How to keep your best players as a big club

[chad2192]

I see all the time people looking for advice on how to keep players if you are managing a lower reputation team, but if I'm managing one of the top 10 teams in the world and other clubs like Chelsea, PSG, Bayern, etc are scouting my top players causing unrest, what is a good way to counter that interest? I know it's impossible to stop a player from wanting to go somewhere completely, but currently I'm in my 3rd season with Man Utd, we just won the Champion's League/Prem and Chelsea & Bayern are interested in signing Mason Greenwood and he was furious I didn't let him leave in the summer.

If he wants to go he wants to go, but what's the best way of mitigating this interest?

[FrazT]

Usually, the only way to be sure is to tie them into a new contract at big money.  If indeed he really wants to go, make sure that you get insane money for him, well above his in-game value, so that you can replace him

[chad2192]

20 minutes ago, FrazT said:

Usually, the only way to be sure is to tie them into a new contract at big money.  If indeed he really wants to go, make sure that you get insane money for him, well above his in-game value, so that you can replace him

Thanks, will do

[CARRERA]

It can also be important to give him a key roles in terms of playing time. Make him a key player or superstar and pay him well and there will most likely be no reason left for him to leave.

 

[Grifty]

I usually find once the transfer window closes, the interest for the player goes and he cheers up. If you keep their contract topped up in the period of them being happy at the club, you can keep them for a long time.

[Heywood JaBlowme]

Oh, the timing of this thread.

I just avoided potential a mutiny by refusing to sell my best attacking player to the club funded by a gulf dictatorship aka PSG while managing the other club funded by a gulf dictatorship aka Man City. 

 

There was nothing, absolutely nothing PSG could have offered him that he didn't already have or could potentially have with Man City. They couldn't offer him a better contract & they sure as hell aren't a better club, which was evident after we annihilated them 7-1 on aggregate in the CL quarterfinals the previous year.  

We won the league title & CL the previous year too. No reason whatsoever for him to leave other than the fact he was PSG's top target. Then they go and put in a low ball non-negotiable transfer offer on top of it. 

To make matters worse, many of my influential players request a meeting to let him go because if he didn't want to be at the club, there was no point in keeping him. 

So frustrated by the Dynamics in FM and choices of interactions, I exited out of this no win situation without saving. Refused all offers, he stayed unhappy for a few months until PSG dropped interest in him, then he came to me requesting a new contract-something I wanted to do months ago. 

[Platinum]

2 hours ago, Heywood JaBlowme said:

Oh, the timing of this thread.

I just avoided potential a mutiny by refusing to sell my best attacking player to the club funded by a gulf dictatorship aka PSG while managing the other club funded by a gulf dictatorship aka Man City. 

 

There was nothing, absolutely nothing PSG could have offered him that he didn't already have or could potentially have with Man City. They couldn't offer him a better contract & they sure as hell aren't a better club, which was evident after we annihilated them 7-1 on aggregate in the CL quarterfinals the previous year.  

We won the league title & CL the previous year too. No reason whatsoever for him to leave other than the fact he was PSG's top target. Then they go and put in a low ball non-negotiable transfer offer on top of it. 

To make matters worse, many of my influential players request a meeting to let him go because if he didn't want to be at the club, there was no point in keeping him. 

So frustrated by the Dynamics in FM and choices of interactions, I exited out of this no win situation without saving. Refused all offers, he stayed unhappy for a few months until PSG dropped interest in him, then he came to me requesting a new contract-something I wanted to do months ago. 

A player can just want a new challenge though

[Heywood JaBlowme]

55 minutes ago, francis#17 said:

A player can just want a new challenge though

He was not looking for a new challenge in this case. I sold another player in the same season for that reason. The player was unhappy because I rejected the transfer bid. 

[zindrinho]

Make sure to set a way too high asking price before clubs start sniffing around, usually keeps things quiet.

[samuelawachie]

I just think the dynamics of player interaction, especially with regards to contacts and transfers, needs to be re-coded. You get many unreal scenarios like this. And I believe we’ve all faced them over the years on FM

[Freakiie]

Clearly the guy is just applying the Messi strategy. Pretend to be unhappy over the entire summer and how you're definitely going to leave this time around, just to then sign a 20% bigger contract right after the transfer window closes with another juicy 30 mil signing bonus on top of it for good measure!

[IbrahimAliMaher]

Don't know if this trick still works in FM21, but I find a good way to avoid players getting the hump from rejected transfer bids is to accept the bids but add a 'sign replacement player' clause. You can have no intention of actually selling or make any effort to actually sign a replacement, but to the player counts this as you accepting his request. This works best close to a transfer window, though he might still have a minor concern afterwards it's helped me keep several of my best players. This get scuppered by non-negotiable bids or loan offers however.