Ronald Keoman has been saying that the Southampton Academy cannot supply players, the under 21 squad does not enough talent in it, for the club to use. The money that Southampton have ploughed into their academy and training ground (£30m just on the facilities) and they cannot generate players of quality, what chance do we have? http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...emy-recent-21-fixture-leaves-unimpressed.html
Koeman is ranting because he's under pressure. Their academy is brilliant. I blasted the U21 fixtures earlier in the season though, the Div 1 fixtures are a joke.
Recently their academy has produced Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott, Luke Chambers, Adam Lallana, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Luke Shaw, to name but a few. The academy at Southampton is rated as one of, if not the best in the country. I'd love to have an academy half as 'unsuccessful' as the one at Southampton. They'll have comfortably recouped their academy investment with players sold.
I think the whole academy argument is much overplayed. Of course it can be a struggle finding the young kids with the natural ability to thrive and come through, but I think the process has much to do with that struggle. Many kids are ensconced into football far too early. It's my opinion that many of the youth academy/development players are far too mollycoddled and football focussed. Natural ability is not always an automatic link to desire and application. But then there is an opposite viewpoint, the kids who are released (sometimes quite late) for various reasons, such as size (when still growing!), speed, athleticism, attitude, skills - how often do we then hear of these kids, the ones who persevere, or get another lucky break who get back in the loop and become professional; often at a high level? Maybe not the last factor, but what about the academy staff and decision makers; how often do they get it wrong and not only release kids prematurely, but keep kids because they 'fit the bill', the template of a future star? It's an imprecise process, but it has it's measurable successes and it also has some measurable failures. It, like it's kids, is very much in a development phase and will improve if it is allowed to; giving it a bottom-line target (at this stage) is not how to go about it. Perhaps what could be discussed is just what an academy is and how that could change.
The area I disagree with regarding academies is some don't allow academy players to play other football games/activities. Some of the best players on the planet have honed their skills playing street and park football. Rooney/Ronaldo from documentaries would be two who played football at every opportunity. Closer to home and a recent acquisition - Sam Clucas would be a prime example of being released (twice from memory) but still continued with self belief. I think that is why he has been a revelation this season, his desire to be a success.
That is the focus on my post, Southampton, a club seen as leading the way in producing players from its academy, now does not have enough players that impress its manager. Mind you, it seems that it took some sort of special effort for him to watch a game. My extended family includes a former Hull City apprentice, he never made it. Too many players competing for his position. At this moment of time, one close family member is in training with a county cricket development junior team. The set up has just changed and he has wasted three years, because he played for the "wrong" local junior team. "Oh, he isn't playing at the right standard" was an excuse after three trials, even though he was one of the highest ranked bowlers in the local league and has his teams is trained by a current county coach. Inter club politics and selection by factors other than ability, have ruined the supply of players in this country. There has to be a flaw in the system, when a city the size of Hull does not produce players. Maybe the new status of Hull Cities academy will help. I do not think for one moment that watching one game will give a true picture of a player. The managers need to know their whole family of players.
Koeman has already used a number of players from the academy in the last few seasons. As I've said, Koeman is under a lot of pressure, and he's looking for all sorts of excuses.
I watched him closely on Saturday and wasn't that impressed although to be fair to the lad he was only on for some of the second half but in that time he missed a sitter with his head and give the ball away to much, may be he was trying to hard and hopefully will come good but from the short periods I have seen him I've got to agree with what you say.
A perfect summary, though it really does beg the question as to why we've not let Luer go out on loan to a L1 side, I believe there has been interest? If he's not ready yet, would he not learn more by actually playing week in week out?
A problem Luer will have too is that he isn't likely to be suited playing with most of our strikers, he'd have to have someone like Diame supporting him, Jelavic would have been a decent partner. Aluko didn't tee him up when he was through and I can't see Hernandez passing up any chance on goal for him. He'd have to do his own donkeywork and unless he gets a run of games he isn't going to get to that sort of level yet. I thought he did well up front on his own in the cup V Leicester and that match showed his potential though seemed to tire noticeably and have less impact in the second half and was disappointed he didn't get a run v Man City which would have brought him on a lot and boosted his confidence.
The American high school and college system is a much better for developing and identifying talent than the internal academies we have in football. It also gives athletes that don't make the grade an education which sets them up for life, many youth players give up or neglect their education to try and make it in football and are left with nothing when they are released in their early twenties.
I do not think that Keoman is under any pressure, he has a few dressing room issues that he is sorting out. The supporters know that it is the players who want away, who are to blame. Southampton are playing like we have at times, dominating matches, not scoring and losing because of player error. Their squad is more than capable of being in the top six, but they constantly lose games at the moment against the run of play. Mind you that old saying "the player did not turn up" applies to Southampton literally!
Southampton finished 8th in the U21 Premier League last season (they're currently 8th this season) and they won the U21 Premier League Cup. There might not be as many players knocking on the first team door as there have been in previous seasons, but these things often go in cycles and they're hardly having a disastrous time.
Someone said it's on Welsh TV tonight, anyone seen it advertised? Or will it just be on Sky free channels? Should mean there's a feed for it though.
