Thursday 1 September 2016 21:47, UK
"If the player is money first, and not bothered about their career, they're not the type of player we want to work with here."
In a footballing landscape where agents' slice of the pie is bigger than ever, Matt Le Tissier's approach to player representation is refreshing.
He is revered as a one-club man, so you may be wondering why the one player who seemingly never required an agent for a transfer is now moving into that very industry.
Working alongside another Southampton legend in Francis Benali, who spent 16 years at the club, 73 Management are looking for career-minded players, those who would rather go sideways for more playing time than a financial step up and a comfy seat on a top four bench. Just don't call them football agents.
"With Francis and I having played in the top flight for many years, 73 Management can offer guidance and support on every aspect of a footballer's career - on and off the field," Le Tissier says.
"We'd like to be regarded as advisers, or mentors, but if we're called agents, that's fine. I've been called much worse."
Le Tissier and Benali, both astute observers of the game since retiring in 2002 and 2008 respectively, want to make a positive difference as football's cash flow reaches unprecedented levels.
More money doesn't necessarily mean football will start eating itself. With more Le Tissiers and Benalis available advising young players, football's wealth can be channeled more efficiently.
Nevertheless, choices players have made in the market over the past few seasons have clearly puzzled 47-year-old Le Tissier, who played over 500 times for Southampton.
"I've seen too many transfers happen in recent years, where I've looked at it from an outsider, not knowing the lads involved, and thinking: 'Why are you moving there? You're not going to get a game. You're not going to be playing football. You're going to be sat on the bench, you'll be playing League Cup football, why would you go and do that for two or three years in your career?'
"The only reason they'll be doing it is because they're going to be incredibly well paid. Now, if that's what they want from their life I don't have a problem with that. But they are not the kind of players we want to work with, we want to work with players who want the most out of their career, first and foremost.
"There's a few I've seen at Southampton who have gone out and I've thought: 'Are you really going to get the amount of game time you'd get if you stayed at Saints?'
"Sometimes it frustrates you because you see very good players sat on the bench each week."
Those who have climbed the ladder too early, of which there have been plenty in recent years, will argue that choosing to move to a top-four club comes down to self-confidence, backing yourself to reach the top in what is a short playing career.
Footballers are one of a number of things; confident, arrogant, bold, self-assured, sure of themselves. Some would argue they should be; making the grade when the odds are so long and margins so narrow is no easy feat, and answering the call of a mega-rich club seems a no-brainer.
Le Tissier and Benali are aware of the psychology of a young footballer, some of whom are guided by those who have never kicked a ball in the professional game.
They don't wish to nurture more one-club men, instead they are adamant that those with playing experience have more rounded view than those without. They are focussed on prolonging playing career in top-level football, taking steady, rational steps instead of leaps into the unknown.
"The advice I'll be giving out will be on an individual basis, after speaking to the player and seeing what he wants out of his life, and after all that, if the right thing for him to do is to move away, I'm not just going to advise him to stay at the same club for his entire career.
"Looking back, it would have been nice for me to have somebody to talk to who had been in my position, as opposed to someone who had never been a footballer.
"At the end of the day, the riches will come, if you are a footballer for 15 or 16 years. We just want them to do the best for their career, as opposed to doing the best for their bank balance."
Mentoring on potential transfers is one thing. Guidance on life off the pitch is another. Le Tissier and Benali were active around the community at Saints, something they believe should be part-and-parcel of a player's life outside of football.
Beyond that, they are aware of the recreational distractions that can hamper a player's progress.
"The distractions are probably the same as they were when I was young. Alcohol, women, drugs, all routes they can go down that can get them in a serious amount of trouble, and all routes that a young man with a huge amount of disposable income is susceptible to, and that's where we want to help them.
"We have had long careers in the Premier League. We feel we're decent role models, very active in the community around the football club we played at, which is something we'll also be encouraging our players to do, to give something back to the society.
"These boys are getting very well paid, and I don't think it does them any harm to give a little bit back to the community they are living in, to pay back for the fantastic salaries they are earning.
"To be a role model for kids is very important in this age."
Becoming a football agent couldn't be easier, all it takes is £500 and a completed form on the FA website. To possess Le Tissier and Benali's knowledge and experience is priceless.
Read more about Le Tissier and Benali's work at 73 Management
