than Moralez is now and even they both struggled to make an impact in the Russian league. Rodriguez has managed to repair the damage that move did to his career with a stint back at Boca Juniors and now a move to Espanyol. For Cavenaghi the damage has thus far been irreversible and he continues to struggle to reclaim the form and confidence (now in France at Bordeaux) that he once showed at River Plate and made him a realistic proposition for moves to some of Europe’s bigger names like Juventus.

More relevant to Moralez’s case may be the transfer of Osmar Ferreyra back in 2004 at around the same time that Cavenaghi and Rodriguez left River Plate and Boca Juniors respectively for Spartak Moscow. Like Moralez, Ferreyra gained worldwide attention after an impressive Under-20 World Cup in 2003 (playing on the left hand side of a team captained by Cavenaghi). Soon after the tournament and having not even made more than 20 appearances for River Plate, Ferreyra made the first move that came his way to CSKA Moscow.

CSKA has proven to be a great experience for another couple of players from that very same World Youth Cup in the form of Brazilian pair Daniel Carvalho and Dudu. However, Ferreyra did not experience the same success. He was unable to stay in the team and soon found himself frozen out completely to the point that he went from being an expected starter at the 2004 Olympics for Argentina to not even making the squad. He had fallen off the map, like Cavenaghi, and even turned down a chance to return to River Plate to resurrect his career in favour of staying on the bench due to the more lucrative contract he was afforded.

PSV gave Ferreyra the chance to prove himself in Europe and exhibit the talent that had prompted CSKA to purchase him to begin with. Low on confidence and struggling once more to adapt to new surroundings, he found himself back at CSKA. Last year, Ferreyra bit the bullet and returned to Argentina to play for San Lorenzo and has now started to piece his career back together. As part of the San Lorenzo side that recently won the 2007 Clausura he is beginning to rediscover his potential although international recognition is still not on the horizon like it was seemingly going to be post-2003.

Having made the move for the wrong reasons (financial) Ferreyra wasted two years of what is a short career as it is and now must continue to rebuild his reputation. With the way Maxi Moralez performed last month and the undeniable talent that he has it is not set in stone that he will experience similar troubles just because others have. And yet it’s a question that many who have followed Moralez’s career thus far will be wondering.

He won’t be the only Argentine at FC Moscow and that may help him. His new club lie 2nd in the Russian league and are pushing Spartak Moscow for the title where he will team up with another young Argentine in the form of Pablo Barrientos who has bucked the recent trend of Ferreyra, Cavenaghi and Rodriguez in Russia by getting off on the right foot.

Here’s hoping that in a couple of years Maxi Moralez has established himself at his new club and may even have moved on to somewhere greater instead of leaving us all wondering…’Whatever happened to Maxi Moralez?’.

And should Moralez’s adventure in Russia set his career back for one or two years or indefinitely it won’t stop the next young Argentine or Brazilian making the same move because at the end of the day in life, as in football, money matters.