As the summer football transfer window deadline fast approaches, speculation in the press surrounding players such as Wayne Rooney has reached its peak. A recent article by current BBC pundit and former player Robbie Savage have given an interesting perspective on how footballers can actually attempt to engineer a move away from a club if that is what they have their heart set on.
Speaking to the BBC, Savage listed a number of tactics used by footballers in order to get their own way and move to a new club. The methods may be deemed controversial by some. The former Leicester player, once part of the youth setup at Manchester United, details methods which certainly do not set a positive example to youngsters in the game.
The first such method mentioned by Savage is to undermine the manager. In this respect he is referring to the fact that there is always the possibility to go and speak directly to the chairman of the club if the manager is not taking kindly to the comments being made by the player. Savage refers to one particular incident where he was at a club and despite knowing that he wasn’t allowed to, he telephoned the chairman himself from home.
Savage also mentions the tactic of being a general bad influence and fighting with teammates. This method is linked to the above undermining of the manager in that if a player is seen to be a bad influence, the manager is likely to want that player out of the door in order to prevent further disruption to his playing squad. Savage also refers to one incident where he was unhappy at a club and had a scuffle with one of his teammates.
A further slightly controversial method listed by Savage is to not put the effort in. Respectfully he does admit that he is not proud of his actions in utilising this particular tactic but states that it did work in leading to the manager realising that he wasn’t going to get the best out of him at that club and in potentially deciding that it was time for him to move on.
Savage finally refers to using the media and getting other clubs to know that you wish to move on. Football players often have contacts in the media and news stories linking players with clubs often make popular reading. Footballers also have friends at other clubs meaning that word can quickly get round in relation to the availability of a player.
Here at Farleys we represent a number of football players on a sports agency basis and we also have a team of expert solicitors specialising in sports contract disputes. If you have been affected by any of the above issues or are looking at moving from your current club and would like some advice on the legal implications of doing so then do not hesitate to contact us today in order to speak to one of our sports law advisors.
By Daniel Draper, Sports Lawyer