Berlin (dpa) – Such formulations should continue to be popular until the end of the winter transfer window on Monday: Player XY needs more time, which we cannot offer him at the moment.
Or: The loan is a good option for both sides at the moment. Everyone does it in the Bundesliga, everyone does it in international business.
Borrowing players from other clubs who are not used there, but often cost a lot of money. Lend players who tend not to be considered in their own squad, but who bring in a little more money through a limited deal. “If someone wants to keep up in the game of the big ones, then they also start to get creative,” says the renowned German player consultant Roger Wittmann (61) in a dpa interview.
Chelsea currently have 21 players on loan
In some places they are just a bit too creative from the point of view of the world governing body FIFA. As of Friday, Chelsea FC, for example, listed 21 professionals on its homepage under loan players. Among them, believe it or not, three goalkeepers. The so-called “loan army” of the club from London has been legendary for years. At Atalanta Bergamo, the list of loaned professionals is much longer. As of this week, German national player Robin Gosens is also part of the team, on loan to Inter Milan with an option to buy after this season.
He also found 60 loan players or something like that to be exaggerated, said Wittmann, which was unconceptual. The player advisor is not happy that FIFA now wants to tighten the rules for loan transactions, especially in the difficult times of the corona virus. “I think that’s completely impractical. Every club that gets into trouble, especially in times of the pandemic, must be able to do what they want,” said Wittmann, not without adding that he couldn’t see anything that FIFA ever did have done well. “These are all things that are unworldly.”
In detail, FIFA wants to limit the loan period from July 1st and also limit the number of players. The duration must then be at least the period between two registration periods and may not exceed one year. Loaned professionals may not be loaned to third clubs. A club may only loan three players to a given club during a season and the total number per season shall be eight each on loan and loan. From July 1, 2024, this will be reduced again to only six players each. Professionals up to the age of 21 and players that a club has trained itself are not covered by the rule.
Lending offers opportunities, but also risks
“I believe that the pandemic is forcing many to rely on young players and that that helps young players. That players who are less expensive are loaned and the young ones are given a greater chance,” said Wittmann. All clubs would try to dig somewhere free, especially in the pandemic. “Then this business must also be allowed.”
But whether all of this is actually always so good for the development of players – it remains at least questionable. The advantages of being able to gain match practice elsewhere are evident. Disadvantages of not being able to gain a foothold in a club should at least not go unmentioned.
An example of this is provided by the Bundesliga, which, with its rather moderate number of loan players overall, should not be hit so badly by the tightened rules. At 1. FC Union Berlin, center forward Taiwo Awoniyi has matured into a top scorer this season. He flourishes in the old forester’s house. Awoniyi has settled in after years of touring on loan since joining Liverpool from Nigeria in August 2015.
The Reds loaned Awoniyi to FSV Frankfurt, NEC Nijmegen from the Netherlands, Royal Mouscron and KAA Gent, 1. FSV Mainz 05 and finally Unioner. The Irons bought Liverpool Awoniyi last summer. “I’m happy to finally arrive and have a home after the many rental stations in the past few years,” said the person most affected at the time.