Middlesbrough chairman Steve Gibson says the club's facilities are a great selling point to potential signings.
"Afonso Alves was gobsmacked when he first came here and saw Rockliffe Park and then the Riverside."
The Teessiders like to do their business in private, but were caught out when they brought Alves to the north-east for a hush-hush visit, only to run into fans who were having Sunday lunch at the stadium.
Gibson said: "It was always planned to take Alves to the Riverside and show him around - what was not planned was to bump into dozens of supporters enjoying their Sunday lunch."