So many free transfer-Feel like i'm cheating

I'm in june 2012, and there are so many free transfers to be had here. I've got Sahko, Asenjo, Sanogo and now Ben Arfa all on free transfers, and all are decent to very good players. Of course players run down their contracts in real life, but it's getting a bit much when this quality of player are allowed to do so.

Why don't their clubs just sell up a yr or 6moths before it runs out? Anyway, i kind of feel like i am exploiting something here, no?

Does seem to happen more often than not on this game. But meh, when quality comes knocking, answer the door and get them before they leave!

I'm in june 2012, and there are so many free transfers to be had here. I've got Sahko, Asenjo, Sanogo and now Ben Arfa all on free transfers, and all are decent to very good players. Of course players run down their contracts in real life, but it's getting a bit much when this quality of player are allowed to do so.

Why don't their clubs just sell up a yr or 6moths before it runs out? Anyway, i kind of feel like i am exploiting something here, no?

have you got the latest patch

I'm in june 2012, and there are so many free transfers to be had here. I've got Sahko, Asenjo, Sanogo and now Ben Arfa all on free transfers, and all are decent to very good players. Of course players run down their contracts in real life, but it's getting a bit much when this quality of player are allowed to do so.

Why don't their clubs just sell up a yr or 6moths before it runs out? Anyway, i kind of feel like i am exploiting something here, no?

is it that unrealistic? Those are all good players, their clubs would not want to lose them and if they had been difficult then its possible their clubs decided to make them fulfil their contacts. It has happened in real life before.

Asenjo doesn't really get a game at Athletico in the game the younger guy is rated much better so thats not so odd. Ben Arfa prob wont want to stay at Newcastle that long so again not completely unbelievable.

I know...

you can more or less find quality rotations/backups for free every year on the Free Agents list.

TBH I don't get how SI haven't managed to solve that hemorrhage of talent... Good players in their 20s should very very rarely end up out of contract, usually they sign a contract with another club and leave on Bosman ruling.

It's fair enough older and "greedy" players can sometimes struggle to find a new club, but the idea of having solid Top Level performers not being offered a new contract or not being contacted by other clubs, or even sitting at home waiting for a call, is plain laughable.

is it that unrealistic? Those are all good players, their clubs would not want to lose them and if they had been difficult then its possible their clubs decided to make them fulfil their contacts. It has happened in real life before.

Asenjo doesn't really get a game at Athletico in the game the younger guy is rated much better so thats not so odd. Ben Arfa prob wont want to stay at Newcastle that long so again not completely unbelievable.

Of course it is unrealistic. Pretty much every club in the world, save for perhaps the most ridiculously managed ones like City, would cash in on their assets if they know they're going to lose them either way. 6/12 months of play from a player who's going to leave anyway is not worth the money lost from not cashing in at the right time. In reality these players get clubs sniffing around all over the place right from when it becomes obvious they might become available. In FM many end up getting released, then spend a couple of months being free agents until somebody actually bothers to sign them up. Needs serious work.

Of course it is unrealistic. Pretty much every club in the world' date=' save for perhaps the most ridiculously managed ones like City, would cash in on their assets if they know they're going to lose them either way. 6/12 months of play from a player who's going to leave anyway is not worth the money lost from not cashing in at the right time. In reality these players get clubs sniffing around all over the place right from when it becomes obvious they might become available. In FM many end up getting released, then spend a couple of months being free agents until somebody actually bothers to sign them up. Needs serious work.[/quote']

nonsense, ive seen many clubs lose their biggest players for free at the end of a season because they are so important to the first team for the current season, Joe Ledley is a perfect example. Clubs may be sniffing around but the players may not be interested in speaking to anyone else before the end of the season, again that happens very often now a days, teams may make approaches but not always something official.

Yes, you've brought one example of a mediocre player letting his contract run out. Now show me dozens of examples of highly rated players being out of contract and then you could maybe dismiss something as 'nonsense'. Go ahead then.

