In sport, I don't ever believe in keeping players who do not want to be there - working out an appropriate fee is the only question/issue
This is my general view. I understand the legislation of it all, I'm an adult - but it appears that what most are indirectly proposing here is that it is only suitable or right for a player to leave or want to leave on a Bosman, having fulfilled his contract.
The fact that the large majority of transfers involve a fee shows that things often change for one or more parties during the life of a contract, and we then come to the table. For me, it's almost bad sportsmanship or whatever the better description would be to just refuse if a player is unhappy.
A player being unavailable, in reality, is largely linked to his own happiness at his club, not the fact that he is contracted. That's how it should be, IMO. Messi has been 'unavailable' pretty much his whole career. Not because of his contract. Teams have not been trying to buy him every year on the basis that there has been no real indication he wants to leave. That's all. If there was an occurance that led to it being publicly known he wants out of Barcelona, many clubs would circle, under the thinking 'Messi might be available'. His contract is still the same contract, but the fact he now wants to leave means that clubs will now try to agree the right compensation with his club.
Do people think Ronaldo was 'for sale' when he left us? Of course he wasn't. He only became for sale, to Real Madrid, at the right price, when it became known that he only wanted to play for Madrid and not Real.
It is unrealistic and simplistic to say Ronaldo should have been signing one year deals on the basis that he may want to go to Real one day. He should, rightly, think that if and when the time comes, he should just inform his club he wants to leave. The contract is not worthless. The contract for us £80m, as opposed to nothing. That should be it's purpose. Not to force people to stay.