The Risks of Academy Football

This week I put out the article I wrote back in December last year titled “Are Academies restricting creativity?”. The article looked at the talent of Luis Suarez and posed the question had Suarez been at an English Academy would he have become the player he is today? The answer I believe everyone would agree with is no. Suarez is a free spirit, he is raw, somewhat uncontrollable and incredibly creative. He hasn’t been coached but has developed his talent playing, learning, refining and creating. The question is, do our Academies develop this type of personality?

As Dennis Bergkamp says in his book Stillness and Speed (please make sure you read this!) "You can see the difference with Luis Suarez when he was here (at Ajax). Of course, maybe you wouldn't agree with the things he did, but he was always trying to create something, always thinking. "How can I get the best from this situation? Do I have to pull the shirt of his defender to get in front of him? Do I get out of position to control the ball?" His mind is always busy thinking. He's very creative.”

Suarez has worked hard, fought hard to get where he is. He is certainly not what one would call ‘conventional’. Which begs the question, where are our unconventional players? Where are the rogues, the creative sparks, those different players? Unfortunately these players go two places; they are not accepted by the conformist ‘elite’ academies or worse still those with creativity and ingenuity have their creative side coached out of them. 

We have produced a culture in our elite development schools where conformity, behaving to the norm and functional play has dominated our youth development. And what has this led to? A culture of talent crucifying, of moulding players into robotic players who lack the creative spark to reach the demands of the modern game. Is it any surprise we only have 17 English players in this season's Champions League, compared to Spain's 82?!

After I put out the article I received an email from a parent which I would like to share;

“My son is at a cat 1 academy and has just gone in to the under 12s. I am very concerned that his skill and creativity is being coached out of him. He has changed a lot as a player in the last two years because as you say if you don’t fit in with what is asked then you are released.

I couldn't agree more when you say to help these kids we need to create a culture of ‘street football’ which allows players to play and develop their own creativity and decisions away from ‘coaches’ who make decisions for them. 

I have found myself lately looking for futsal football near us to ensure his skill is not taken away by the academy. He is already this season being asked to train more which I am worried will lead to more conformity.”

He ended by asking this question “I would be really interested to know given the above information if it was your son would you be looking at trying to take him out of the academy.”

What a great question and one I will be happy to answer. The most worrying comment was this, “I can't help but think he would be better away.” 

The pitfalls of going in too young

Now at this stage in my life I do not have a child of my own yet have worked with many young players in the past decade and have unfortunately seen the same trend emerge. When a young player goes in to an Academy, especially between the ages of 8-12 years, the players go backwards. What I mean by this is that they lose their individuality and their skill levels drop. 

Of course the irony is that what made the player ‘special’ before they entered the Academy, what made them appealing to the scouts and coaches, is the thing that often gets taken away! This trend is happening all too much I’m afraid and the issue tends to be at the Foundation phase level, 9-11 years. Add in a year earlier with the ‘Pre-Academies’ and you see a four year development pathway which appears to forsake skill, 1v1’s and individual expression for team functionality and ‘passing’ with two touches. 

What is happening is that these Academies are taking individuals and seeking to mould them into ‘strong’ teams forgetting that the overall purpose they should be seeking to achieve is to develop stronger individuals. This obsession with ‘team play’ and even tactical systems is wrong at this age. Yes understand how to combine with a teammate, understand the importance of defending (in a 1v1), play 4v4 and gain an understanding of the principles of the game, yet ultimately what these environments should be doing is developing excellent individuals who have the ‘complete’ skillset in terms of technical skills which can help them achieve more at the 12-16 level in terms of increased tactical demands. 

Unfortunately too much is being coached and out-coached of these young players which for me is damaging their long term development. The ‘Foundation’ phase is just this, laying the foundation for future development. This foundation therefore needs to be of a high quality level, which means the focus should be on developing excellent mastery of the ball, of developing of vast repertoire of 1v1 moves, not just being able to beat a player in front, but turning and protecting the ball with a player beside, or receiving and creating space with a player behind. The 1v1 skills which can be developed in these 3 – 4 years can fill of a curriculum of work to cover this period. 

Too many think 1v1 is just scissors and stepovers, this is naïve. However if it is done well a player can develop a full skillset of moves and understanding of when to use these moves which will help produce a very capable and confident player. Therefore as the players moves up they should be able to deal with the demands of any positon. 

As well as the 1v1 move set we are talking about passing and striking technique with both feet (which I still don’t see enough of in Academies), as well as receiving skills with all parts of the foot, being able to turn, shield, protect the ball in all manner of ways. There is so much a player can develop in these ‘key years’ and the worry appears to be that for all the hours they are spending in these Academies they are in fact wasting their time and stunting their development.

Better without?

I know of a parent who refuses to take his son into an Academy for fear of his lad losing his creative, skilful play by being over-coached and having the individual talent taken out of him. He is very fearful of this happening. Instead he has sought to give his lad other experiences away from Academies which have helped to develop his skills and give him the freedom to express much more than an Academy has proven to be. 