Free transfers do seem a bit unrealistic. First season with Eastbourne boro and i have pretty much replaced the whole team with far better free transfers, mainly from France. Also the average value of my players was about 5-10K, now its about 80-100k so easy money.

Yes' date=' you've brought one example of a mediocre player letting his contract run out. Now show me dozens of examples of highly rated players being out of contract and then you could maybe dismiss something as 'nonsense'. Go ahead then.[/quote']

no one of Cardif's top players left on a free, he was a first choice player, and Roma dont tend to bid for mediocre players. Beckham was allowed to run his contract down and he left on a free, Marquez was allowed to leave Barca on a free last season, Kris Boyd, one of rangers record goal scorers and the highest ever scoring SPL player left on a free.

Theres a list here of some huge names that have moved on free transfers, at the peak of their careers

http://blog.sport.co.uk/Football/845/Top_Ten_Infamous_Bosman_transfers.aspx

and another

http://blog.sport.co.uk/Football/604/Top_Ten_Bosman_transfers_available_in_the_summer.aspx

so it does happen, even to very good players.

no one of Cardif's top players left on a free, he was a first choice player, and Roma dont tend to bid for mediocre players. Beckham was allowed to run his contract down and he left on a free, Marquez was allowed to leave Barca on a free last season, Kris Boyd, one of rangers record goal scorers and the highest ever scoring SPL player left on a free.

Theres a list here of some huge names that have moved on free transfers, at the peak of their careers

http://blog.sport.co.uk/Football/845/Top_Ten_Infamous_Bosman_transfers.aspx

and another

http://blog.sport.co.uk/Football/604/Top_Ten_Bosman_transfers_available_in_the_summer.aspx

so it does happen, even to very good players.

Beckham was sold to Real. He was allowed to finish his contract became a free agent because he had many injuries, was old and there were no offers.

Marquez was not in his prime when he became a free agent. He is not a world class players, though.

Boyd is not a world class players.

So your examples have no weight. In FM it seems that young, great talent gets free agent status far too often.

It's a problem.

Gosh, people will defend anything.

When you can pick up Rio Ferdinand, Steven Gerrard, Arshavin, Ramos, Valdes, Eto'o, Pato etc on a free transfer, there's a problem.

Beckham was sold to Real. He was allowed to finish his contract became a free agent because he had many injuries, was old and there were no offers.

Marquez was not in his prime when he became a free agent. He is not a world class players, though.

Boyd is not a world class players.

So your examples have no weight. In FM it seems that young, great talent gets free agent status far too often.

It's a problem.

no Beckham left Real because they stalled offering him a new contract, they actually wanted him to stay, he never left for any reason to do with injuries, he left in his prime.

Marquez is still a very very good player, would walk into most EPL teams

You never said world class, plus only Sakho from your list is world class, you said top players, Boyd was one of the top SPL players, just as Ledly was one of the top Championship players. Both of those players were very highly rated for the leagues they were playing in.

Davids was world class when he left Ajax for Milan, Cambiaso was still a top player when he left Real for Inter.

How many more examples do you need?

Always has been an 'issue' ever since CM 93/94.

If you are monitoring a player, that often upsets the contract renewal at their current club - i.e. they don't sign a new one because they are interested in what you will offer.

How many more examples do you need?

Plenty, because none of yours are relevant to what happens in FM. You've now resorted to listing 30 something declining players with huge wage demands moving from the very top clubs to MLS or something, and mediocre lower level players like Boyd. None relevant to the issue which is young, worldwide reputation, high potential, high value assets or players labelled 'world class' moving around on a free or spending time as free agents for months with little interest. Besides, any examples you're going to bring up are clearly exceptions to the norm, you don't see many clubs putting together a team on free transfers that's able to dominate a division in reality, do you? Well, that's exactly what you can do in FM11 with the agents system making it even easier to accomplish.

