In the winter 2021 market, Crystal Palace initially took Jean-Philippe Mateta on an 18-month loan deal from FSV Mainz 05 and the Eagles made his stay permanent on Monday.
According to Bild, the Premier League side paid a €3.5m loan fee, plus an additional €11m to secure the 24-year-old’s services on a permanent deal.
The Frenchman, who has made seven league appearances [three league starts] this term, is said to have a market value of only €5m, and the buying option was set at €14.5m.
Bild ask ‘did Palace miscalculate?’ in buying the frontman for €11m in January, or have they not understood the deal that was put in already put in place
According to the loan agreement, the English club had the obligation to buy, if Mateta had played 50 percent ‘full games’. The report stresses substitute appearances, with a few minutes on the pitch, don’t count as a ‘full game’.
Claims from England indicated Palace had the obligation to buy Mateta, if he had made 14 appearances. Bild explain ‘at least 14’ games was included, only if the attacker had to spend a lengthy spell on the sidelines due to an injury.
They use this example to explain it further. ‘If Mateta had been injured in 25 games and had played all the other 13, that would be 100% of the “possible games” but not “at least 14” – in this case there is no obligation to buy.’
To sum it up, the outlet suggests that based on the number of starts Mateta has made for the English club this season, and considering the possible future scenarios, Palace wouldn’t have been forced to exercise the buying option for the attacker.
Bild asks whether it was a ‘very expensive calculation error’, where Palace ‘miscalculated’ and paid more to get the deal done for Mateta.
Mainz won’t be too worried to find out. Their bosses are happy and are rubbing hands to ‘collect all that money’ from the English club.
