Ramsey and Sancho are leading Brit stars to take on world… we're in hot demand
One or two sources later claim the midfielder would “only” be on 300k. But what’s £100k among friends?
Then Jadon Sancho, originally from a tough estate in Camberwell, twinkles to life for a German team in Spurs’ Champions League tie at Wembley.
Further proof in one week, then, that the football world is shrinking. Or rather that football is shrinking the world.
Until a few years ago, exported British players into Europe were rare.
You can count on the fingers of one hand those who had been highly successful until Gareth Bale moved from Spurs to Real Madrid and the man with the silly ponytail doesn’t appear to be greatly loved in the Bernabeu.
Reports that the Wales star hasn’t learned Spanish in four years will hardly increase his popularity. Any language should be easy after Welsh.
Well, Ramsey will certainly be able to afford an Italian language coach.
He’s another Welshman, of course, and by joining Juventus follows in the footsteps of Swansea-born John Charles, who some older chaps would say is the greatest all-round British footballer ever.
These days our players are scattering far and wide. To China, the US and, increasingly among young lads, to Germany.
Driven by agents and parents but especially by a desire to play first-team football, these teenagers are reversing a trend that has attracted countless foreign hopefuls here.
Sancho made his Bundesliga debut at 17 after being sold by Manchester City for £10million and quickly showed the skills that would impress Gareth Southgate to the point of England selection.
SAN UTD Solskjaer lines up £70m move for wonderkid Jadon Sancho… but rivals City will take 15 per cent cut of transfer fee
This fresh outlet quickly impressed agents, as it would. Encouraged by the now 18-year-old’s brilliance and, no doubt, his earnings with Dortmund, scouts are scouring our leagues for aspirants with a sense of adventure.
Callum Hudson-Odoi is one. Also 18, he has shrilly demanded to leave Chelsea in a move that would cost Bayern Munich £35m or more.
In this country, football is highly privileged.
Clubs are permitted to take a serious interest in players barely in primary school.
The numbers from that age onwards are huge, probably tens of thousands. Most consider attendance more important than going to boring old school.
Many clubs also register foreign youngsters, providing them with an education as well as intensive coaching.
There are all sorts of rules on this. But the very fact that the FA and Fifa have regulations for players over the age of 10 underlines the unique status of the game worldwide.
Agents and scouts are the propulsive figures. From desert sheikhdoms to Pacific atolls the obsession with football, accelerated by TV and its ladles of cash, is bringing all sorts of countries into play.
Son Heung-min from South Korea scores goals for Spurs while Marko Arnautovic was tempted to leave West Ham because a Chinese club were dangling wads of Yuan.
This is not necessarily all good, clean fun but, unless if breaks the law it is no use complaining.
After all, my club does plenty of scouting abroad and it would be a dereliction of our duty not to.
We have a director of football who has set up a system which employs seven scouts in Europe.
And I mustn’t forget our video unit, people who scan tapes of prospective footballers, delivered in hundreds every week.
The attraction of football really is eye-popping.
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