Most of the sources are saying we're paying a premium to wrap up the Lallana deal before the WC, but I have no idea why we're in such a hurry. I can't see a good performance doing any more than justifying the fee we paid at best, and that would be off a stellar performance.
If we wait it out, especially to the point where Southampton are obligated to sell him after all the deals they've done, we'll get a much better deal. Plus with our large contingent on his international squad, he'll likely be more interested in making the transfer happen, helping us negotiate a much better fee.
The deals we should be wrapping up are players are the ones whose fees could increase a ton with a good performance. That's chiefly Shaqiri, and possibly Alexis. Granted, I can't see us signing all three of these players, but the logic still holds. Shaqiri especially could have his value skyrocket with a good performance.
You could argue that a strong performance could also make Moreno a target for every major club out there, which makes sense why he's a priority target. But I can't see Lallana ballooning into a 35M or 40M player who every club would love, even with a fantastic WC performance. And by the sounds of things, we're the only club who's seriously interested in him, which makes it even more bizarre that we're willing to pay whatever price Southampton want, especially before a major tournament that will at best justify the price tag.
