It is no secret in the football world that Charles Collymore has been at the centre of allegations regarding bungs. One of the most notable and well documented examples was the BBC’s Panorama programme ‘Football’s Dirty Secrets’ back in 2006 which exposed him and two others in his trade – Peter Harrison and Teni Yerima.

The story sent shockwaves through the football world, with Collymore accused of ‘touting’ striker Enoch Showumni to Millwall whilst he was still on the books at his parent club Luton Town. There were further allegations that he had agreed a “sham arrangement” with an agent who was unlicensed as the striker eventually moved to Bristol City.

These allegations couldn’t be proved, as the Football Association couldn’t prove the charges made against Collymore three years later. But there is no doubt that the reputation of agents had been tarnished, and there has been no shortage of bad press for their breed in recent years.

The journalists have had their say, pundits have given us their insight, but no one has got the agent’s view on their reputation and the dealings that go on. Collymore, with 12 years experience as an agent, has a better level of expertise than any pundit can realistically offer. So exclusively for Column 10 we have been able to get the other side of the story, starting with the dealings of the dramatic transfer deadline days.

The real deal with transfer deadline day

Q: What is the pressure like when transfer deadline is approaching and some of your players still do not have a club? Can players get verbally or physically angry towards you?

Charles Collymore: I don’t think I would name anyone, because it is not fair on the individual. The pressure is at its highest, especially for out-of-contract players, because the majority of them still have mortgages to pay and bills to pay just like anybody else. So it can get a little anxious for them when they don’t have a club. I think, in the main, players only get angry when they know or they believe that you’re not trying your best for them. In the past I have had a few lively words with clients who have not been happy when things haven’t developed as quickly as they would like. In the end, we always get to the right solution, whether that is finding a club or being very honest with them – and that is what you have to do with these guys. You have to be straight with them and tell them ‘look, I can’t do anything or I can do something’. Even if that means you end up parting company with them as a client, and allowing them to look for that solution, then it is important that you do that.

Q: Has there been occasions, for you, when you have parted ways with a player?

CC: Yes, yes. It’s happened a few times.

Q: When it gets to the last days of the window and there are many deals offered to players. How do you prioritise one deal over another?

CC: There is a lot more sides to this then there is probably perceived when you’re watching television and looking at the deadline. In the main, we largely know about the deals, a few weeks before hand and some that will go down to the last few hours. I have had deals that have gone down to the last hour. And because we have an idea of what those deals will be we focus essentially on the ones we can complete. Sometimes it is impossible to get a deal done in the time allocated. It is just not going to happen because you can’t agree terms, the club can’t agree terms or people logistically can’t get them down to do a medical. There’s things, sometimes out of control, that prevent that from happening – even down to your club releasing somebody else so someone can come in, but that deal didn’t happen and the knock on effect is that we can’t get our deal done. So, in that timeline, essentially what we do is focus on those who have the absolute best environment provided to get the deal completed, and that is essentially how we prioritise it. But we do have a line of sight really, two or three weeks beforehand, as to those deals that are most likely to go down to deadline day.

Charles Collymore: At the centre of bungs allegations in 2006

Q: Why is it that so many deals, that have been discussed for a long time, still come down to the last few hours before the transfer deadline?

CC: Well there are a number of factors that may influence that. Like I said, a club may be waiting for another player to be sold, to have that deal in place, so that they can use the funds from that deal to make something else happen and that might have taken a long time. Or they have got to be able to release funds from their existing player budget to be able to afford to bring somebody else in. There are many moving parts to a deal, and if all of those moving parts don’t move at the right time then the move doesn’t happen and sometimes it can happen quite late. Moreover, it is a commercial decision. Sometimes some people think that if you leave it to the absolute last minute then they might be able to get a more competitive deal and, again, that’s part and parcel of it. Sometimes that works and sometimes it doesn’t.

Q: Does panic set in when deals are being rushed through so late?

CC: I am not sure I would use the word panic. But sometimes there is a conscientious decision by some clubs to leave it late, because they think it enhances their commercial hand, and that is their prerogative.

Q: Why is it that a lot of deals are only cleared and announced the next day, after the deadline has come and gone?

CC: A lot of that is down to the fact that – although the deal, the registration and the relevant forms have been handed in on time – by the time the clearance has actually been recieved and the press get notification of that it doesn’t happen until the next day. So, the deals are expedited as far as we’re concerned on deadline day but they just haven’t gone through the due process to get announced in time. There are special exceptions. The FA can provide special circumstances for a deal to be done later and, when that happens, then that obviously gets announced later as well. But, generally speaking, it is a process of completing the clerical element of it and then getting announced.

Q: Rohan Ricketts is an example of a player who has made a living outside of his native United Kingdom, having plied his trade for Toronto in the MLS after spells at Arsenal, Tottenham, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Barnsley in England. Is it increasingly harder for British players to come back to the UK and get a chance here?

CC: Rohan’s a wonderfully gifted footballer and, in the career he has had already, he is going to have a better career then a lot of players are going to have. He has turned out for some wonderful clubs in his life – having worn the colours of Tottenham, Wolverhampton Wanderers and played in the MLS . He has had a lot better career than many can dream of. But we do find this thing in England that, if they have left the country, very rarely do they ever come back. Whereas, in a lot of European countries the guys go away, do what they’ve got to do and come back for a final swansong at home, that doesn’t really happen that much here.

What are your thoughts on the deadline day drama and what are your perceptions of agents? Let us know what you think via twitter, @Column10, or by ‘liking’ Column 10 on facebook.

The next part of this three-part series will look at the power balance between players and agents and the hard negotiating that goes on behind the scenes. Make sure you keep up-to-date with Column 10, with the next part coming tomorrow.

Rohan Ricketts

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