Liverpool FC Forum

[habit]

Not exactly the signing I was hoping for but with Barca interested....could be an interesing signing.

[Alex G.]

We should do the same with british kids.

[Reg]

Why dont we justy relocate the club to Spain and join La Liga?   Getin' a bit pissedd off with this total focus on spanish players.

Rafa lad, you're in England and when in England........

[bigmick]

Agreed Reginald, it's all getting a bit silly really.

[dawson99]

wait wait wait... everyone complains when we go for an english lad coz too much money... now everyone moaning we dont go for an english lad?

fickles the word

[Fauxy]

  We are signing this guy for a five year deal and hes 15... he must be good!!

[SupitsJonF]

wait wait wait... everyone complains when we go for an english lad coz too much money... now everyone moaning we dont go for an english lad?

fickles the word

Dont think 15 year old english players will cost 18 mil...

[roberto green]

This Jesus guy can hear what your saying about him you konw and I don't think he is too happy, he wants each of ya's to go to church on sunday!!!!

[bigmick]

Quite often with young players they aren't mature mentally, still young lads who need a figure they can relate to, a surrogate father figure if you like. They are away from Home for longish periods, staying in digs etc and away from their family and friends. They need to feel a sense of belonging, a bit like when you start a new job and one of the old timers takes you under their wing and shows you the ropes.

I wonder what it must be like for young British kids going to the adademy at Liverpool right now. Half the coaching staff, the kit man, the coach driver, the cleaner and the tea lady will be speaking Spanish. The coaching staff will be talking to the young Spanish kids in Spanish, the young Spanish kids will be "technically superior", no doubt being able to do 1484 keepie uppies while eating a Big Mac and fries at the same time. The young British kids who have excelled through the local leagues and school system with their physicality, will be dismayed that each time they tackle someone he ends up in a crumpled heap on the floor. Humour will be different, there'll be little cliques and groups and factions.

When the kids go home and their Dad says "how you getting on mate, are you enjoying it" I wonder what the answer will be. Meanwhile, other clubs not a million miles from Liverpool and some from the city itself hoover up all the best young kids from within 100 miles of Anfield. I wonder if Steven Gerrard, by all accounts a very shy and withdrawn young man would break through in todays system. Jamie Carragher? Not the most technically gifted but a heart of a lion underneath. I wonder.

Until we start producing some young players again, the questions will roll on. To be truthful it all started under Houllier with his obsession with all things French. The likes of Gerrard, Owen, Fowler, Carragher and the like were already at the club long before the Frenchman. With Houllier came the likes of Grgory Vignal, along with various "new Zidane's". Under Benitez, there have been lots of "wonderkids" but no substance.

Ever since we undertook a radical overhaul of the academy, to "bring it up into the 21st century" things changed. Ever since we "widened the net to take in the football hotbeds of the World", things changed. Ever since we did all of that, we haven't produced any players. Where were we when Micah Richards was signing for Man City, when Johnnie Evans was signing for Man Utd, or Frazer Cambell? I'll tell you where we were, we were poncing about in Europe somehwere signing a kid who'll be homesick in 18 months and will never kick a ball in the Premiership.

[bigmick]

wait wait wait... everyone complains when we go for an english lad coz too much money... now everyone moaning we dont go for an english lad?

fickles the word

"Fickles" not the word Daws at all. Some of us aren't complaining about us signing English players for a lot of money, and some of us think that we should concentrate more of our efforts on recruiting young British kids.

How is that fickle? Don't be silly.

[Reg]

Quite often with young players they aren't mature mentally, still young lads who need a figure they can relate to, a surrogate father figure if you like. They are away from Home for longish periods, staying in digs etc and away from their family and friends. They need to feel a sense of belonging, a bit like when you start a new job and one of the old timers takes you under their wing and shows you the ropes.

I wonder what it must be like for young British kids going to the adademy at Liverpool right now. Half the coaching staff, the kit man, the coach driver, the cleaner and the tea lady will be speaking Spanish. The coaching staff will be talking to the young Spanish kids in Spanish, the young Spanish kids will be "technically superior", no doubt being able to do 1484 keepie uppies while eating a Big Mac and fries at the same time. The young British kids who have excelled through the local leagues and school system with their physicality, will be dismayed that each time they tackle someone he ends up in a crumpled heap on the floor. Humour will be different, there'll be little cliques and groups and factions.

When the kids go home and their Dad says "how you getting on mate, are you enjoying it" I wonder what the answer will be. Meanwhile, other clubs not a million miles from Liverpool and some from the city itself hoover up all the best young kids from within 100 miles of Anfield. I wonder if Steven Gerrard, by all accounts a very shy and withdrawn young man would break through in todays system. Jamie Carragher? Not the most technically gifted but a heart of a lion underneath. I wonder.

Until we start producing some young players again, the questions will roll on. To be truthful it all started under Houllier with his obsession with all things French. The likes of Gerrard, Owen, Fowler, Carragher and the like were already at the club long before the Frenchman. With Houllier came the likes of Grgory Vignal, along with various "new Zidane's". Under Benitez, there have been lots of "wonderkids" but no substance.

Ever since we undertook a radical overhaul of the academy, to "bring it up into the 21st century" things changed. Ever since we "widened the net to take in the football hotbeds of the World", things changed. Ever since we did all of that, we haven't produced any players. Where were we when Micah Richards was signing for Man City, when Johnnie Evans was signing for Man Utd, or Frazer Cambell? I'll tell you where we were, we were poncing about in Europe somehwere signing a kid who'll be homesick in 18 months and will never kick a ball in the Premiership.

Excellent post Mick and your last comment is very true " signing a kid who'll be homesick in 18 months and will never kick a ball in the Premiership."

These are school kids - 15 years old. Do they want to get their first girlfriend in Liverpool, miss out on maturing outside their own environments (Italy for example is completely different environment for 18-20 year olds going to cafes etc.. rather than english pubs). These lads sit with their fathers and say 'go to Liverpool, learn, get it on your CV then there's always a club at home that will take you'.

In THAT respect our academy could be making us into a feeder club, lets face it 95% of these foreign lads WILL go home without having broken into the first team. Return on Investment?

[aCe']

agree with both you and Mick on this one Reg... its bordering on the insane now... sign some of the spanish first teamers id understand.. strong international side with some very good players etc etc... but with all thats going on and especially the sackings of the backroom staff its starting to get rather annoying not to mention insulting.. those 500 kids we sign every summer will never make the first team if wwe keep selling 25 first team players and buying a similar number every season... Why not just focus on improving on what we already have... havent be winning the u18 league for a few seasons running now ? got to the cup final and all that..etc etc.. surely that side couldnt be that bad now could it... add a kid or 2 to the group and maybe give some of the better ones a shot at some first team football every now and then...

Its quite obvious to me that while Rafa is probably a good coach and one of the better ones around, when it comes to being a manager (and with all the different aspects in the club hes trying to get heavily involved in) he is quite poor compared to some of the other names around..
In terms of transfers hes cack..
In terms of man management hes cack..
In terms of handling the media hes cack..
No wonder every other manager in the league and every other neutral fan either dont get along with him or hate him...

[Greavesie]

you're a Liverpool fan right?

[aCe']

you're a Liverpool fan right?

yea... didnt know the name of the club was changed to RafaBenetiz & Co. FC 

[Greavesie]

you're a Liverpool fan right?

yea... didnt know the name of the club was changed to RafaBenetiz & Co. FC 

it hasn't but I'm quite willing to name it after this Jesus guy 

seriously handling the media cack? I'd say he usually handles them pretty well