“If this were a movie, but it’s not, Independiente would be Scorched Earth”, was Fabián Doman’s way of opening the press conference in which the club’s economic and financial situation was told. Debts and inhibitions are the order of the day in Avellaneda’s team and in the managerial trident of which it is composed Fabian Doman, Nestor Grindetti and Juan Marconi He provided details and numbers of the economic situation at the time of taking up his duties.
The board’s mission is to financially restore a club that appears to be sinking. “In Independiente, at least, there was negligence”, analyzed Néstor Grindetti, first vice president. After that comment, he pulled out a folder and began counting in detail how much money the institution owes.
The word that best defines the debts of the Avellaneda group is shocking. Estimated total debt reaches 6,658,000,000 million pesos. Of that number, 4,753,000,000 million pesos are accounted for in the balance sheet, and 1,905,000,000 million pesos are biased judgments in the balance sheet. From him, the club’s monthly deficit reaches 100 million pesos a month.
Payables for the sale of players currently in force by the company amount to 885,854 thousand euros and 11,042,196 million dollars. Furthermore, Grindetti said that between January and June of this year, transfers were made that reached 5,035,257 million dollars. “A commission that knew it had the option to leave contractual obligations for another $5 million,” he said. And he revealed that they have to 69,000,000 million pesos for individual prizes for players.
In recent days the pre-contract was signed with Leandro Stillitano be the new manager of the King of Cups. “Stillitano’s signing is part of a sporting project. He has always been one of the names we had in mind, beyond talks with other coaches. He works very well, knows the club and is up to date,” revealed Juan Marconi. However, his contract would be the fourth for a technical director that must be addressed, given that there are debts with him Miguel Ángel Brindisi, Julio César Falcioni -for his passage in 2021- and with Eduardo Domínguez.
The amount owed to suppliers is also large. In total, the number reaches 280,325,963 million pesos and is distributed as follows: 9,088,963 at the Scala hotel -8,000.00 for 6 concentrations and 1,088,963 for the stay of a nutritionist on the technical staff between 21 January and 21 May -, 230,000,000 for checks issued up to June 2023, 15,037,000 to a Chinese supermarket in Villa Dominico, 5,200,000 to the Flecha Bus company, 1,000,000 to Sándwiches Boyacá and 20,000,000 to various suppliers.
The club maintains a debt of 275 million pesos with the AFA and 91,810,719 million pesos for tax and union debts, for withholding taxes.
“The numbers are overwhelming, which doesn’t mean it’s not manageable. We have a fairly complete picture of the situation of the company,” concluded Grindetti.
The economic situation is extremely worrying, but it is very clear that economic problems must be resolved quickly so that they do not interfere with the sport. The idea is to be able to renegotiate the terms of payment of all debts, launch a membership campaign, rely on marketing and convince sponsors to trust the club again.
The path to follow will have to correspond perfectly to a debt reduction process, but at the same time create a football project that satisfies the ideals and idiosyncrasies of the Independiente fan. An already open market and the arrival of a new technical staff are looming on the horizon. In turn, there is also the possibility of inhibitions which may appear day after day and which are a chip in the wheel of any attempt to achieve a stable climate.
Source: Clarin
