With sufficient scouting complete, the buying club needs to figure out whether the transfer is doable. They're not supposed to speak to the player or his agent without permission, so they'll usually engage a trusted agent to act as an intermediary. This person will find out whether the player would consider the move and what sort of deal (in terms of contract length and wages) it would take. They will also approach the selling club to get a sense of valuation.



These are crucial steps. Clubs don't want to be embarrassed by bidding for a player who then turns them down. (Alexis Sanchez refused to join Liverpool in 2014.) Often the selling club will also employ an agent-middleman to discreetly tout their players around, all in the name of maintaining discretion and "plausible deniability." Only then is there an official approach. Why? You could unsettle your own players if you go public with bids for guys who play a similar position. Bigger clubs could get involved. The more high-profile a player, the more that can go wrong.

"Do you like the steak, Dave?" asked Millingford City rep Rebecca Taylor. "It's excellent, isn't it? If you like your food, you'll love it at City. We have excellent chefs, personal dieticians and I know that Hans will want to fill you out a bit if you join. You could be a big part of our future, you know."

Dave chewed happily and tried to speak. "Itsh like eating meat flavoured icsh cream!" he burbled.

"All we've got to do is arrange a fee with Crumpleton and then we can open contract talks," she continued.

"Isn't the fee agreed already?" asked Dave's father, Alan. "I mean, you've got permission to talk to us, right?"