THE RESEARCH
The most organised clubs work as much as 12 months
ahead of time, sometimes even longer. Clubs will scout players
relentlessly, both in person and by using computer programmes, such as
Scout7,
which allow them to watch any game in the world at any time and
which store statistical data on every professional player. Once they
have drawn up a list of targets, some of the biggest Premier League
clubs employ consultants to undertake due diligence on the players in
question.
These consultants talk to former team-mates, family members and
friends to establish what kind of character the player is. Does he
drink? Does he smoke? What is his relationship status? Does he have any
skeletons in the cupboard?
In one case, a Premier League club decided not to
pursue a transfer when they were told a player, who had just captained
his club side in a convincing defeat by their bitter rivals, had been
spotted out drinking and joking with friends a few hours after the game.
It was decided, for good or for ill, that this player lacked heart and
commitment and that the fortunes of his team simply did not mean enough
to him.
The club passed and moved on to a different target.
Each report on a player will come back with three results: green, amber
and red. The final decision, however, is always taken by the club. And
even if the report comes back red, a manager may feel talent makes it
worth the risk.
THE DEAL
Football Association
Premier League rule K5
states that 'a player under contract shall not directly or
indirectly make any approach to another club without having obtained the
prior written consent of the existing club to who he is contracted.'
The reality of the 21st century transfer deal is that no club bids for a
player until they have made contact with their agent to gauge the
player's interest in the move.
You might say that is tapping up, but
clubs often use agents as intermediaries or go-betweens to distance
themselves from direct contact with the player - it is one of football's
many open secrets. No club wants to go to the trouble of agreeing a fee
with a rival, only to find the player has no intention of joining them -
it could lead to public embarrassment and criticism.
Once a club has established a target's interest in
joining them, they can approach his club knowing that a deal is
realistic. Recently, a Premier League club actually flew a player and
his agent over to England before the clubs had agreed a fee. A source
close to the deal said "it is the way of the modern transfer deal. Often
the last thing that is agreed is the fee between the clubs."
THE HITCH
A transfer deal can be fraught and fragile, it often
doesn't take much to make the whole thing collapse. The deal for Willian
was the prime example. Over the course of a weekend, Liverpool grew
increasingly optimistic that they had landed him from Anzhi Makhachkala.
But his agent, Kia Joorabchian, wanted to secure the best possible deal
for his client, both financially and in terms of his career.
It was an example of why it is hard to be certain of
anything in the transfer window and just how quickly things change. On
one deadline day, a leading international striker had been sold from one
Premier League club to another in a multi-million pound deal.
What neither club had bargained on was the player
falling asleep at the airport and missing his flight and therefore the
medical. With the deadline fast approaching, the deal was scrambled over
the line with the help of the trusty fax machine and a friendly pilot.
It happens.
THE LEAK
The simple answer is often because one of the parties
wants it to. Everyone has an agenda in a transfer window - clubs,
players, agents. Perhaps a player wants to tell the world he wants to
leave a club but doesn't want to go as far as releasing a statement in
case he ends up having to stay? Perhaps a club wants it to be known they
have rejected an offer for their star player to start an auction?
Perhaps an agent wants his player to be rewarded with a new contract?
Even managers are not immune from using the media. The
journalist's job is to weigh up all the information that comes their way
and assess what can be trusted and what might be leaking out to drive
an agenda, rather than being based in fact. Some managers, agents,
players and even football clubs do not always tell the truth, however.
In one instance during this transfer window, an agent
made contact to say a foreign club had approached a Premier League
defender. The English club confirmed, off the record, that the story was
true. The next day their manager denied an approach had been made.
In another situation, a club confirmed a story, again
off the record, that ultimately ended up being incorrect. It can be a
viper pit of mistruths.
THE PLAYER
Wayne Rooney said nothing, but he didn't need to as sources close to the player indicated he was
"angry and confused"
about his status at Manchester United and wanted to be allowed to join Chelsea.
Gareth Bale and his advisors have been altogether more careful.
There is no doubt that they were frustrated by the protracted nature of
his potential world record move to Real Madrid, but they kept their
counsel throughout.
Bale did, however, miss training,
although sources at the club disagree on whether he was ever expected to report with his future in doubt.
It isn't easy for clubs to ride out these sagas, but
this summer's transfer window has shown, if nothing else, that players
don't always get their way.
Suarez agitated and went public with his frustration
but Liverpool owner John W Henry stood firm and refused to accept that
he had to sell to a rival club, Arsenal, simply because his star player
wanted to leave. Likewise, Manchester United did the same with Rooney.
Both are strong examples of clubs wrestling some power back from their
players, but the biggest deal of the summer did see Bale granted his
wish to join Real Madrid.
All clubs have three categories of players in their
squad - those who are not for sale under any circumstances, those who
would be sold for the right price and those they are actively seeking to
sell. Often players who are the subject of bids are taken out of
training by the selling squad. Often injury will be blamed but in many
occasions the club wants to protect their value and prevent a
last-minute injury damaging a deal.
THE AGENT
Football agents have a bad name and are often portrayed
as greedy, cut-throat operators who cause trouble and are simply out to
make money. The truth is that there is a broad spectrum of agents in
the game, but in a general sense they are there to either look after the
interests of a player, or to act for a buying or selling club to broker
a deal.
The most thorough agents will look after a
player's commercial interests, their financial planning and their
public image. Agents normally take around 5% of a player's salary and
sponsorship deals. Clubs deal with agents in very different ways. Some
Premier League clubs now pull out of deals over agents' fees and
commission.
One club signed a player who broke their transfer
record this summer but simply refused to pander to the agent. When the
player checked in at his hotel ahead of the medical, no room was booked
for the agent. No flight had been booked. Their deal was with the
player. But agents should not be seen as the bad guys, they are advisors
and, like referees, you don't hear much from the very best ones.
