Au-Yong Out, Jaan In
Au-Yong Siu-Yue, who blossomed from an underweight, gangly lad to probably Grilled's all-time best midfielder, no mean feat in a club which has always prided itself on its men in the centre, finally spread his wings and left the nest. Au-Yong, approaching his prime at 25, will transfer to Polish Division Six club FC Pomioty Szatana for a meager sum of S$6 762 000 with immediate effect.
The abnormally low fee was a lucid reflection of the permanently depressed transfer market, as well as a consequence of Au-Yong's stratospheric wage demands. He will receive almost S$330 000 a week abroad, before a pending raise in a fortnight. "He was a gem, but like all gems he got too expensive." casual fan Ho Kong Huong, 34, a product manager, commented.
Au-Yong earned some criticism for not agreeing to a wage reduction so that he could chase the S-League title next season with his hometown club, but his buddy
Shen Kek-Tjiang urged for more understanding. "We don't reproach other professionals for jumping ship, so why start with footballers? Au's got every right to explore what he's entitled to."
Under whatever circumstances, his 117 official appearances for Grilled, 22 goals and two Cups are achievements to be proud of; Less so are his record two sendings-off and 18 yellow cards, as well as one of the most injury-ridden careers of any Grilled player.
Au-Yong will likely figure prominently in Pomioty's critical qualification match on Saturday, when they face Peugeot Bielak. The confident playmaker has promised his new club to start off on a winning note. "We'll be in Division Five next season." he proudly proclaimed.
With their newfound millions, Grilled set out to raid the striker market for an underpriced replacement for Wai-Kin. Bargain quality was everywhere, since the plunging economy had dragged down all positions. It remained to filter out the best possible buy for the club.
With levels at approximately 70% of just a few seasons ago, Grilled were spoilt for choice in the S$6 million to S$8 million range. There was talk of Belgain Division Two Satanic Spacelords' impressive Kent Nisser, with the Swede having scored 23 goals in the last campaign.
The fated frontman however turned out to be Estonian
Jaan Kadak, 24, the first from his nation to don the hallowed green of Grilled. Jaan's selection was due to his fluent passing and capacity to drop deep if required, a trait that served his previous employers, Dutch Division Five side FC Aardappel, well.
Jaan had progressed greatly in his four-odd seasons with Aardappel, after arriving from Latvian side Buldozeri for S$7 million. Steadily banging the goals in, he had just captured his league's top scorer crown, with his final goal for Aardappel coming in the last game against nieuwlandse kluten.
With all this in mind, the S$6.328 million paid out for Jaan could be considered on the low side. The move suited Jaan's ambition nicely, and the Dutch speaker will get some help settling in from fellow attacker
Hidde van Liere. "It has always been my dream to obtain some major trophies," Jaan droned. "And the time is now."
Some fans have voiced concerns about local players seemingly getting the shaft at Grilled, but
Luis Alcántara shushed them. "It is true that two Singaporeans are on the way out, and two foreigners coming in, but we are a pure meritocracy. Our business is football, not politics. That said, given two equal players, we will of course pick the hometown boy - and not just because we don't have to pay an extra 20% of their salary."
