How a Player Gets Signed in the Transfer Window: A Scout’s Perspective

Neil McGuinness is one of football’s top talent scouts. Currently employed by a national team in the Middle East to recruit players for their World Cup bid, he has previously worked at Celtic and as an independent scout for numerous clubs.

We asked Neil to reveal how a player gets signed in the modern game. He outlines the process from the perspective of a scout, in this seven-step guide.

   

Step 1: Requirement

The first step is always the requirement phase. Ideas here require buy-in from all involved—the scouting department, first-team coaches and the first-team manager himself. The final decision will always lie with the manager.

Ideally the manager gives his scouts a clear guideline of what he is looking for, in terms of the position he wants to fill and the attributes he’s after.

For example, he may feel that he lacks height when defending set pieces and high balls into the box, so he asks you to find a full-back. This request often comes with details such as the minimum height of the player, his aerial ability, recovery pace and talent for playing out from the back.

Player requirements will vary depending on how the manager likes to play and the style of the team. He will have a vision, and it’s your job as a scout to marry new players to his master plan.

    

Step 2: Identification

This is where a scout earns his crust. Now it’s time to go out there and find a player to match the criteria set out by your manager.

Players can be identified in numerous ways these days. Sometimes you’ll find one using video platforms like Wyscout or InStat. Sometimes agents send you DVDs or website links.

And then there are the players you hear about through direct communication with agents. The best agents will recommend players based on the requirements given. You may even get player recommendations from former team-mates or players who’ve played against them.

My preference is always to identify the players myself and work backward.

Agents typically have an agenda, while software can only show you so much. It doesn’t give you a real feel for the player—you can only get that viewing the player live. You need to see what a player does off the ball and how he reacts to things around him. And you need to gauge his work rate and recovery.

Signing a player from video alone is lazy and a dangerous approach in scouting. Millions of pounds can be at stake during the signing process, and it’s too important to cut corners.

Once you have identified a player, it’s on to the fixture-planning and travel-arrangement phase.

Vacancy – Head of Local Recruitment (U9-U13) with Liverpool FC. Closes: 19/8/16 https://t.co/Mr7o21kNwc

— Mark Anderson (@FootballScout01) August 15, 2016

    

Step 3: Planning and Travel

Ideally this step is handled by the administration department at a club, but it requires communication if you want to get it right.

Booking into the same hotel as the player and his team is ideal. Seeing how the player acts off the pitch can be an important factor in getting the bigger picture of who he is and whether he’d fit at your club.

I have managed to observe a player in social circumstances without him being aware that I was in the corner. …

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