Sorry this is going to be a long one. I always get suspicious when young coaches get a semi talking about a week in the summer spent at Real Madrid and Barcelona learning how they do it and then go back to their lower league clubs. Real Madrid and Barcelona can wait until clubs are on the verge of European football, they should follow more down to earth successes for instance in Brittany, France there are 4 ligue clubs in the 4 regions. Rennes, Lorient and Brest are in ligue 1 and Guingamp have been in ligue 1 but now in ligue 2. Only Rennes can pull crowds comparable or bigger than we do, the others rely on 10 to 14,000 crowds but look at the talent they have unleashed on the footballing world. Rennes:- Petr Cech, Dembele (now at Barcelona), Yoan Gourcuff, Mikael Sivestre, Sylvian Wiltord, Mendy and Raphina (at Leeds), Sarr (Watford) Kim Kalstrom, Alexander Frei and many more. Lorient:- Morgan Amalfitano, Jordan Ayew, Michael Ciani, Jean Claude Darcheville, Kevin Gamiero, Andre Gignac, Koscielny (Arsenal), Jeremy Morel, Raphael Gurreiro and again many more. Both of these clubs have superb academies, they have a superb network of scouts worldwide from South America to Africa and Eastern Europe, they pick up young talented players from these countries, they raid the lower French ligues for emerging talent and they pick up discarded academy players from around the world. Brest:- Jorge Higuain, Julio Cesar, David Ginola, Bernard Lama, Paul Le Guen, Franck Ribery and several more. Guingamp:- Didier Drogba, Anthony Konkaert, Konscielny (started his career here before moving to Tours and later Lorient and ultimately Arsenal), Florent Malouda and several others. Our scouting is poor in comparison and not far reaching enough, our recruitment is poor in comparison, to often we sign players like Wells for instance on the basis that he is a striker who can score goals, with absolutely no thought as to whether we can play to his style or he to ours or whether we have players capable of supplying him with suitable ammunition. In midfield instead of buying good players who suit our style and will compliment the better players that we have, we just sign random players who just add to an already failing midfield. I would like to see a far more joined up approach to our recruitment. Brian Tinnion is doing a brilliant job as loans manager and players are coming back after learning their trade far better for the experience and that is an area that is a major success for us. We now need somebody who can a similar job with our scouting and recruitment.
Reading your thread and this article from the Gaurdian sprung into my mind and this last paragraph of intent. https://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/jul/31/lee-johnson-bristol-city-championship “It’s just a great city to live in, it’s a good football club with a good owner, who has got the right intentions,” says Johnson. “If we can work together – and Mark Ashton can be the glue in it all – and let me deal with developing the football side then the world is your oyster. I am here to do my very best. Will we achieve the promised land? Who knows, but we will certainly die in a ditch for that honour.”
Part of the problem is managers like to bring in their own men, men they have worked with in past and men that they 'think' they can trust. A lot of that is the self survival instinct, because if the manager gets sacked usually the number 2's do as well, one less threat in the background looking at your job.
