Comments on: Does Platini have a point about trade in teenagers?

By: online sports guy

online sports guy — Sat, 03 Nov 2007 00:01:43 +0000

Nachiket, I’m not a Southampton fan but I would not suggest that Arsene Wenger discovered Theo Walcott. He had been playing consistently well in the reserve team and the first team before he came to the attention of the Arsenal manager.

He merely had enough money to pay for him. Platini’s comments are inflammatory but he does have a point. The big teams drain away the talent and it is sad because some of these players never make it at a big club and would have been better off staying where they were.

By: Nachiket Kelkar

Nachiket Kelkar — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 17:07:57 +0000

Well, Kevin the same holds true with experienced players as well. Fernando Morientes who made a high profile entry at Liverpool only to shipped out of England in two seasons and Chelsea’s Shevchenko are the best recent examples. (Difficulties in adjusting to a different league and country)

But look at some examples of young ones - Fabregas, Van Persie at Arsenal, Lennon at Spurs, today they are highly rated at this young age, of course for their footballing skills, but is not because even the clubs are recognised around the world? And all of them have settled in so well.

Also a test case is Theo Walcott who is now a star footballer in England. How many people knew about him and his life at lower division club Southampton before Arsene Wenger discovered him?

By: Kevin Fylan

Kevin Fylan — Fri, 02 Nov 2007 10:51:24 +0000

Mike is right about the kids who don’t make it. The big clubs are casting their nets ever wider and it inevitably means they’re going to take more risks, offering big contracts to players who just won’t be that successful (whether because of talent or difficulties in adjusting to life on the other side of the world).

By: Mike Whalley

Mike Whalley — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 20:42:56 +0000

I worry about the gathered talent who don’t make it. All the kids who spend their teens away from family and friends then never break into the ‘big time’.

Arsenal’s approach is far from unique, I remember Dutch football being held up as a glowing example of youth development twenty years ago, when they were doing the same thing.

By: Jan

Jan — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 18:36:18 +0000

I’m with Platini on this one. Young players might train in a better environment at a big club, though I wonder if this makes a big difference. In the end, the small clubs that developed the young talent must have done something right as well.

So, what happens is that the rich big clubs get the best young talent basically for free. That’s obviously a smart business model, given the fact that you could go on and sell this talent for €10m-€30m again. Money that would otherwise do wonders for a smaller club, but now stacks up where the money is anyway.

Bayern Munich’s Toni Kroos is a perfect example. He was trained at Rostock but moved to Bayern Munich at the age of sixteen. Rostock is in deep financial trouble and will spend their season trying to avoid relegation. Kroos could have been a big help for the club on the pitch and he could have helped the club’s finances with a multimillion transfer later.

By: Nachiket Kelkar

Nachiket Kelkar — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 16:46:45 +0000

I would infact say Wenger is a genious. He and his team spots talent at a young age from around the world and then bring them to Arsenal to make them stars. All this spending far less money than on big stars, who may be past their prime or are in their prime but then at a hefty price tag.

And Arsenal being among the top clubs in Europe, the youngsters get quality training, infrastructure, quality opponents… that will groom them to reach the top.

By: Daily Dose 11.01.07 - World Football - The Offside - Soccer News and Opinion from leagues around the world

Thu, 01 Nov 2007 15:30:44 +0000

[...] Speaking of teens, Platini doesn’t like Arsenal hording the best ones (Reuters Soccer Blog) [...]

By: Elena

Elena — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 14:45:54 +0000

I feel a bit sorry for the lad Bruna, having to put up with being called the New Messi all the time when he hasn’t done anything at all yet. Still the million quid contract might ease the pain a bit.

By: John

John — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 14:34:34 +0000

In an ideal situation, each team should set up their own youth development and turn the local lads into fighting machines. But when it comes to talents, it doesn’t work that way. Money talks.

I don’t mind Arsene Wenger collecting talents from around the world so long as each player emerges from from his tutelage better than before. No point going to a super rich club and languish there.

By: Brad

Brad — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 13:50:49 +0000

These criticisms are ridiculous, Wenger is a talented manager who knows how to run a club. In fact with a club like Arsenal, the young players will most likely develop into better overall talent than if they spent their teenage years at a club like Millwall.

If Wenger were to wait and buy the players when they were older and more talented, he would be criticized for that too…just like Mourinho at Chelsea.