Articles From the Team

Philippe Coutinho

The big sports news this week has been the much anticipated completion of the transfer of Philippe Coutinho from Liverpool to Barcelona. Whilst on the face of it the loss of Liverpool’s star player may seem to be a disaster for the side – the football club have been here before and it has turned out ok.

The sale of Kevin Keegan to Hamburg in 1977 caused similar (if not greater) levels of consternation at Liverpool. Keegan had after all been the star player in a team that had won 3 league titles, 2 UEFA cups and 1 European Cup over a 6 year period. Whilst Keegan went on to become the best paid player in German football and eventually won a Balon D’or he never again enjoyed such levels of success as he had at Liverpool.

Liverpool on the other hand signed Kenny Dalglish as a replacement. Dalglish went on to win 9 league titles, 3 European Cups and 1 UEFA cup with Liverpool as player and then manager over a 14 year period. During this time Dalglish himself also picked up runners up spot in Balon D’or (beaten by Michel Platini in 1983). Indeed his record may have even been greater had English clubs not been banned from Europe following the Heysel Stadium Disaster in 1985.

In my role at BCL Legal I work on commercial and corporate law vacancies with private practice law firms in the South West and Thames Valley. The growth of the in-house market in the last few years means that I have often had to assist Partners from large law firms who have just lost their star performer to an in-house opportunity.

Much like Liverpool in the late 70’s these Partners often have the opportunity to replace their lost employee with a strong performer from a reputable but (dare I say it) smaller environment. Those that show the flexibility to consider this route have often found themselves with a hungry, motivated performer on their hands – someone that has helped take their team to even greater heights.

If you are a Partner seeking to replace your lost star performer, or an up and coming lawyer seeking an opportunity with a national or international practice please get in touch to discuss in confidence.

For more information contact BCL Legal or call us on 0845 241 0933.