In other scenarios, opportunities may arise due to injuries or a change of priorities (a sudden departure being a common reason.) Those cases might necessitate a tweak to a club’s strategy, leaving aside certain elements of the preferred modus operandi to move swiftly. Even then, however, the player would almost invariably have appeared on the scouting team’s radar at some point. Though they may not have undergone all the standard scouting steps, an extensive dossier on the player would, in most cases, already be in place.
Q. What is the hardest thing when it comes to transfer negotiations?
A. Negotiating transfer fees with the clubs (unless there’s a release clause) and wages with the player pose the most challenges. In principle, one should be willing to walk away from any negotiation, but if your No. 1 target has signalled the intention of joining your club — and an agreement with the other club might be doable too — closing the deal can be become costly, with demands increasing almost by the hour.
Language barriers can come in to play but the player usually ensures they are represented by someone who can make themselves understood internationally. Things like working out tax issues can be tricky, but in most cases it’s chiefly the player’s concern more than the club’s and most high-level agents would have prior experience or a deep knowledge of the matters at hand.
Q. What are some of the key reasons that a transfer falls through?
A. Today extremely few transfers would ever be jeopardised due to slow or incompetent handling of paperwork. All international transfers are uploaded to FIFA’s exceptionally simple and practical TMS and the registration documents are effortlessly uploaded to the national FAs digitally. Moreover, during the year’s two transfer periods, club staff (and FAs) would be on stand-by to handle any incoming paperwork or be ready for most eventualities.
David de Gea may be pleased to know that the days of faulty fax machines are numbered! When a transfer breaks down it is predominantly down to money — the player or the club, or in few cases the agent’s fee, failing to agree on the numbers — or a sudden change of heart from either of the three parties. On rare occasions there could also be something in the player’s medical that a club isn’t happy with.