The game has far too many "good" free transfers for the sole reason that the AI is unable to think other than age related when it comes to player potential. Most of the free transfers are players who have gone over 30 when IRL most clubs tend to keep these players on for sentimental or coaching reasons. The AI has a major flaw when it comes to player relationships in that it doesnt formulate any like the human manager does, hence players will always favour a human manager over the AI and that is seen in the bidding and free transfer sign-up areas. Of course you have to be a top team to attract some players but bid against an equal with an AI manager and you will win 99% of the time. Totally unrealistic.

As for Beckham, he left Real Madrid because they had a change in President at the club and Beckham was not favoured by the new President who wanted to sign less media glamour players. If the same President had stayed then its likely he would have stayed although the move to MLS is more family/commercial orientated than it is sportingwise. After all, its no secret that Beckham's wife disliked life in Europe and was always more friendly towards an Anglo speaking nation. Although she still shopped quite frequently in Madrid, she felt it lacked the public-wide image that is enjoyed elsewhere. For anyone who's interested, the Madrid players stay in a sort of co-op village which caters for everything and thus rarely need to go out where they will be spotted. This place has its own shops, cinema, restaurants and 24/7 security.

. For anyone who's interested, the Madrid players stay in a sort of co-op village which caters for everything and thus rarely need to go out where they will be spotted. This place has its own shops, cinema, restaurants and 24/7 security.

Ewww, that sounds horrific

Out of my list, Asenjo and Sahko especially would have been sold on the cheap rather than be let to go for free. Simples.

Anyway i declined the Ben Arfa deal because i don't want to exploit this madness

Theres a list here of some huge names that have moved on free transfers, at the peak of their careers

so it does happen, even to very good players.

The difference is:

in most of your examples the players weren't offered a new contract (due to high wage requests, advancing age, technical reasons) but weren't free agents, not even for a day, because as soon as it was obvious they weren't going to extend the contract, other clubs started to negotiate with them.

Leaving on Bosman =/= being out of contract and out of club.

I thought it was easy to tell the difference

In FM you find TOP PLAYERS on the FREE AGENTS list, that means their old club didn't offer them an adequate contract AND no other team did that either!

This obviously needs working on by SI. No defence necessary really, although i do accept that players run down their contracts.

However, case in point, Birmingham and Larrsson; He won't sign a new deal, so they are selling him. FM needs to reflect this.

Ewww, that sounds horrific

Very 15th Century but apparently they dont see anything wrong with it over in Madrid. Its weird as there is this fence surrounding the entire village with patrol cars that go around to ensure no-one gets in. It reminds me of the film Children of Men.

Doesn't happen half as much as it did before 11.2 patch.

I often let my players go on free rather than trying to make a few bucks selling them. The reason being: I care about my squad's harmony more than about money. My team is rather rich, and money is not an issue. But every time I transfer-list a player, he becomes unhappy, doesn't want to leave, moans, whines, dislikes me and it affects the squad harmony. Right now, the harmony is 95%, and it says "they are willing to die for each other" LOL. For me, it is more important and I intend to keep it that way.

But to be fair, since I am not making too much money on transfers, I also try not to waste club's money, and try to get players on free transfers, too.

Äktsjon Männ, dont even bother trying to get your point across to milnerpoint, he is the biggest fanboy alive. The players you listed are all very good players with a great deal of potential and to get them on a free is ridiculous. The players milner mentioned were all on the wane (Beckham, Marquez) or just average (Joe Ledley) or just average and playing in a joke of a league (Kris Boyd). Add the other names people have mentioned in this thread and yes, their is a problem with free transfers in this game.

In my opinion, the only unrealistic thing is that the clubs dont get money for the players in the transfer window before they expire

Äktsjon Männ, dont even bother trying to get your point across to milnerpoint, he is the biggest fanboy alive. The players you listed are all very good players with a great deal of potential and to get them on a free is ridiculous. The players milner mentioned were all on the wane (Beckham, Marquez) or just average (Joe Ledley) or just average and playing in a joke of a league (Kris Boyd). Add the other names people have mentioned in this thread and yes, their is a problem with free transfers in this game.

maybe on the global scale they are not huge, but for their respective clubs they were massive players, and the clubs lost out on good money because they decided it was worth the risk not selling them in january to benefit their current season, that was my point.

