Weston McKennie’s move to Hertha Berlin is reportedly on hold for the time being.
Schalke and Hertha Berlin were in talks over the U.S. Men’s National Team midfielder, but McKennie will remain at Schalke for now, Bild reported Friday. The clubs haven’t been able to agree on a transfer fee, which looks to be climbing higher than what Hertha expected to pay, according to the report.
McKennie has been on the wishlist of several European clubs this summer with teams from England and France also being linked for him. Liverpool, Leicester City, AS Monaco, and Newcastle United have also been mentioned with McKennie, but Hertha Berlin seemed to be the clear favorite to add him this summer. Hertha Berlin was linked for McKennie back in July after the midfielder reportedly wanted a move away.
The 21-year-old is a rising star in the Bundesliga after breaking into the Schalke first team in 2018. McKennie made 32 combined appearances for David Wagner’s side this season, scoring three goals and adding one assist. He is currently in preseason camp with Schalke, alongside fellow American midfielder Nick Taitague.
His current contract with the club runs until June 2024, but with Schalke looking to re-bolster its squad, McKennie could be on the way out. McKennie has also continued to be a key piece for the USMNT, making 19 appearances to date with six goals to his name.
Schalke opens the 2020 Bundesliga season against Bayern Munich on Sept. 17th.
Schalke is in a dire financial situation. They need to raise funds while at the same time reducing their wage bill. I can only assume that Weston is one of the more highly compensated players.
Euro clubs don’t release salary lists but according to a couple articles I found he’s not very high up they’re wage list (one of lowest paid in fact). Schalke isn’t going to save much cutting his salary so they can wait for a good offer.
whether we can confirm what they make is a completely separate issue from why they would take action. you try to make people look bad regardless of the facts. as this gentleman said, the facts are
“ However, the financial situation at the club means they may have to rethink their strategy and sell him if a good bid comes in this summer.
Schalke have been clear that in their current situation, no player is not for sale.
The club are especially keen to offload players with high salaries and will look to sell players returning from loan spells, with the exception of striker Mark Uth.”
similarly, nitpicking me about the transfer deadline date being later this year also does not undermine my core argument.
Not trying to make Kojo look bad at all, it’s a reasonable assumption that he would be highly paid since he was one of their best players on the field. Just clarifying that saving his wages would be a minor savings so they can wait for an acceptable to them offer, even until January if necessary although I think it will be this fall.
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This is silly season it’s hard to know if amounts are accurate, agents and teams leak numbers for various reasons. 25 million euros is equivalent to just under 30 million dollars so it might just be reporters not getting the currency correct.
schalke is playing games. SBI linked to the original “wantaway” article recently when discussing the current transfer talks. back then they wanted $25m. story was the offer was up to $30m. either HB’s offer was over-stated or schalke is getting greedy. or we have a half month to the deadline and they’ve decided to play chicken.
He’s got 4 more yrs on the contract. Schalke are in no rush to sell and can wait until someone meets the asking price. You would do the same.
Schalke’s finances are in terrible shape. I love the club, but they are really going to struggle this season.
Half a month to the deadline, huh? More IV misinformation…. why would anybody be surprised?
It took all of 30 seconds to discover the German and English transfer windows ends Oct 5.
so you can’t correct my comment on Schalke changing the amount by an added $5m they want so you act like i am lying about the unusual transfer window. which really doesn’t change the “tactics,” just the time frame by which they would runout. lame argument. my point is it feels like they changed their position and the demanded amount and that still holds even if the deadline changed.
“ A departure can not be ruled out,” Schalke sporting executive Jochen Schneider said on Wednesday amidst reports the club are looking to reduce costs due to financial difficulties. “I can’t say it 100% right now. It’s a fact that Weston prolonged his contract through to 2024 last year.”
German outlet Sport1 said McKennie, who showcased his versatility by playing as an attacking midfielder and a holding midfielder as well as a center back at times this season, could command a transfer free in the €20-€25 million range…”
“Hertha will reportedly have to pay at least €25 million for McKennie’s signature, according to the report.”
if you wanted to be truthful instead of attack me personally, i have seen some reports saying hertha offering $20m. this is one of the two scenarios i set out. either hertha lowballed or schalke was getting greedy.
Nobody is accusingly you of “lying” dude. You are killing your own credibility needlessly by refusing to do the basic research required to make your point. Other commenters shouldn’t have to pick through your mistakes prior to addressing your arguments. It’s a lazy and selfish pattern. And one that could easily be corrected.
whether it is 2 weeks or more weeks to the deadline does not undermine my argument, it flyspecks my presentation. i don’t see anyone on here whose presentations are immaculate. y’all up above were arguing he wasn’t being transfer listed to save a buck. i was suggesting they might be waiting to the end but only got the deadline date wrong. my theory still holds but over a longer period. y’all were arguing he wasn’t being listed to save a buck, that whole theory is shot when you turn out wrong. i didn’t realize this window was unusually long. that’s a detail. you got the whole works wrong. pretending my sin is worse is laughable. go ahead and try to gaslight people, whatever.