Football agents are a necessary evil

By Steve Thompson
BBC Lincolnshire summariser and former Lincoln City manager

Thompson was Lincoln City manager from 1990 to 1993

I was amazed when I read that last season agents made £70 million from player transfers.

It's too strong to call them parasites but it's become a way of making an easy living, especially when you look at the fees agents are getting in the Premier League.

I must confess it annoys me a little that an agent dealing with a top-flight player could earn more from one transfer deal than I ever did in a 15-year playing career.

It's become a cattle market where players are auctioned off to the highest bidder. The more the agent gets for the player, then the more he gets out of the deal for himself, and sometimes the agent will price the player out of a move.

I don't understand why a player can't just negotiate his own transfer with a club. He'll have a fair idea of the wages he wants and he'll know that the club will have limits on what they can afford, and you don't need an agent to sort that out.

Come the transfer window a manager's phone will be constantly ringing with agents trying to fix up players with clubs

Steve Thompson

With agents you will sit down and start with one figure which then suddenly becomes another, then another. At Sheffield United I tried to sign a defender whose agent came with him to the talks and asked for a certain amount in wages.

I asked: "How many England caps does he have?"

The agent looked at me blankly.

"Because I've got established internationals here," I continued, "who aren't on that much money."

On another occasion, when I was in charge at Notts County, I agreed with deal for a player with the manager of another club with no agents involved. I then got a call from the player's agent who wanted £12,000 for the move to go through.

Twelve grand for one phone call, and that was after the deal had been agreed.

What's more annoying is that at big clubs, reserve players who've played only a handful of games will have an agent.

You could speak to their manager about taking them on loan only to be told that they'll have to speak to their agent first.

All we're asking is for them to come along so we can look at them and decide if we like them and they like us. There's no transfer fee, so why get an agent involved?

I understand that young players may want someone to go through the legal documents and and seeking advice is one thing, but it's getting ludicrous.

It's also becoming more prolific and you can guarantee that come the transfer window a manager's phone will be constantly ringing with agents trying to fix up players with clubs.

Thompson made 181 appearances in five seasons with Lincoln City

But even as a manager nowadays, whether in or out of work you have to have an agent. When a job becomes available the first thing you do is ring your agent to ask if he'll ring the chairman.

Gone are the days when you just sent your CV in along with all the other applicants, it's now about getting someone to put a word in for you.

Football is like any other business. If there's a niche that can be exploited, somebody will. Agents are here to stay, there are good ones and bad ones, agents who are or aren't approachable. They may frustrate you at times and at other times they may get you out of a hole.

They're a necessary evil and you have to deal with them, but I feel it takes something away from the old ways of football, when as a manager you went out and found the players yourself and negotiated deals face to face.