Can't sign youngster?

[Plop]

Here's the thing...
I just saw this promising 16 year old african winger. So I immediately do a transfer bid, after some negotiating my offer is accepted along with the offer of another team. I then enter contract discussions with the player and immediately come to an agreement.

All is rosy, you'd think But a day later the player signs a pre-contract deal with his current club, which is weird considering they can't probably offer him half the wages I can. Anyways I go back to contract offer and he still seems happy with the offer, but just for fun I give him some improvements on the previous offer and he graciously accepts.

The next day he signs another pre-contract deal with his current club.

What am I doing wrong?

 

[mdcoz78]

Nothing he has just opted to stay at his current club. Because assuming your playing in Europe he wouldn't move until he was 18 anyway if he is in a non eu country.

 

[Plop]

I know, if he were to accept my offer he would stay at his club till his 18th birthday and then join us. But if he signed a pre-contract at his club that would mean he will stay at his club even after his 18th birthday, so why can I still offer him a contract?

 

[malhar]

when he accepts your contract offer, does it say on his profile "Joining [your club name] on the [date]". Just below his photo? or does it say transfer arranged when you see his name in the squad sheet of whatever club he is at? If the answers to those questions is yes, then don't worry about what he does, he will join you on the first possible date that he can.

 

[Plop]

I just noticed I have to make another transfer offer now in order to offer him a contract. I guess you were right then, he probably just decided to stay. Well I'll just follow his development till he turns 18 and I should be able to do another offer for him then

I have another dillemma now though. I'm his national manager and even though he's only 16, he's one of our best players. (I'm managing Equatorial Guinea, so it's not that surprising) So should I keep him under the radar and not give him any caps till I (or another club, but hopefully not) signed him? I'm managing a semi-professional Faroer Islands team, so the fact that he's even interested in signing is already a miracle. If I give him caps though, he'll probably only attract more interest and reduce my chances of signing him... Decisions, decisions.

 

[Plop]

Oh and no he's not joining me or the other club that offered him a contracted. He's still on youth contract. He just agreed to sign a one-year deal at his own club after his youth contract expires, which seems odd.