Carry on throwing your "fanyboi" term about all you want, all your doing is proving to me your struggling to accept i am correct

I had a look last night at the free transfers for past five seasons in my game, so far the only "big" player who has been allowed to run his contact down is Suarez, doesnt really seem like a problem at all.

maybe on the global scale they are not huge, but for their respective clubs they were massive players, and the clubs lost out on good money because they decided it was worth the risk not selling them in january to benefit their current season, that was my point.

Carry on throwing your "fanyboi" term about all you want, all your doing is proving to me your struggling to accept i am correct

Struggling to accept your right hahaha. You struggle with anyone having a problem with the game. You are popping up alllll over this site on threads that have problems with the game and defending it with rubbish comments like in this one. Right, first off. David Beckham was at REAL MADRID. He had played his part for them and was struggling for fitness and form. Any other club and that wouldnt matter. Thats why he got moved on. Where did he go after Real?. To a great team in a great league?. Juventus? Inter? nope, LA Galaxy in the MLS. If you cant accept that Beckham was in the twilight of his career when he left Real then I cant help you. Same goes with Marquez. It might be a bit of a big deal for a lower club to lose their star player for free but he was at Barca and had ready made and better replacements waiting in the wings. Plus he was advancing in his years, unlike the many players mentioned in this thread. As for Ledley. He was at a championshiip club and after all the hoopla about where he would go he ended up going to Celtic. Now that tells me that their wasn't many offers from Premier League clubs in the first place so Cardiff obviously thought it was better to let him run out his contract and maybe help them to promotion while at the club instead of getting a minimal fee for him. As for Kris Boyd. Being top scorer in the SPL is on par with me being top scorer in my local sunday league, unless you are Henrik Larsson (who was so above the level of the SPL it was embarrassing). Its a joke of a league and any player coming from their to the Premier League on the back of being SPL top scorer would be lucky to get 10 goals in an entire season. Now, stop defending the game in EVERY thread that has a problem with it because its getting embarrassing and quite frankly, annoying.

Struggling to accept your right hahaha. You struggle with anyone having a problem with the game. You are popping up alllll over this site on threads that have problems with the game and defending it with rubbish comments like in this one. Right, first off. David Beckham was at REAL MADRID. He had played his part for them and was struggling for fitness and form. Any other club and that wouldnt matter. Thats why he got moved on. Where did he go after Real?. To a great team in a great league?. Juventus? Inter? nope, LA Galaxy in the MLS. If you cant accept that Beckham was in the twilight of his career when he left Real then I cant help you. Same goes with Marquez. It might be a bit of a big deal for a lower club to lose their star player for free but he was at Barca and had ready made and better replacements waiting in the wings. Plus he was advancing in his years, unlike the many players mentioned in this thread. As for Ledley. He was at a championshiip club and after all the hoopla about where he would go he ended up going to Celtic. Now that tells me that their wasn't many offers from Premier League clubs in the first place so Cardiff obviously thought it was better to let him run out his contract and maybe help them to promotion while at the club instead of getting a minimal fee for him. As for Kris Boyd. Being top scorer in the SPL is on par with me being top scorer in my local sunday league, unless you are Henrik Larsson (who was so above the level of the SPL it was embarrassing). Its a joke of a league and any player coming from their to the Premier League on the back of being SPL top scorer would be lucky to get 10 goals in an entire season. Now, stop defending the game in EVERY thread that has a problem with it because its getting embarrassing and quite frankly, annoying.

if you dont like my posts, there is an ignore feature built into the forums make use of it

Anyway for the record, Real wanted to keep Beckham they just delayed too long offering him a deal due to him and Capello not getting along great at the start of the season, he actually played his best football that season for Real and was one of their key player when they won the league that year.

