LA Galaxy and Cristian Pavon: Price without might be more than price to pay

A report claims that the LA Galaxy will have to pay $20 million to sign Cristian Pavon permanently. That is a hefty fee, but it might be less than the price they pay should they lose him.

Quite how the COVID-19 global pandemic will impact transfers across the football world remains to be seen. Many clubs have been dealt with massive financial blows by not being able to play matches for extended periods. It would be surprising to see them splash out in a lavish manner as they have done in recent years.

Despite this, though, prices have risen exponentially over the past 20 years, and especially in the last five. In Europe, it is not irregular to see players move for nine-figure fees. For Major League Soccer, teams have increasingly upped their investments, too. This offseason, several previously tentative, low-spending clubs opened their wallets and dove headfirst into the treacherous transfer waters.

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The reason for this is simple: the teams need the players, and with supply always lagging behind demand, prices rise. It comes down to a very simple balance that many have fallen on the same side of. It is most cost-efficient to spend inordinate amounts on transfer fees and wages than it is to not have the player. Even in the current climate, while transfer fees will drop significantly, the number of players on the move might still be the same. Teams are desperate to add talent.

This is the context in which the Los Angeles Galaxy must make their decision regarding the future of winger, Cristian Pavon. The Argentine arrived on loan from Boca Juniors midway through last season. He immediately hit the ground running, providing three goals and four assists in 971 minutes.

Amid Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s departure and Javier Hernandez’s arrival grabbing most of the offseason headlines surrounding the LA Galaxy, perhaps their most significant move was to extend Pavon’s loan for another season. Pavon played both games before the 2020 campaign was suspended, scoring the Galaxy’s only goal. It was an immediate illustration of his importance to the team.

If and when the season concludes, the Galaxy will have a decision to make regarding Pavon. His loan deal expires in the winter and he will return to Boca. However, this weekend, Spanish outlet TYCSports.com via mlssoccer.com reports that Pavon has no interest in returning to Boca. The LA Galaxy, then, could swoop in and sign him on a permanent deal, but the fee is thought to be around $20 million.

That sounds like a hefty price. In reality, that is because it is. It would be an MLS transfer record and would thrust the Galaxy into a stratosphere of prices above what almost all other MLS clubs could afford. But even in the current climate, it might be less than the cost of not having Pavon next season and beyond.

This is an Argentine international, who has played at a World Cup, and is still approaching his mid-20s and can be a long-term building block for the team, and has set MLS alight since arriving last year. Those types of players are difficult to find at the best of times. In the current market, the Galaxy might never even scout a player as proficient as Pavon, nevermind then be in a position to sign such a player.

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$20 million for Pavon sounds expensive. And it is. But it might be a necessary cost that the LA Galaxy have to stump up.

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