http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/12040/7313640/Reds-win-race-for-whizzkid Liverpool have secured the signing of MK Don's highly-rated teenager Seyi Ojo. i think theres something wrong in any club taking a 14 year old in. Is'nt that just too young? Or did comolli pick up bad habits from father wenger's school for boys? needless to say i don't agree with these type of deals even if it gives my club another kid who might do something in 5 years
I understand what your sayin, but I disagree Liverpool have got to look after Liverpool,and not worry about the moral side of signin a footballer at 14 for £2m If we didnt do this theres a queue of clubs who would, makin it even harder for us to succeed in the long term It may not be morally right, but this is great news for Liverpool
I think Liverpool signing these kids are a good thing. It puts them in an envioronment where they have mentors, proper role models and they are part of an organisation that puts their education first. These kids will still go to school and they HAVE to go to college. it's win win
14 is old enough for the academy, so that'll be why he's been brought in. Today everyone wants to find 'the next...' and pay very little for them, and to do that you have to get them young. There should be a limit though, and not clubs fighting to sign a 9 year old or some silly age. Many players excel when young and suddenly everyone else catches up with them when they get a bit older. 14 is probably as low as you should go.
i think 14 is too young to move a kid across england and away from parents. i think the rules are a load of balls to be honest. I can see the point about liverpool looking after itself but the point must be that the laws across europe need to change as in spain they don't have this but we've seen fabregas come here for "scholarship money" its crazy. cos in russia you find young kids out of brazil being touted around so ok maybe our club is a paragon but GOd there's a lot of abuse going on elsewhere that makes the trade a bad thing.
Never heard of boarding schools, kids as young as 11 leave home in order to go to some of the best schools in the country. I do believe that football as a whole should adopt the Brazillian rule that a player cannot leave for a club in another country till they are 18, this would of course mean that Arsenal's 'youth policy' (ie steal European clubs 15yr old) would be scuppered but it would put more emphasis on the academys to produce British youngsters that are ready for 1st team action
sure... and you're telling me every kid who can kick a ball is also from a millionaire home and daddy would have sent them off to st trinians or eton anyway? i'm willing to bet that an awful awful lot of young lads up and down this country do this and effectively get nothing out of it at all. Oh there's examples like beckham on the one hand but i'd reckone there's 10s of 1000s of the opposite side of the coin flipping burgers cos their education was tosh as a result. I do agree on the thought of banning cross country movement under a certain age... most likely by banning payments to parents and these "scholarships" I've no real issue signing up to a club to come at 16 but not to get 100k for doing so nor moving at 14 or some such.
Talent is Talent. Olympian athletes are plucked for their talent as young as 8 years old (especially gymnastics), I don't think it should be any different in football. ****, it even happens in moto gp, speedway etc u get 10 year olds riding for kawasaki etc!
and the unseen damage? doesn't matter? kids hwo don't make it are not exactly looked after across the world are they? should they be? I don't think its like taking a chance on the lottery and if your numbers don't come up its ok... its the developmental stage of your life and decision made can close a lot of doors.. look its all right for wayne rooney or steven gerrard who wouldn't exactly go to college etc but the reality of what some kids end up as after not making it is pretty sad sometimes... i think it goes unseen. in the end say you go do swmming and your parents get up at 5am or 4am every morning to bring you there then to school etc and you don't make the olympics... well thats one thing... plucking a young boy out fo his family home and sticking him in an academy maybe 500miles form home.... i just don't think its right and one of these days we have to ask about hwo eve nthe successful kids seem to act pretty badly... you have to wonder about it. we did have ruels about cactchment areas so kids would go to clubs close to them when young. i think we need to protect them unitl gcse at least.
Not a fan of boarding schools, eh, Mito? Did it scar you for life? One too many times losing at 'Soggy Biscuit'?
There is a hell of a difference between parents sending their kids to boarding schools and kids being shipped-off to clubs's football academies. I would agree that a worldwide adoption of the Brazillian rule would be a good start. However, I agree with MITO that prior to 17 UK girls and boys should remain with their home clubs. However that does not mean that arrangements cannot be made for them to be part of a 'bigger' clubs youth scheme.
No it's not. Schools like Well's Cathedral etc give huge scholarships to talented music pupils. Many are from Germany for example and put there by their parents, you think they're all gonna be successful?? If a kid at the age of 14 has a chance of hitting it big time in the prem why is that a bad thing, surely it's better than never moving at all and never knowing what could have been. I, of course, am not saying they should quit school - Sterling still juggles his exams etc around training.
If you want to take Wells Cathederal School as an example then you are truly overlooking at least one major difference. At Wells those children also benefit from a very high standard of academic education alongside their musical studies. With the best will in the world our football academies cannot provide that. Further, you are not comparing like with like. Whilst a 14 year old musician may not reach the greatest hights, their musical skill is not dependant upon their physical development. Far more promising footballers will fail to make the grade for reasons other than the level of their skill.
Football academies provide decent education add well. I'll use colchester as I know their youth policy, colchester'a youth players all have the chance to go to King George VI 6th form and study what they want, I can't imagine Liverpool being any different, you don't seriously believe they spend their lives either on pitch or watching football videos do you
Whilst it pains me to say it, there is a world of difference in the educational standard and opportunities that are available at good public schools in the UK than in the state sector. Wells Cathederal may not be the best public school in Somerset but it's academic success rate surpasses all but a very few of the state schools in the county. I don't see either Liverpool or Everton ernroling their youth players at Merchant Taylors or Liverpool College.
IMO honestly and it is only my opinion we are mixing things. 14 year olds and 16 year olds are a radically different proposition. the good clubs in england and the back of beyond in russia are also two different things. I feel the only way for this to be fixed and stop exploitation of kids in south america, africa and other locations like asia soon is to truely prevent this happening by law. did anyone here seriously not thing those to chinese boys (children) didn't just look bad on our website being highlighted as a means to sell the club in asia... those boys would travel across the world for a vain hope maybe... not have a clue and end up learning english without getting an education like a local boy would. I feel thats wrong somehow... and its just my opinion. Let them come at 16 or develop the local club connections like we are with nationale in uruguay. For the record the reality is while the best will in the world amy be applied boys are more likely to act like paul gascoigne away from home than they are to act like paul scholes....
there are only a very few footballers who are also well educated. as in o levels and uni degrees. i think a hidden sotry exists of what happens to guys on the scrap heap but then of course a 10 year old linked to a big club is likely not to try as hard at school as we all know guys who fancied themselves at school yeah? parental supervision is a must for me and yes a lot of the guys i knew who thought they were it on the pitch in school didn't listen to parents anyway.