Your still missing the point, those were top players at their respective clubs, players they could have easily got money for if they decided to sell them in january which they didnt. it doesnt matter if kris boyd plays in a lesser league he was still one of the top players at a huge club who ran down his contract.

I dont post in every thread, stop getting so carried away.

if you dont like my posts, there is an ignore feature built into the forums make use of it

Anyway for the record, Real wanted to keep Beckham they just delayed too long offering him a deal due to him and Capello not getting along great at the start of the season, he actually played his best football that season for Real and was one of their key player when they won the league that year.

Your still missing the point, those were top players at their respective clubs, players they could have easily got money for if they decided to sell them in january which they didnt. it doesnt matter if kris boyd plays in a lesser league he was still one of the top players at a huge club who ran down his contract.

I dont post in every thread, stop getting so carried away.

Beckham needed Real Madrid, not the other way round. If he was so good still, why did he go to the MLS instead of another big European club?...because he was past it, plain and simple. And while they were good players (Beckham & Marquez) they were far off being TOP players, especially because of the teams they were in respectively. Plus they were advancing in years and had other good players that could fill their position. All points that should tell you why it wasnt a top priority for their clubs to renew their contract and were happy to let them see them out. Now Kris Boyd. What offers do you think he was gonna get after being top scorer in the SPL lol. He went on to Middlesbrough for christs sake so their would hardly have been many PL teams interested in him so I doubt Rangers missed out on some serious money. He was top scorer in a sunday league and he is hardly setting the championship alight. That shows the level of the SPL so I doubt just because he was top scorer in that league that Rangers had many good offers for him anyway.

If he was so good still, why did he go to the MLS instead of another big European club?...because he was past it, plain and simple.

Sorry to poke in on the quibble, but he did that for commercial reasons ie money. The fact he went to AC Milan & now Spurs are doing everything they can to sign him shows he's not past it

Sorry to poke in on the quibble, but he did that for commercial reasons ie money. The fact he went to AC Milan & now Spurs are doing everything they can to sign him shows he's not past it

I doubt he needed the money. And the reason he is wanted by Spurs is for his experience and commercial value. You think he will be starting any games?. If he was that good when Real Madrid let him go he would have went to a bigger European club instead of the MLS. That showed through when he was desperate to go to Milan on loan. If he had an offer from a bigger club instead of LA Galaxy then I guarantee he would have taken it. Beckham would take higher level football over money as he has enough of it.

From Wiki, with sources:

Towards the end of the season, as Beckham was getting back into Capello's good books after successfully fighting his way back into the first team, Real Madrid announced they would try to untie his transfer to LA Galaxy, but were ultimately unsuccessful

Moving to Galaxy

In order to maximize the media effect, in the press release they decided to list the potential sum that Beckham could make over the 5-year period from all his revenue sources, which in addition to his Galaxy pay also include his personal endorsements. Beckham's actual deal with the Galaxy was a 5-year contract worth US$32.5 million in total or $6.5 million per year

Just to show Madrid still wanted him & he went to the US to earn a lot of wedge

Beckham needed Real Madrid, not the other way round. If he was so good still, why did he go to the MLS instead of another big European club?...because he was past it, plain and simple. And while they were good players (Beckham & Marquez) they were far off being TOP players, especially because of the teams they were in respectively. Plus they were advancing in years and had other good players that could fill their position. All points that should tell you why it wasnt a top priority for their clubs to renew their contract and were happy to let them see them out. Now Kris Boyd. What offers do you think he was gonna get after being top scorer in the SPL lol. He went on to Middlesbrough for christs sake so their would hardly have been many PL teams interested in him so I doubt Rangers missed out on some serious money. He was top scorer in a sunday league and he is hardly setting the championship alight. That shows the level of the SPL so I doubt just because he was top scorer in that league that Rangers had many good offers for him anyway.

