Confirmation that Manchester City has sent its new signing to Melbourne may cause MLS officials to think twice about some transfers, writes Michael Huguenin.

Manchester City and Melbourne City have simply used the A-League's transfer system to their advantage, but their Anthony Caceres deal may have long-term ramifications for both Football Federation Australia and Major League Soccer.

Melbourne City confirmed Tuesday (Australian time) that Caceres had joined the club on loan for the rest of the 2015-16 season, less than a week after the 23-year-old midfielder was purchased by Manchester City from the Central Coast Mariners.

The Mariners reportedly pocketed $300,000 from that transfer from City Football Group (CFG).

In the world of football, big clubs signing young talent and farming them out to affiliate teams for development is nothing new.

Italian businessman Giampaolo Pozzo runs one of the more famous multi-club partnerships. Pozzo has owned Serie A club Udinese since 1986, but in the past decade he also has purchased Granada in Spain and Watford in England. These three clubs regularly loan players to each other.

Other clubs around the world have more loose affiliations; for example Chelsea often sends younger players to Vitesse Arnhem in the Eredivisie to gain experience.

The issue in Australia is that A-League clubs are not allowed to pay transfer fees to each other. This means that only clubs with an affiliate abroad could pay a transfer via a proxy to recruit from their A-League rivals.

CFG has opened a transfer Pandora's box in the A-League.

While it may leave a sour taste in the mouth for some, the positive may be that FFA will be forced to change the A-League transfer system to something more closely resembling the rest of the world.

Like some other features that were introduced at the beginning of the A-League, the prohibition on transfer fees between clubs was mainly set up to avoid ballooning costs.

Richer clubs such as City, Melbourne Victory and Sydney FC will usually be able to pay more, but the salary cap will maintain an element of equilibrium. Plus, poorer clubs are more likely to get fair compensation if they can demand a transfer fee than under the current 'catch and release' model.



MLS' single-entity model means things won't be quite as bad as they look on the face in Australia. But, Man City could buy an impressive young talent and loan that player to NYCFC rather than the New York outfit making its own move within the league's current mechanisims.

NYCFC isn't the only club that might be able to use a similar situation to its benefit. D.C. United shares ownership with Inter of Serie A. The Colorado Rapids' owner Stan Kroenke owns a large share of Arsenal, though he might be more occupied with his NFL team's big move to Los Angeles.

What CFG has done is within the rules, but it does seem to be against the A-League's 'spirit of the game'. We've seen MLS transfers, including some involving New York City FC, do the same in the past.

After the Caceres loan move to Melbourne City was confirmed on Tuesday, Sydney FC CEO Tony Pignata made it clear he expects FFA to reconsider their transfer rules.

"The loaning of Caceres to [Melbourne] City is wrong. How can @FFA allow this?" Pignata wrote on Twitter. "There are no transfers [allowed] between @ALeague clubs yet it seems you can bypass."

Pignata added that loan deals should be allowed or that FFA could look at some sort of draft system.

"Just one point to add. What City have done is totally within the rules. I just think that current @FFA rules need to be looked at," Pignata concluded.

It is clear CFG has put some A-League clubs offside this season. Don't be surprised if MLS is watching the move with interest and thinks twice about future moves involving partner clubs.