whenever i listen to football shows nowadays all i hear is fans bleating on about academies and how supposedly great they are. it is something which i have never fully understood. i think people generally misinterpret what academies actually are. to me, academies provide fantastic facilities for young hopefuls but by no means guarantee that any of them will make the grade.
the question is, if these academies are so good, where are all the up and coming english star players of the future? i have yet to see them. man u produced players such as scholes, butt and the nevilles in the mid nineties, and liverpool and west ham have produced to a lesser extent since. however, the thing is, countries such as argentina don't have academies, but they seem to churn out players hand over fist.
to me the best academies are playing competitive football at school and down the park every day in your spare time. when i was young, especially during school holidays i played football whenever possible and gradually improved just through persistent practice. some days my parents wouldn't see me from midday until six at night. i bet a lot of you were the same. schools thesedays tend to place more emphasis on "taking part" than winning which gives kids the wrong mentality. they are also so obsessed with academic performance that sport, particularly football, seems to take a back seat.
what do you reckon?