Rather than opt for the pundit path that many before him have travelled, Ian Harte did something that very few Irish internationals have done after their retirement in his decision to become a football agent.
The news surprised many, and we had hoped that we would soon be seeing Hartey on private yachts brokering deals to take A-list players to the likes of Real Madrid and PSG, but we doubt that is what the future has in store mainly because it seems that the former Leeds United man actually cares about his clients and gives them really good advice.
The perfect example is his client Tyler Denton, who recently put pen to paper on a three-year deal at Elland Road, but that only came about because Harte advised him to turn down a 12 month deal that was offered to him in the summer.
Denton came through from the Leeds United academy and impressed Leeds boss Gary Monk on his side's trip to Ireland for pre season friendlies, but was only offered a 12 month deal which left the youngster disheartened. However, after listening to his agent he decided to try and prove his worth, risking not being offered another deal at all, and is now in a much more secure place.
Ian Harte spoke to the Yorkshire Evening Post where his comments prove to us, not that we doubted for a second, that Harte is in this business for all of the right reasons and will put his players first.
I’m delighted for him. He was offered a year’s extension in the summer and he was a bit disappointment by that but I told him to get his head down, work his socks off and make an impression. He got the chance to go to Ireland with the first team for pre-season and he’s obviously done well enough for the manager (Garry Monk) and the owner (Massimo Cellino) to review his situation.
You can’t take anything for granted in football. You’ve got to earn everything and he’s done that. But it’s early days for him and a new deal doesn’t mean you relax.
Football agents don't have the best reputation, to say the least, for caring about their clients in the modern game, so Harte is clearly going about setting that right.
Fair play to him, and if he keeps on advising players as he has done Tyler Denton, we'll be hearing about more clients signing up very soon.
[via Yorkshire Evening Post]