He says that players he saw at 7/8 years who moved into Academies have gone backwards, have lost that spark, that creativity which was so prominent before they went in. And now when he compares his son to them it is another level. He is confident he has made the right decision to keep his son away, that is until he finds the ‘right place’ for him. 

This is another element which parents should take into account. Making the best choice for the son’s short and long term development is massive. From my personal experience if I was to choose a place for my son at 9/10 years old in the Midlands I would seek to get him into Birmingham City’s Academy. Why? Because they are doing what I believe is the right thing in terms of developing and nurturing skilful and creative players. I know my son would go forward and not backward in this environment. Can I say the same about others in the area? Afraid not. 

And with the EPPP in place now that commitment to an Academy is a massive choice for the future success he has in the game. Too many parents commit far too quickly as the lure of Academy football is big and then when it goes badly are often held by contractual agreements and the burden of compensation to move elsewhere. They should take more time to consider the club, the philosophy, the development of other players and the long term potential of their player having opportunities to play first team football before they sign the contract. The rashness of some is often because the recruitment team in the Academy dangle the opportunity in the players face, or make out it is ‘now or never’. Parents should be more rational and reserved in jumping to any decision, this is the future of their lad here.

A better pathway?

What is best for me personally would be to have players opt to join Academies at 13/14 years of age. At this time there is usually a better gauge on the mindset of the player, his maturity and ability to learn and develop. And hopefully he has more skills and creative spark than if he had been in an Academy system. Now of course this will come down to the opportunity and fortune he has had in terms of school teachers, grassroots coaches and parents as to how far he has developed. We all know that uneducated grassroots coaches can be more damaging than well qualified Academy coaches. That element of luck comes in to play once more.

What I would say is this in terms of foundation phase in Academies. Pay these coaches more money! If you wish to genuinely develop excellent individuals then you will need to have elite, quality coaches who can nurture talent and develop more skill and ingenuity in players. At this time I cannot help but see young and inexperienced coaches working with the younger players. 

The culture still persists in terms of “the older age group, the better the level and coach”. We need coaches of young players who love the role they are in, who love working and nurturing young talent and who understand the needs of these players. We cannot have well qualified, excellent coaches at this level when they are paid £15-18k?!  This is disrespectful to the role and highlights how this phase is perceived.

The pathway for a player to become a professional has become harder and more challenging. Therefore the needs on the players becomes higher. What a player does between the ages of 6-12 years, in terms of football and other sports, can have a massive impact on their future success. What a parent decides to do with their son, the choices they make and the plan they set out, will play a major role in the future development of their son. 

Unfortunately too many believe that getting in to an Academy at 8 and 9 years is the answer. Not always. Too many clubs at this age play the scattergun approach scouting method which involves bringing dozens of players and seeing which one hits. This can have a negative impact on the players mentality and enjoyment if they are deemed ‘not good enough’. Yet those who are selected may have equally as damaging a time if they are over-coached and the skill, expression and creativity is taken out of them.

The parent who emailed me has genuine concerns for his son’s development and is worried that the Academy his son is at has sent him backwards in terms of development. He is seeking futsal and other areas to help make sure his son keeps his skill and creativity high, yet will his Academy coaches still promote the dreaded two touch approach in games? Will they allow him to express and try things? That is a concern. 

This is a lesson for parents of younger players who are seeking Academy football or being swayed by scouts into these environments. They need to consider if it is necessary at this time? Is their son not better staying with his grassroots side (if he has an enthusiastic coach who develops the player skills), or what about local futsal sessions or technical skill schools (yes this market is becoming too business driven yet there are some good ones and the key is they don’t commit the long term future of the player to them and they often do promote positive development in terms of expression and confident play). And what about 1-1 training, helping the young player develop their skills with a well qualified coach? Personally I am still surprised more parents don’t seek this valuable development tool.

The key message of this article is to be conscious of moving to Academies too early. There are many other options available and I believe that the time to truly move into the Academy system is between 13-14 years. I wrote recently that The FA should seek to offer full time schooling and coaching for 12-16's, house them, educate and coach them. The key is they select players at the 'right' age. I believe that looking at a 9 year old and determining if they will become a professional is almost impossible. Often it comes a self-fulfilling prophecy. 

From my experience these players come with ‘more’ to their game in terms of rawness, expression and importantly a genuine feeling of awe of being in the Academy. Too many of those 8 and 9 year olds who have been in Academies for years take it for granted, become ungrateful and entitled in their attitude and approach. This is damaging for their long term future as some stop respecting the environment and opportunity, thinking too highly of themselves as they’ve been praised for so many years. 

The ‘culture’ of Academies need to change, paying the youth coaches more viable and respectful wages would help, yet having an appreciation for developing exceptional individuals and moving away from ‘functional team players’ will be important also. 

The Whitehouse Address @The_W_Address

For more on English youth development, coaching and the future game check out my books "The Way Forward : Solutions to England's Football Failings 

& the new book "Universality | The Blueprint for Soccer's New Era"