Beckham didnt need Real, he chose to leave, he wanted to try something different and going the MLS was exactly that, plus im sure the millions being offered in wages and everything else was a big say. As the poster below says AC milan have signed him twice since and now spurs want him, plus he has stayed in the england national team almost the entire time, not bad for a past it player id say. Marquez would still have walked into a lot of european teams again he chose to try his luck in the MLS for whatever reason. Again ill say it Real did not let his contract run about because they were done with him, they delayed because of his relationship with Capello and in the end he chose to take an offer rather than wait around.

Boyd went to middlesbourgh because of Strachan, there were plenty of offers for him, lncluding Birmingham, you can try and use belittling the SPL to make your point all you want but it still stands that rangers lost one of their top players on a free transfer, one they could have sold easily in january for some much needed money. I dont think Middlesbourgh in general have set the championship alight this season so i dont really see your point.

From Wiki, with sources:

Towards the end of the season, as Beckham was getting back into Capello's good books after successfully fighting his way back into the first team, Real Madrid announced they would try to untie his transfer to LA Galaxy, but were ultimately unsuccessful

Moving to Galaxy

In order to maximize the media effect, in the press release they decided to list the potential sum that Beckham could make over the 5-year period from all his revenue sources, which in addition to his Galaxy pay also include his personal endorsements. Beckham's actual deal with the Galaxy was a 5-year contract worth US$32.5 million in total or $6.5 million per year

Just to show Madrid still wanted him & he went to the US to earn a lot of wedge

Of course the wedge helped in persuading him to go to MLS. My point is if he was THAT good Real wouldnt have let it happen in the first place, simple as. If Ronaldo or Higuian were nearing the end of their contract then it just wouldnt happen, bad relationship with the manager or not.

Of course the wedge helped in persuading him to go to MLS. My point is if he was THAT good Real wouldnt have let it happen in the first place, simple as. If Ronaldo or Higuian were nearing the end of their contract then it just wouldnt happen, bad relationship with the manager or not.

if that is the case then why did they try and pursuade him to change his mind?

Beckham didnt need Real, he chose to leave, he wanted to try something different and going the MLS was exactly that, plus im sure the millions being offered in wages and everything else was a big say. As the poster below says AC milan have signed him twice since and now spurs want him, plus he has stayed in the england national team almost the entire time, not bad for a past it player id say. Marquez would still have walked into a lot of european teams again he chose to try his luck in the MLS for whatever reason. Again ill say it Real did not let his contract run about because they were done with him, they delayed because of his relationship with Capello and in the end he chose to take an offer rather than wait around.

Boyd went to middlesbourgh because of Strachan, there were plenty of offers for him, lncluding Birmingham, you can try and use belittling the SPL to make your point all you want but it still stands that rangers lost one of their top players on a free transfer, one they could have sold easily in january for some much needed money. I dont think Middlesbourgh in general have set the championship alight this season so i dont really see your point.

AC Milan signed him twice on short term deals. Makes sense for them financially. Plus the Italian league is a lot slower these days so he could have prolonged his european career there but alas, no offers for a long term deal when he left Madrid. Same goes with Spurs. It makes sense to get him here. Financially plus he has great experience to pass onto the younger players. He is an ambassador in English football and hooking up with Arry wont be a bad thing considering Redknapp will probably be next England manager and Beckham would have a lot to offer in the Englans setup from a coaching role. To think Spurs will buy him thinking he will start many games at all is a nonsence. Try reading between the lines sometime. As for Kris Boyd. Shall I spell it out. Yes, Rangers let a player run down his contract. But were the offers they had any good?. Sometimes clubs benefit from having the player at the club til the end of the season instead of cashing in on them in January now forgive me if Im wrong but didnt Rangers win the league that year, with Boyd chipping ion with most of the goals?. See, if they sold him in January for at the most £4m then they might not have won the league. But when all is said and done, putting players such as Sakho, Asenjo, Ben Arfa & Sanogo in the same sentence as Kris Boyd is pathetic. He is an average player at best and they are really good players.

