Articles

What we learned looking closely at how clubs sign players.

Practical guides on fit, adaptation and method — written for the people who decide signings, on both sides of the table.

Negotiation·Tactical fit·Model of play·International market·Management·Method·Process·Reading data·Culture·Planning·Negotiation·Tactical fit·Model of play·International market·Management·Method·Process·Reading data·Culture·Planning·

Negotiation

How to pitch a player to a club

Most material sent is a photo, a height and a video link. A five-step guide to the dossier a director of football reads to the end.

8 min read

Tactical fit

Where does my player fit?

The same athlete can start at one club and sit on the bench at another. How to test one player against three squads and find where the spot really is.

7 min read

Model of play

With and without the ball

A player doesn't hold the same position all game. How to use both tactical phases and the ten styles to prove real compatibility.

8 min read

International market

Passport, language and adaptation

EU passports and spoken languages decide deals — and almost no agency has that organised. How to turn paperwork into a selling point.

8 min read

Management

From notebook to archive

What an agency knows about its own athletes lives in chats and in one partner's memory. How to turn that into a database.

8 min read

Method

The club DNA

When the signing criteria live in the director's head, they leave when he does. How to write down model of play, policy and culture in four blocks.

9 min read

Process

From shortlist to report

Transfer windows aren't won on the phone. A seven-stage guide, from mapping gaps to board approval.

9 min read

Reading data

How to read an adaptation report

A report isn't read by its average. How to interpret the 21 dimensions and why the low score is usually the most useful information.

9 min read

Culture

The G270 Method

Signings don't fail on football alone. The seven fields that capture identity, expectation, dressing room and a club's non-negotiables.

9 min read

Planning

Adaptation tolerance

Develop and sell, or buy and compete? How the time a club actually has completely changes the assessment of the same target.

8 min read

Agencies

Prove your player's fit

Clubs

Find out whether he adapts to your club