One thing for true is that making a transfer is not simple. It’s not like one club takes the money and one club receives the player, it’s whole progress!
Besides, we created a topic about the summer transfer window on TrophyRoom’s forum here. Let’s discuss there.
Scouting
First of all, before the club starts their progress to buy a player, their scout team will evaluate the talent of footballers by watching them play for months. Many big teams have scout networks all over the world in order not to miss any player. Therefore, many European clubs still find youngsters in North America, Africa and Asia.
Monchi, Sevilla’s sporting director, is one of the most successful in scouting
If the scout team finds a player that is suitable for the team, they will report to the head coach. The head coach then watches the footballer play directly and decides whether the player fits for the squad or not.
Negotiation
Negotiation in football includes two main steps and one extra step:
- Negotiating with the selling club
- Negotiating with the player
- Negotiating with the agent
As FIFA rules, the buying club mustn’t speak to the player without permission from the selling club. However, in practice, many buying clubs have contacted the player before they contacted the selling clubs.
-
Negotiating with the selling club
This is the most important part. If the player’s contract with the selling club has expired, the buying club can negotiate directly with the player without the selling club’s attendance. If the player’s contract with the selling club is still available, there are two ways to sign a player:
-
- The buying club will negotiate with the selling club to pursue the selling club to end the player’s contract.
- The buying club will give money to the player and the player will use that money to end the contract with the selling club. However, this way is very hard to do as the money for breaking the contract is very high.
Here’s how much money to break Lionel Messi’s contract with Barcelona
-
Negotiating with the player
This is where the player’s agent will take part. The players usually don’t negotiate with the buying club and leave it for their agents. The agents will show their requests about wages, playing conditions,… that are beneficial for the player. If the buying club doesn’t agree about the agents’ requests, the player can be scooped by other clubs.
John Obi Mikel nearly become a Manchester United player before Chelsea take part in the transfer
-
Signing contract
Firstly, the selling club will check the player’s contracts’ conditions on the FIFA transfer management network (ITMS). The selling club then uploads a document about the transfer to ITMS, the buying club also uploads the document to IMTS later. If two documents are unified, the transfer is confirmed.
The transfer of David De Gea to Real Madrid is an example of what happens if two documents aren’t unified
The contract is then signed by the selling club, the buying club and the player; the copies will be sent to the federation where the transfer happens, the player, the buying club and the league’s committee.
Medical examination & work permit
These things are my favourite last steps in a transfer. The player usually gets over this step; however, there’s still some special case: Chelsea used Vitesse as their backyard for players that haven’t got a work permit in England yet, Demba Ba couldn’t go to Stoke City for not getting over the medical check=up,…
Portugal’s policy allows players from North America to get a work permit easily, and with the similarity in culture, Portuguese teams have become a “gold mine” in providing North American players to European clubs
Author: Kuyet @ TrophyRoom
Images sources:
Marca: https://www.marca.com/futbol/sevilla/2019/03/15/5c8b84f0268e3e601a8b45a8.html
World Today News: https://www.world-today-news.com/how-much-does-messi-pay-for-a-minute-spent-at-barcelona/
These Football Times: https://thesefootballtimes.co/2020/05/12/an-ode-to-john-obi-mikel-chelsea-and-nigerias-underrated-selfless-hero/
90min: https://www.90min.com/posts/man-utd-news-regret-david-de-gea-contract
TechNadu: https://www.technadu.com/watch-liga-nos-online-live-stream-primeira-division/104668/
🏆 TrophyRoom – The Free Fantasy Football Game
LIKE US: https://www.facebook.com/trophyroom.io/
Download the game for free:
