We need to get Dembele. If we overpay with 20-30m. so be it. We are not in a position where we can act as if we have any leverage. We don't, thanks to the idiots that run Barca (Barto + Segura + Robert). Yea, that's right, Paulinho was the deal breaker for me. These guys are now certified idiots and incompetent.
If they hire me as Barca's sporting director, or any other 10-15 people here, we can do better or at the very least as good as these guys. I can pay the release clause of Paulinho as a sporting director, that's no big deal, we could have sent our chief accountant to make this transfer. There wasn't any other skill involved. The skill and knowledge comes from signing the likes of Asensio for 5m, or the likes of Kovacic for 30m. Not getting 29 year old Paulinho and paying exactly as much as the chinese expect to receive, meaning you've basically been schooled by fucking Guanghzou Evergrande.
Bottom line, these idiots can't find magic bargains, like Asensio for example. They can only overpay for top rated players. That's the best deal they can make, which is better than overpaying for old players like Di Maria.
These times, overpaying for Dembele is a fool proof tactic. It's the best thing by far that some skill-less idiots can make. At least you're getting a good player, even if the price is inflated. Considering that the guy is barely 20, that's a 7 year + investment, if the idiots don't set a release clause like 180m. or some shit like that.
Pay 130m. to sign him, set him up with a 500m. release clause and let us fans have something to look forward to. Is that too much to ask? If he's not signed, apparently, it is.
The only thing that's worse than idiots acting like idiots, is idiots acting as if they're some sort of geniuses. That's when you're really fucked. Paulinho is the kind of transfer that only idiots acting like the Einstein of football can make. There's a 5% chance that Paulinho would do great. Meaning he will help us greatly for 3+ years. But the idiots think those 5% are actually more like 80%. Or the idiots think playing well for 1 out of 4 years of contract is an amazing cost/performance ratio.