\u201cIn the\u00a0Premier League, they pay a lot. You see\u00a0players bought for\u00a0huge sums\u00a0without even having one strong season. A young player scores\u00a0ten goals\u00a0in six months and suddenly a club spends\u00a060 or 70 million,\u201d he told The Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cBefore,\u00a0you had to achieve something first. Now, you never know if the price\u00a0they pay truly reflects the quality\u00a0they are getting.\u201d<\/p>\n Manchester United\u2019s deal for Rasmus Hojlund<\/a> fits the bill for Lewandowski\u2019s comments, arguably Benjamin Sesko<\/a> too, while Newcastle\u2019s expensive move for Nico Woltemade and Liverpool\u2019s Hugo Ekitike deals show that it is an issue not just limited to the Red Devils.<\/p>\n The expense goes beyond strikers, and is a symptom of the Premier League\u2019s status as the richest league in the world, where money is thrown around, and not always particularly efficiently.<\/p>\n Clubs in other European leagues cannot compete with the Premier League financially, and are forced to be more creative.<\/p>\n La Liga has taken a step back from 15 years ago, when Real Madrid would outspend English clubs, buying Cristiano Ronaldo<\/a> from Manchester United for \u00a380 million, still a club record sale for the Red Devils<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Spanish league has stricter financial rules that attempt to limit the previous dominance of Real Madrid and Barcelona at the expense of all the other teams in the division.<\/p>\n And in contrast to the extravagant Premier League spending, La Liga clubs are forced to shop around for bargains.<\/p>\n La Liga president Javier Tebas believes that Real Betis\u2019 move for Antony<\/a> is a great example of Spanish clubs making prudent deals.<\/p>\n Tebas spoke at Spain\u2019s Business Sport Forum, quoted via El Desmarque<\/a>: \u201cWe have a significant deficit in Spanish football, and that\u2019s hospitality seating in stadiums.<\/p>\n \u201cLook at the number of seats in the Premier League, 11.18%, and the Bundesliga, 6.2%. That\u2019s around 600 million euros less in revenue than the Premier League. We\u2019re working with the clubs on that.\u201d<\/p>\n This is why he believes clever dealing and market opportunities are vital for the clubs.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to keep an eye on the Premier League teams that are going to La Liga. Antony is an example.<\/p>\n \u201cHe joined Manchester United for 100 million and now he\u2019s signed for Real Betis for 20 million.\u201d<\/p>\n Tebas backs Lewandowski<\/p>\n Tebas referred back to Robert Lewandowski\u2019s comments about the high-risk deals being made by English clubs.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is what\u2019s happening in the Premier League, and Lewandowski said it recently. Now, they\u2019re paying millions for young players who have scored six goals in a season and then fail to show their worth.\u201d<\/p>\n Erik ten Hag pursued the deal for Antony during his first summer at Manchester United, where he became the club\u2019s second most expensive signing of all time<\/a> behind Paul Pogba.<\/p>\n Antony had a reasonable first season but really struggled in his second year at the club, and he scored only 12 goals in 96 appearances.<\/p>\n![\"Antony](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/GettyImages-2214111731-1024x683.jpg\")
Photo by Image Photo Agency\/Getty ImagesLa Liga president proud of Antony deal<\/p>\n