How do we know they did. Who knows what spin they put on things. I for one wont let wiki sites be the source of my information. Listen, if Real want you, you stay, simple as.

AC Milan signed him twice on short term deals. Makes sense for them financially. Plus the Italian league is a lot slower these days so he could have prolonged his european career there but alas, no offers for a long term deal when he left Madrid. Same goes with Spurs. It makes sense to get him here. Financially plus he has great experience to pass onto the younger players. He is an ambassador in English football and hooking up with Arry wont be a bad thing considering Redknapp will probably be next England manager and Beckham would have a lot to offer in the Englans setup from a coaching role. To think Spurs will buy him thinking he will start many games at all is a nonsence. Try reading between the lines sometime. As for Kris Boyd. Shall I spell it out. Yes, Rangers let a player run down his contract. But were the offers they had any good?. Sometimes clubs benefit from having the player at the club til the end of the season instead of cashing in on them in January now forgive me if Im wrong but didnt Rangers win the league that year, with Boyd chipping ion with most of the goals?. See, if they sold him in January for at the most £4m then they might not have won the league. But when all is said and done, putting players such as Sakho, Asenjo, Ben Arfa & Sanogo in the same sentence as Kris Boyd is pathetic. He is an average player at best and they are really good players.

that is exactly my point, and could be linked to why these players left for nothing, their clubs may of decided the offers they were recieving for their players was not good enough, or they didnt offer them out as they felt they would benefit more from having them for the entire season.

Anyway in the game and i think i said this earlier Asenjo does not get into the first 11, the younger guy plays all the time so him leaving on a free is no suprise in the game.

How do we know they did. Who knows what spin they put on things. I for one wont let wiki sites be the source of my information. Listen, if Real want you, you stay, simple as.

There are two sources linked reporting Madrid wanted to cancel the offer twice, it's not like this is being made up & I can't find anything saying Madrid didn't want him. At the time he was an England International & would've been at the World Cup (years later) had he not been injured, so he certainly wasn't past it. I'm no huge Beckham fan but its all there

that is exactly my point, and could be linked to why these players left for nothing, their clubs may of decided the offers they were recieving for their players was not good enough, or they didnt offer them out as they felt they would benefit more from having them for the entire season.

Anyway in the game and i think i said this earlier Asenjo does not get into the first 11, the younger guy plays all the time so him leaving on a free is no suprise in the game.

hahaha...this is funny. Players with the calibre of Sakho, Ben Arfa etc would not be allowed to run down their contract simply because they are too valuable to their club and in the transfer market so if they went on a free they would lose a lot of money, plus if they sold the player they would most likely put a sell on clause into the deal. Kris Boyd is not valuable outside the SPL so Rangers obviously thought it would be better to have him at the club for the remainder of the season. He would hardly attract a bidding war and his sell on value, well, lets just leave that alone.

There are two sources linked reporting Madrid wanted to cancel the offer twice, it's not like this is being made up & I can't find anything saying Madrid didn't want him. At the time he was an England International & would've been at the World Cup (years later) had he not been injured, so he certainly wasn't past it. I'm no huge Beckham fan but its all there

I get you but I really cant see Beckham turning down Madrid. No one in their right mind does.

And anyway, Beckham was still well advanced in his years so he would hardly be getting many mega money transfer offers when he was at Real. Madrid dont need the money either. The team buying him would have to have financial clout for his wages too. So to put Beckhams position in with the OP is apples and oranges.

I get you but I really cant see Beckham turning down Madrid. No one in their right mind does.

Well, he'd just won the league with them so probably thought that was enough. Galaxy probably offered his a longer contract, they offered him a 5 year deal, I doubt Madrid would've offered that. Moving to the US would've massively increased his profile in the States leading to more money making opportunities, so it made sense for him to move there. We know at this point he was minted anyway but being Beckham it's not like he's going to just stop earning himself money, he'll probably be taking sponsorships & adverts for the rest of his life, money money money

I know...

you can more or less find quality rotations/backups for free every year on the Free Agents list.

