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A million pounds for a football player. A figure today that is minimal among the transactions of the big clubs and only referring to the biggest stars when the agenda is salary. But there was a time when this value was considered absurd in European football. On February 9, 1979, the barrier was broken in England with the hiring of Trevor Francis by Nottingham Forest. A bold, historic and iconic company, even 40 years later.
To date, the record in English football is the transfer of David Mills from Middlesbrough to West Bromwich Albion for £ 516,000 in January of the same year. Such a significant rise seemed unlikely in such a short time, but it was made possible by legendary coach Brian Clough's willingness to rely on a 24-year-old striker.
Francis was a breeder from Birmingham City, who established the 39, fine of £ 1 million for breach of contract. At Clough's request, Nottingham agreed to invest the cash prize won by an English title the previous year. The conclusion of the deal left the press and unbelieving fans, and Trevor Francis has definitely turned the player to a million pounds.
– Everyone wanted Clough to be the coach of England. Everyone had enormous respect for him. And since he was willing to pay 1 million pounds for me, I'm sure he had a great responsibility for all interests, "said Francis.
With the correction of the l & # 39; 39, British inflation, the million pounds paid by Francis today would represent a little more than 5 million pounds
In an attempt to reduce the pressure exerted by the millionaire figure, Clough said that Nottingham Forest had paid 999 The contract was, in fact, even stronger, according to Mr Francis, the total cost of the operation, including other costs, was £ 1,150,000. [19659008] Curiously, two other players were traded for the equivalent of over one million books before English, but neither of the two transfers, all paid in Italian lire, were was also popular with investment In 1975, Giuseppe Savoldi exchanged Bologna for N aples for the equivalent of 1.2 million pounds. A year later, striker Paolo Rossi went from Juventus to Vicenza for 1.75 million pounds, for the conversion of the season.
Report of" The Guardian " 1979 on the transfer of Trevor Francis – Fot The Guardian
From "waste of money" to "inestimable value"
After overcoming a bureaucratic confusion with the recording, Francis debuted for Nottingham in March 1979, in front of Ipswich Town. The striker suffered screams from over 27,000 spectators in the opposing stadium of Portman Road.
– For 90 minutes, I heard Ipswich 's fans sing "What a waste of money". The whole game. I was desperate to play well and score.
It was six games in white before throwing the networks on March 31 in the 1-1 draw against Bolton Wanderers. But fasts would be in the distant past, thanks to the star of the attacker.
At that time, the UEFA regulations allowed only one player to have changed team in the middle of the season to participate in a continental tournament when he was in the middle of the season. a possible final.
Nottingham Forest made the decision of the Champions Cup, the equivalent today of the Champions League. Francis was strengthened and, with a straight head, made every penny of his contract, winning a 1-0 victory over Sweden's Malmoe on May 30, 1979 at the Olympic Stadium in Munich. ).
– By the time I entered the field, I felt that I had to go well. It was a good day. I was elected best on the field, I scored the important goal. I will always be remembered for being the first player of a million pounds, but also for playing the first game of a European Championship and having scored the title goal.
of Europe. Francis would score decisive goals in the quarterfinals and semi-finals, but he would not play the match because of an Achilles tendon injury – physical problems would shorten his career at the club.
In the 1990s, Nottingham faced a much less glamorous reality. In 1993, relegation in the newly created Premier League ended 18-year-old coach Brian Clough's management. The team would return to the elite the following season, but would live in a seesaw until she played for the last time in 1998/99 in the first division of English football.
After a few years in the third division in the 2000s, Nottingham remained at an intermediate level in the second division over the last decade. At the last edition of the so-called Championship, the team finished 17th out of 24 competitors.
In the current championship, the club occupies the 12th place with a Brazilian reinforcement. Striker Leo Bonatini (formerly Cruzeiro) made his debut last Saturday and became the first player to defend the Nottingham Forest. It was traded on loan, with option to purchase, the last day of the winter transfer counter.
Last season, Leo scored 12 goals and was a major player in the Wolverhampton title and access. But in this edition of the Premier League, it was only used in seven games and preferred to look for new tunes. According to the Transfermarkt website, which specializes in market values, the Brazilian is valued at 4.49 million pounds, more than 21.5 million R $. With the correction of inflation in England, the million pounds paid by Nottingham Forest for the transfer of Trevor Francis on February 9, 1979 would exceed the estimated value of Bonatini, but would not even reach half of those spent by the club. take the Portuguese spearhead João Carvalho do Benfica in July of last year. 13.50 million pounds ($ 65.16 million) were invested in the 21-year-old currently in reserve. Today, it is the most expensive transfer from the history of Forest.
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