Finance guru: Influx of young stars may be headed to Man City – ‘they’re miles ahead of the game’
New Fifa limitations on the loan market could prompt Man City to invest in even more top young stars.
So says finance expert Doctor Dan Plumley, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the new curbs from world football’s governing body.
Fifa announced last Wednesday (30 March) a raft of new measures to stop clubs from “hoarding” talent.
Clubs will now be barred from sending over six players out on international loans or having more than six loanees on the books at one time.
Homegrown players under the age of 21 are exempt from the new measures, which will be phased in from 1 July this year.
City currently have 13 senior players out on loan at overseas clubs, 10 of whom are aged 21 or over.
But Plumley predicts that the new Fifa regulations could actually cause City to ramp up their youth recruitment efforts.
“They will have to adapt and transition down to within the threshold,” the Sheffield Hallam University expert told Football Insider‘s Adam Williams.
“But they have got a couple of years to do that. We always talk about the fact they are miles ahead of the game, so I don’t think it will hugely affect them.
“Under 21 players are exempt, so they could instead start to look for even more young talent. We have seen them do that in the past.
“It will be interesting to see if the Premier League follows suit with some sort of similar regulations. That could happen.
“But given how City operate, I don’t think it will be a big change to the business model or cause much disruption.”
Fifa have also ruled that all loan deals must last at least between two transfer windows.
Clubs will be allowed to have eight players out on international loans in 2022-23, seven the following season, and finally six in 2024-25.
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