“You’ll be down in the B”: ELDT managers’ wind-ups and replies

If there’s anything more Argentine than dulce de leche, it’s a football wind-up. "You’ll be down in the B" is a classic from the terraces, WhatsApp groups and, now, ELDT negotiations.

In the game, managers message the presidents of clubs run by the computer to buy or sell players. When the deal falls through, sometimes the wind-up comes out. We’ve pulled together some of those real chats, without the managers’ names, along with the replies they got.

"I’ll get promoted and you’ll regret it"

One manager couldn’t sell a player to the president of Sportivo Pergamino and signed off with a promise: "I’ll get promoted and you’ll regret it". The reply was absolutely calm:

"Haha, go on then, I hope you do get promoted, mate. When you reach Primera and the lad is on 13, we’ll talk again. Good luck in the B, I’m not bothered."

The manager doubled down: "By then, you’ll be relegated". And the president took his final sip of mate:

"Ooh, you’re a spicy one. Go on then, come and find me when you’ve gone up and I’ll show you the table."

The ball is still bouncing. If that manager does go up, the revenge will be on the pitch.

"The one who lives off one-liners doesn’t pick up points"

Another manager, after a stalled negotiation with Sportivo Constitución, wrote in all caps: "IF YOU KEEP GOING LIKE THIS YOU’LL GET RELEGATED".

"Maybe, but the one who lives off one-liners doesn’t pick up points. If you want to talk properly, make a concrete offer."

Few replies sum up football quite so neatly: points are won on the pitch, not in the chat.

Insults don’t raise the price

Someone else went too far. A president at Atlético Parque Patricios received an insult with a wind-up attached: that he was going to end up in the B. The reply was blunt:

"Look, insults don’t move a negotiation. If you want to talk football, we’ll talk; if not, we’ll leave it here."

No counter-attack, no fury. Just a closed door and an invitation to come back with a proper offer.

"I didn’t lose him, mate"

The wind-up can go the other way too. A club that didn’t have a manager at the time missed out on an auction another club won, and one manager couldn’t resist: "How did you lose him? Haha".

"I didn’t lose him, mate: I simply wasn’t interested in overpaying for an inflated auction. You enjoy the celebrations; tomorrow I’ll still be putting together a better squad than you lot."

Pure boardroom pride.

Why we love this

These chats show that in ELDT, rivals have character. Clubs without a manager don’t sit around doing nothing: they buy, sell, get annoyed, laugh and, above all, compete. The wind-up is part of the folklore, and the game embraces it.

Still, one piece of advice: if you want a president to sell you his best player, the wind-up won’t help. A serious offer will.

And you? Have you promised someone you’d get promoted? Create your club at eldt.com.ar and prove it in the table.