We are undoubtedly guilty as charged, but my impression over recent years is that often we have paid over the odds for youngsters we want, cut a good deal with the club concerned even if they weren’t happy to lose their player. Recent examples are Josh Bowler QPR, Bassala Sambou Coventry, Lewis Gibson Newcastle. I’m not sure how you make legal approaches as opposed to illegal ones but the cheapest way is to not pay and let it go to a Trubunal where they pay peanuts. It really disfavours small clubs, e.g. Chelsea got the brilliant Ethan Ampadu from Exeter about 18 months ago and paid comparatively little , much to Exeter’s disgust.
Some of what we’ve done is out there on the internet. We got a young Brazilian Pedro Neves in a couple of years ago from Charlton , and his dad talked about what an opportunity it was and he was moving up the whole family . I’m not sure if he is one of the six cited, but we obviously offered him and his family inducements of some sort , illegal or not.
Some of what we’ve done is out there on the internet. We got a young Brazilian Pedro Neves in a couple of years ago from Charlton , and his dad talked about what an opportunity it was and he was moving up the whole family . I’m not sure if he is one of the six cited, but we obviously offered him and his family inducements of some sort , illegal or not.
