How to stop your best players from being signed by the bigger clubs

[Lillywhite Dean]

I've discovered that if I offer my player a new contract at the point of receiving a transfer bid news item, the player will agree a new contract on similar terms thus automatically rejecting the bid and doing so without upsetting the player.

If you take the example below, my player, Eloy Garcia Martin has a release clause of £11M. He plays for Ibiza who are in the 2nd tier of Spanish football.

Hamburger SV, who are in the Bundesliga (so the equivalent of being a tier above Ibiza), has activated the release clause and Garcia Martin would like the opportunity to consider the approach.

However, I go straight to offer contract and Martin wants a wage increase from £1.6K to £1.8K. He doesn't even demand first team football or a sizeable signing on fee. So I pretty much give him the same terms as he was on previously but also ensure his release clause is upped from £11M to £25M. Martin agrees the deal and the bid is automatically rejected without upsetting the player.

This makes keeping hold of your best players so easy. When I offer a new contract, Martin should be rejecting my approach to discuss terms with Hamburger SV OR negotiating with both clubs.

[corinthiano]

Agreed, have had the same in my save and have unashamedly exploited the loophole.

Generally I find it easy to hang onto players even if I reject offers (when release clause isnt met). They get unhappy, I offer them a new contract on a little bit more money and then they are happy again. Very rarely do I lose a player against my own will.

[Lillywhite Dean]

I think this is something the developers should look to address in the next version. 

[Marc Vaughan]

1 hour ago, Lillywhite Dean said:

I think this is something the developers should look to address in the next version. 

Listens quietly ...

[Speedyol]

In both fm19 and fm20; I am unable to offer my player any contract at the "point of receiving a transfer bid". I get a red message box saying they are not interested because they want to move to the larger club. But its still possible to offer them a contract a few weeks before the transfer window and then they will refuse offers because the "recently signed a new contract". But it has to be done in advance, and not as a response.

[StephenCronin]

3 hours ago, Speedyol said:

In both fm19 and fm20; I am unable to offer my player any contract at the "point of receiving a transfer bid". I get a red message box saying they are not interested because they want to move to the larger club. But its still possible to offer them a contract a few weeks before the transfer window and then they will refuse offers because the "recently signed a new contract". But it has to be done in advance, and not as a response.

It depends on the circumstances - if you are a small team and a much bigger club is coming in for the player, then they may decide they aren't interested in discussing a new contract, but I find in most cases they will. 

[StephenCronin]

On 20/06/2021 at 01:50, Lillywhite Dean said:

I think this is something the developers should look to address in the next version. 

I think it would make sense to make the player less inclined to sign a new contract if they are unhappy or if there is a better offer on the table, but I wouldn't want it removed entirely.

It seems like a logical thing to offer a player a better contract to stay and it seems like something players may consider if it's a significantly better contract or role, etc.  Sure, it doesn't make sense for a player to agree to a 1% pay rise to stay at Oxford United instead of moving to Juventus for a lot more money (made up eg, but have seen the like), so the balance should be sorted out, but it's a reasonable concept.

Also, there is an even more foolproof way to keep a player at the club, but I probably shouldn't share it if you don't like the new contract one!  

[Lillywhite Dean]

9 hours ago, StephenCronin said:

I think it would make sense to make the player less inclined to sign a new contract if they are unhappy or if there is a better offer on the table, but I wouldn't want it removed entirely.

It seems like a logical thing to offer a player a better contract to stay and it seems like something players may consider if it's a significantly better contract or role, etc.  Sure, it doesn't make sense for a player to agree to a 1% pay rise to stay at Oxford United instead of moving to Juventus for a lot more money (made up eg, but have seen the like), so the balance should be sorted out, but it's a reasonable concept.

Also, there is an even more foolproof way to keep a player at the club, but I probably shouldn't share it if you don't like the new contract one!  

I can think of several real life examples whereby a player has used interest from another team to leverage a better deal at their existing club. John Terry is the first that comes to mind. Manchester City were willing to offer Terry a bumper contract to prize him away from Chelsea, and Terry entertained this idea whilst negotiating a better deal with Chelsea. Wayne Rooney did it too with Manchester United when (again) City tried to tempt him away. So I definitely think a player should be willing to negotiate a new contract with their existing club to demand a significant increase on their existing terms. In my situation however, said player has only requested a marginal increase where many of the clubs making the bids could offer better terms and a higher standard of football.

I also think that if you're managing a smaller club, it should be almost impossible to persuade the player to stay. That's the reality of football, unless of course your chairman is Daniel Levy.

[StephenCronin]

1 hour ago, Lillywhite Dean said:

I can think of several real life examples whereby a player has used interest from another team to leverage a better deal at their existing club. John Terry is the first that comes to mind. Manchester City were willing to offer Terry a bumper contract to prize him away from Chelsea, and Terry entertained this idea whilst negotiating a better deal with Chelsea. Wayne Rooney did it too with Manchester United when (again) City tried to tempt him away. So I definitely think a player should be willing to negotiate a new contract with their existing club to demand a significant increase on their existing terms. In my situation however, said player has only requested a marginal increase where many of the clubs making the bids could offer better terms and a higher standard of football.

I also think that if you're managing a smaller club, it should be almost impossible to persuade the player to stay. That's the reality of football, unless of course your chairman is Daniel Levy.

Yep, I think we agree on all of that. Definitely very unrealistic right now.

[Marc Vaughan]

20 hours ago, StephenCronin said:

I think it would make sense to make the player less inclined to sign a new contract if they are unhappy or if there is a better offer on the table, but I wouldn't want it removed entirely.

It seems like a logical thing to offer a player a better contract to stay and it seems like something players may consider if it's a significantly better contract or role, etc.  Sure, it doesn't make sense for a player to agree to a 1% pay rise to stay at Oxford United instead of moving to Juventus for a lot more money (made up eg, but have seen the like), so the balance should be sorted out, but it's a reasonable concept.

Also, there is an even more foolproof way to keep a player at the club, but I probably shouldn't share it if you don't like the new contract one!  

Just to mention I've tweaked things (for FMM22) to make the player less inclined to sign a new contract with their current club if another club is interested - the exact effect will depend on the reputation of the clubs involved.

Disclaimer - still waiting QA approval of tweaks.