Pretty Boy Lee wrote:Ted Hughes wrote:Pretty Boy Lee wrote:Piccsnumberoneblue wrote:The price of English players is certainly going through the roof. So much better value abroad. You could almost say other club's greed is ruining English football!
Forcing clubs to take inferior players instead of owning up to how shit our youth development has become is what's ruining football.
I think you've hit the nail on the head, at least that's what we are seeing right now. But I do think there will be a lot more talent around in five ten years from now.
I've said before, that instead of enforicing the use of 'homegrown' players, there should be an incentive to use them ie extra places on the subs' bench for young players.
But I don't think the people who put forward these ideas are doing it for the good of football, they are doing it for the same reasons as UEFA; to try & keep things as they are.
Sad but true. I've been saying for years if we just ripped it up and started over like Germany we'd be decent within a decade. I'm not as convinced as you that the talent is growing though. I look at the silly money being mentioned for young English attackers and I immediately think of David Bentley, Aaron Lennon, that small lad at Blackburn, hell even SWP. They get so much hype because they have a bit if pace and can driblle, but as soon as they are expected to kick on and move up to bigger clubs or international competition they can't cope.
Yes but if those lads had been at City as we are now, from a young age, they would all be footballers who could hapilly exchange passes with David Silva & slot into various formations, rather than all having been taught various conflicting old school methods by faceless no marks of the mentality of Stuart Pearce & Graham Taylor.
The players you have mentioned there, are all perfectly good enough talent wise, to have played for most decent international sides. It's their decision making or in some cases attitude, which is all wrong.
Bentley imo, was a better footballer than Beckham, like a two footed version, but had no particular role, no particular method, & no discipline. He was a Pirlo type character at Arsenal, in centre mid spraying passes around, then suddenly he's a winger at Blackburn. SWP was a No 10. Wingback in Keegan's team.
They go from one coaching method to another, one side plays pass & move, the next hits everything down the channels, etc etc.
Our kids are being taught to play football, & no matter how much the old philistines complain if we lose a goal by passing the ball, they are going to keep doing it, forever. So whatever is thrown at them in the future, they will at least be able to pass a football & play possession, without shitting themselves.
I haven't seen any other club do that to our standard, but I do see about 500% more intelligence in the way kids play now, in general, compared to when we last won the youth cup.