Post Brexit transfer market

[Stranded]

From 1st Jan, it's going to be harder for English clubs to buy talent from abroad.

Players from the EU will need a work permit based on a points system and clubs can only buy 3 u21 non-British players per window, 6 in any season and none under the age of 18.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/20 ... egulations

[Franchise FC]

From 1st Jan, it's going to be harder for English clubs to buy talent from abroad.

Players from the EU will need a work permit based on a points system and clubs can only buy 3 u21 non-British players per window, 6 in any season and none under the age of 18.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/20 ... egulations

But it’s ok because Ian Holloway says we can create our own football laws once we leave the EU

[WoodleyRoyal]

So you would hope this should play nicely into the hands of clubs with decent academy setups. The price of an average academy graduate theoretically is going to increase. Could be good news for us.

[Sanguine]

So you would hope this should play nicely into the hands of clubs with decent academy setups. The price of an average academy graduate theoretically is going to increase. Could be good news for us.

I mean, yeah, broadly for the English game, or for opportunities for young English players, this is good, isn't it?

[Stranded]

So you would hope this should play nicely into the hands of clubs with decent academy setups. The price of an average academy graduate theoretically is going to increase. Could be good news for us.

I mean, yeah, broadly for the English game, or for opportunities for young English players, this is good, isn't it?

Short term - possibly not, will depend how hard it makes to attract top talent. In practice it may not be too different as a top player at a big club will likely meet work permit guidelines quickly. It may make it harder for those outside the top clubs to attract potentially great players i.e. would Leicester be able to get Kante over given he wasn't an established international at the time of purchase.

For the national team and young British talent this could well be a massive plus as players who may currently pushed out by a more established import is more likely to get minutes as a result. Only other negative I can think of is the top clubs being more forceful in trying to get young talent in from smaller clubs earlier - so if they can't sign a 17 year old from the Barca academy, they may look to bring in highly rated 17 year olds from English academies whereas today, they may be more inclined to only go for them once they have decent 1st team minutes under their belt.

[Winston Biscuit]

If anyone is interested in the impact of Brexit on football then listen to the Guardian football podcast just out today. The basic message is the bigger more successful club you are the more you benefit as the previous players are still available but now you can sign players from outside the EU even easier. Once you are out of the PL you are going to find problems trying to recruit in the way you have in the past and need to change.

Points assigned are based on the quality of the league they are coming from, the club they are coming from, league position, whether that club competes in continental competition and club appearances.

You need 15 points on the new immigration model to get approved for a work permit. 10 points for under 21 players who are over 18

10-15 points and you can take it to an exemption panel and argue your case with the suggestion being that one of the biggest factors you can add in is 'we are one of the top clubs and us wanting them means there is a demand for them' which will then get you over the 15 point line.

If you have played 30% of minutes available for a national team ranked in the top 10 in the last 24 months then you get 15 points

Example:
Being at Real Madrid gets you 12 points as they are in the top 4 leagues and play in a continental competition. If you have as a minimum been a named substitute for them once in a CL game then you get another 5 points and are over the line.

Where it will impact is once you are outside the PL as the players you are trying to sign are likely to not be at a big club earning those points. An example used was signing players from French 2nd division, which is a common one here for FL clubs, is now going to be very difficult.

Example:
Teemu Puuki would not qualify to move here now. Brentford's Bryan Mbuemo would also struggle.
Solskjaer would not have qualified to move here to manage Man Utd from Molde

China is an oddly highly rated league so a manager from a country that doesn't qualify could go to China for a short while, earn some nice money, then get his move here

If a foreign manager doesn't attend work for 10 days in a row the club must report it to the Home Office

Positive for big PL teams is it makes signing players from South America easier, especially for under 21's

Players from Ireland won't need work permits (Common Travel Area) so expect to see Irish clubs suddenly having money to bring in youngsters who a year or 2 later move to English football. This also makes it more likely that PL clubs will try and own Irish clubs (lke Chelsea and Man Utd do in Belgium)

The take away message for me was:
A win for top PL clubs as there are only new opportunities to sign players, very few new restrictions come in for them. now much easier for them to bring in youngsters into their academies from all around the world. A negative is they now have less reason to go for British players.
Lower league needs to adjust itself for more home grown players in the squads and academies. Potential bigger gap between top clubs and the rest.
Expect more club owners to try to also own other clubs in leagues (like some do in Belgium now) where they will get the points needed and loans between these clubs may become the norm

Didn't fully understand it but they said it would increase the chance of young English players moving abroad. Their european journalists said some clubs outside the UK see it as an exciting opportunity to scoop up British talent at a time when our young players are thought quite highly of

[Sanguine]

Interesting thought that the transfer market might flex such that managers or players who want to play in England might do a 'shift' in a particular league like China in order to facilitate the move.

I forget how residency works, but pesumably on the Solskjaer thing, he'd have qualified on the basis of his residence in the country from 1996 to around 2010 when he left for Molde (if he formalised it). Or does he lose residency if he hasn't become a citizen?

[Winston Biscuit]

I forget how residency works, but pesumably on the Solskjaer thing, he'd have qualified on the basis of his residence in the country from 1996 to around 2010 when he left for Molde (if he formalised it). Or does he lose residency if he hasn't become a citizen?

Also not sure on the residency thing, but in the explanation I heard it said in football the timescales are all based on the last 24 months so him being away from the UK for that time and then managing in country that is not top tier would have meant he didn't qualify for a work visa here anymore

[Sutekh]

Out of interest was the points thing set by the home office or was it effectively set by the FA, PL and FL?

[Winston Biscuit]

Out of interest was the points thing set by the home office or was it effectively set by the FA, PL and FL?

The FA, PL & EFL worked with the Home Office to come up with plans. It is referred to as the Governing Body Endorsement (GBE) which you will probably hear referenced more and more over time

[Greatwesternline]

Given footballers earn loads of money, i find it all a bit odd that the Government wants to prevent these migrants coming. They dont exactly fit the NHS scrounging narrative. Footballers pay loads of tax, spend loads of money, and use private healthcare!

[Westwood52]

Go back to the old days;with jumpers for goal posts.Brown ,hobnail boots,brylcream,leather laced footballs and trainers wearing roll top jumpers running on with buckets of ice cold water.Players with names like Hardcastle,Wrigglesworth and Spoffoth.A decent Scottish football team.