Life is easy for many commentators. The world is black or white. The beautiful game is good. Agents are bad - parasites who suck the life out of football clubs before retiring to their yachts, plotting new ways to unsettle players who would otherwise remain loyal to their existing clubs.
We paid agents £5 million last year and committed to a further £3.5m. Some of that money relates to contracts signed last year. Some of it relates to contracts that are a few seasons old. At Manchester United, we try to manage our agents' payments over the term of their players' contracts. It helps to keep the agents interested in keeping the players at Old Trafford.
No one would pretend that's an insignificant sum of money. But it's not been paid out for nothing. It represents less than 10 per cent of the associated transfer fees and a lot less if you take into account the players' contract value, which is the best reflection of the investment a club makes. In my view that figure is reasonable.
Of course I'd like fees to be lower. But while we may be alone in declaring what we spend on agents, we are not alone in operating in the market. All top clubs pay agents. Don't berate us for being honest about our numbers.
There's a certain mystique about football agents, but essentially they are advisers. They provide players with necessary services and their fees are structured to reflect the fact that such services apply over the entire length of their contract. Some players are capable of negotiating their own deals, but most have representatives. I have no problem with that. In a world where football is increasingly complex and commercial, contracts need expert scrutiny. Rather than leave it to teenage footballers, agents coordinate that activity, as I do on behalf of Manchester United and the club's shareholders.
In other cases, we have paid agents for helping to secure a player's services. Sometimes, there is no relationship between clubs when a player is identified. Agents can do initial soundings with clubs about player availability on a no-names basis. Again, this is a legitimate service and I would not expect them to do it free of charge.
And just because a player professes to want to come only to United, it doesn't mean the agent has not provided a service. The player's desire to play at Old Trafford should hopefully result in a lower transfer fee.
Agents are not perfect. But the system needs reform, not scrapping. I'd like to think that our experience can help the authorities in any process to improve financial disclosure and regulation.
Players and clubs have a right to take advice. Did Manchester United receive value for the £5m spent last year? A glance at our squad list tells me the answer is an unequivocal yes.