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Old 08-11-2015, 07:55 AM   #4
Nilpaurion Felagund
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Pipe ArdaCup.com Stats Report presents the worst and the best contracts of 2013.

Before the Arda Cup 2015 preseason madness of transfers and friendlies begins, ArdaCup.com writer Adam 'not the economist' Smith looks back at the worst and the best signings of Arda Cup 2013.

(The contents of this article have not been reviewed or endorsed by ArdaCup.com. All opinions expressed by Adam Smith are solely his own and do not reflect the opinions of ArdaCup.com or its staff, parent company, partners, or sponsors. His sources are not known to ArdaCup.com and he has no special access to information beyond the access and privileges that go along with being an Arda Cup accredited member of the media.

Don't worry, there's a reason we place this disclaimer only in his articles.)

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If there's one lesson you need to learn about the nature of contracts after the 2013 edition of the Arda Cup, it's that Curufin is a max-salary player.

Oh, and that context is everything. So two things, actually.

With that out of the way, I need to apologise to some of our readers. There has been a lot of chaos behind the scenes here at the headquarters of ArdaCup.com as well as our parent company, Tar-Eldar Television Network. Because of [redacted —ArdaCup.com editor], our office address has actually changed, and a clerical error meant that none of the letters sent to our old address were forwarded to me. William's letter from the last article was actually sent immediately after Inter's painful loss to Gondolin. So sorry to all the orcs, trolls, and goblins—I've read none of the hate mail and death threats you've sent after reading my 2013 Worst Contracts column.

Anyway, just to make sure that I'm doing my job this time, here are average salary figures from the 2013 Arda Cup:
Average salary of an Arda Cup player: $7.5 million
Average salary of an Arda Cup player in a round of sixteen team: $8.2 million
Average salary of an Arda Cup player in a quarterfinalist: $9.1 million
Average salary of an Arda Cup player in a semifinalist: $9.1 million
Average salary of an Arda Cup player in a finalist: $8.7 million
Salaries across the board have decreased by $300 000 per player, but 2013's quarterfinalists earned $400 000 more than in 2012. Most surprising is that the average salary of a finalist is lower than that of a semifinalist. Actually, it's not so surprising once you read the rest of my article (hint: who won the Cup in 2013?)

Since I'm not an economist, I won't go into any further discussion of that—let's leave the problem of maintaining competitiveness vs profit generation to others. Instead, I shall continue with the five best contracts of 2013:

5. Grishnákh (Barad-dûr): $5 million
The Black Tower rarely had a problem with attack—pair Sauron up with a decent finisher or two and that's a steady supply of goals. Their problems were more on the other end of the pitch, a problem they addressed in 2013 with the addition of the Blue Wizards. But one cannot underrate Grishnákh's star turn as a catalyst of their defensive improvement. His 78.95% save rate over four games is good for eighth best in the whole tournament. The problem is if he can maintain this form—remember that, in 2012, Beorn was the rising star of goalkeepers; in 2013, he had the eighth worst save rate.
4. Marach (AC Beleriand): $9 million
Now talk about a championship-level goalkeeper. Many would argue that Marach had an easier time than many goalkeepers, with Fingolfin commanding a back four that featured the strong centre back pairing of Imlach and Rochallor in front of him. But he did more than mind the posts and catch stray shots—AC Beleriand's high pressing game depended on his command of a third of the pitch. Remember that he almost conceded a goal to Dwarves United's Gimli because he was trying to clear a ball near the halfway line. It takes talent to play that insane style and commit very few mistakes, but Marach just does. A shotstopper of that skillset and with a save rate of 80.65% is a bargain at $9 million.
3. Eöl (AC Beleriand): $15 million
Another gem from AC Beleriand. Eöl scored four and provided four goals in seven games. Only Túrin, Fëanor, and Curufin have eight combined goals and assists. That's good company.
2. PhantomWolf (Tol-in-Gaurhoth): $10 million
TiG's players could have screwed up this best contracts list a bit, what with some of their best performers under contract for $10 million or less, but they seem to be operating under the 'whole is greater than the sum of parts' philosophy—see what happened to NogWolf after he left for Eriador. So we'll acknowledge their underpaid players by putting on the list the one player who could have been on any team. PhantomWolf has contacts with the powers of the game, from Gandalf to Galadriel to even Manwë himself, but year after year he turns up for the Wolves. He was the best midfielder in the 2013 tournament and the best TiG attacker as well, scoring four and creating three goals to lead the Werewolves to Cup victory.
1. Curufin (FC Valinor): $14 million
If you're among the people in Arda who don't think Curufin's is the best contract in Arda, I have a message for you: Please don't embarrass yourself any further. He's proven for two straight years that he's worth $20+ million to any team. He has matched (even once exceeded) the production of two-star max-contract forwards Túrin and Fëanor. He's worth at least $6 million more than what FC Val is paying him—maybe more. Twenty-four million for a perennial Golden Boot contender, a sure six goals every tournament? Sure. Where do I sign?
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Last edited by Nilpaurion Felagund; 08-14-2015 at 08:20 PM. Reason: Marach, not Imlach. Also, no Arda Cup last year. ;_;
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