TBH I don't get how SI haven't managed to solve that hemorrhage of talent... Good players in their 20s should very very rarely end up out of contract, usually they sign a contract with another club and leave on Bosman ruling.

It's fair enough older and "greedy" players can sometimes struggle to find a new club, but the idea of having solid Top Level performers not being offered a new contract or not being contacted by other clubs, or even sitting at home waiting for a call, is plain laughable.

I think one major problem in this respect is that the clubs do not accept reasonable transfer offers a year before a player is available on a free.

Irl players are then for sale at a cut price. Only the top world class players would go at a double figure million fee a year before they can leave on a free. At this point in time the players can hold their clubs to ransom and tell them that they won't renew anyway and then the only thing clubs can do is to try and cash in while they still can.

Instead in FM clubs keep asking triple the market value for these players. Of course then there are few, if any, other clubs making reasonable and realistic offers. As a consequence more contracts run out than irl because irl many players would have been sold before that can happen.

So to put Beckhams position in with the OP is apples and oranges.

For sure, I was just going off on tangent

For sure, I was just going off on tangent

Yeah, I agree with most of what you were saying its just that Beckhams position (and Kris Boyd LMAO) is totally different to that of the players the OP mentioned so milnerpoints "points" dont add up.

hahaha...this is funny. Players with the calibre of Sakho, Ben Arfa etc would not be allowed to run down their contract simply because they are too valuable to their club and in the transfer market so if they went on a free they would lose a lot of money, plus if they sold the player they would most likely put a sell on clause into the deal. Kris Boyd is not valuable outside the SPL so Rangers obviously thought it would be better to have him at the club for the remainder of the season. He would hardly attract a bidding war and his sell on value, well, lets just leave that alone.

if Ben Arfa is that highly thought of, why did he end up on loan to newcastle for a season, surely the big clubs would have been making offers for him, im not saying he is rubbish but i would hardly call him world class. Anyway the club may not have a choice, if the player does not want to move until the end of the season then there is very little they can do they cannot force a sale or force a player to sign a contract.

Boyd was valued outwith the SPL, otherwise he would not have moved, he also choose to wait until the end of the season before deciding what was best for him.

At the end of the day a lot of players who are in the last year of there contract, CHOOSE to let it run down ... at the end of the day it is down to the player whether or not they accept an offer. If the players doesn't want to be sold and instead wants to let his contract run down, end of story .. nothing the club can do about it. Only need to look at what happened with Sol Campbell where he saw the opporunity to make a lot of money from his signing on fee, and he isn't alone. And those that decide to be-little Boyd and Ledley don't follow football as they are both very good players. Want a recent example, look at Joe Cole who left Chelsea. It does happen, more often than you would think. As to those who say Beckham left Spanish football because he was past it .. he decided to go to America and it is well documented that a lot of big premiership clubs were sniffing.

im sure i remeber AC Milan making public noises about wanting to sign but again he chose to go to the MLS.

I get you but I really cant see Beckham turning down Madrid. No one in their right mind does.

but he DID turn them down....

Snider also said this summer he would turn down any offer they made for him, different situation but players do turn down Real.

Or look at the situation with Stevem Pienaar at Everton .. in last year of his contract. Acknowledged to be a very good player, with Chelsea and Tottenham interested. Player in a win-win, can either wait it out and leave end of the season for a nice big earner or get a new contract with Everton for a big rise. Now neither of the big clubs are coming in with an offer, even though they want him. Why? Because they know if they wait till the end of the season can get him for nothing .. that is the financial reality. No chairmen in the right mind is gonna santion big bucks for somebody they can get for nowt, unless they are in trouble and need him desperately. Everton are trying to sell him, but it doesn't matter a jolt