liverpools offer of 300k seemed to swing it for the boy
Raheem Sterling
- Thread starter Addis
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I meant when he joins the club eventually.
Congrats, Raheem.
You can now look forward to playing as a defensive-forward-wingback.
You can now look forward to playing as a defensive-forward-wingback.
The Liverpool researcher on the SI forums told me that your Under-18 captain a few seasons back was released and he ended up retiring from football altogether!
Darby and Spearing are the only ones to remotely get close to the first-team and they won't make it.
Also: Paletta, Leto, Idrizaj, Hobbs, El Zhar, Plessis, Mellor, Guthrie...
Your Under-18s produce solid results; your reserves produce solid results; but you haven't got anyone remotely close to Gerrard and Carragher since... Gerrard.
In addition your academy is piss-full of players. With more professional players on the books than any other club in the Premier League there's far too much competition in the reserves. Is it any surprise that nobody comes through?
Darby and Spearing are the only ones to remotely get close to the first-team and they won't make it.
Also: Paletta, Leto, Idrizaj, Hobbs, El Zhar, Plessis, Mellor, Guthrie...
Your Under-18s produce solid results; your reserves produce solid results; but you haven't got anyone remotely close to Gerrard and Carragher since... Gerrard.
In addition your academy is piss-full of players. With more professional players on the books than any other club in the Premier League there's far too much competition in the reserves. Is it any surprise that nobody comes through?
Plessis? Hobbs? El Zhar? Paletta? Leto? Idrizaj? I am not sure of your point. None of these players have come entirely through the Liverpool ranks. Christ, we bought Guthrie off you lot. Maybe you ruined him.
That we produce no youth players says more about our youth recruitment, than it does our youth development.
Our youth set-up is shite for sure, and is nowhere on the scale of City, Utd or West Ham, but it doesn't ruin players.
That said, things are looking up on that front. Players like Pacheco and Kelly among others are now on the verge of the first team.
Raheem Sterling too isn't going to come through the ranks, just like those players above.
Guthrie left us at 15 on a high.
In the next 2 years Németh will go and Pacheco will follow suit. Kelly will get nowhere. Liverpool's record at blooding youngsters is woeful and there's no reason to think that that will go anywhere.
We heard this hype from Németh, Spearing and Darby and that is yet to be fulfilled - and probably never will.
Spearing and Darby haven't impressed me but they have some good players at reserve and Academy level - Pacheco, Amoo, Mavinga, Ince, Dalla Valle, Eccleston & Ayala, however all are players they have signed from other clubs (apart from Ince?). It will be interesting to see if any make the first team in the next few years under Benitez, or move away like many of the others.
Spearing and Darby were never hyped. Those in the know never gave either a chance at the highest level. Especially Darby. Most are surprised he has got this far at Liverpool.
Jury is out on Nemeth.
The rest of your post is speculation dressed up as opinion which is not worth responding to. And I don't see any defence of your last post which makes me think that post was guess work also leading me to believe you don't actually have a clue regarding the Liverpool youth setup.
Shame, as I was up for a decent conversation.
If they are good enough, those players you mention will stay at Liverpool. But either way they are definitely a sign that the recruitment policy is improving at youth level.
I dunno really - I know that you promoted a whopping number of kids this year in addition to signing nearly 10 players or something. I don't know any academy that ends up with so many players and it reeks of chucking enough crap against the wall until something sticks.
It's simply the fact that with Liverpool's record with youngsters, there isn't really any reason to believe Sterling made the right choice at all.
Take, for example, your goalkeepers: you have Hansen, Gulácsi, Martin and Oldfield as Reserves goalkeepers in addition to Chamberlain in the Academy. Why do you need so many goalkeepers at that level? And this excludes Bouzanis who is on loan.
There's a staggering revolving door at Melwood and I really don't see how anyone can succeed with all the numbers.
Rafa's "new Academy policy" has really paid off too with excellent performances in the Under-18s League, hasn't it?
Facilities-wise Melwood has to be up there somewhere but a revamped Academy with such huge numbers cannot be the best place in the world for a youngster to develop. I'm wondering what prompted Sterling to join Liverpool and which clubs he rejected.
There's so many barriers for him to succeed at Liverpool. They signed around 20 first-year scholars and who's not to say it won't happen again? The number of professionals on your books suggests that it could well happen again.
I'm reminded of a certain Jack Rodwell whom Liverpool jettisoned too. Is anyone sure of what they're doing at Melwood?
It's simply the fact that with Liverpool's record with youngsters, there isn't really any reason to believe Sterling made the right choice at all.
Take, for example, your goalkeepers: you have Hansen, Gulácsi, Martin and Oldfield as Reserves goalkeepers in addition to Chamberlain in the Academy. Why do you need so many goalkeepers at that level? And this excludes Bouzanis who is on loan.
There's a staggering revolving door at Melwood and I really don't see how anyone can succeed with all the numbers.
Rafa's "new Academy policy" has really paid off too with excellent performances in the Under-18s League, hasn't it?
Facilities-wise Melwood has to be up there somewhere but a revamped Academy with such huge numbers cannot be the best place in the world for a youngster to develop. I'm wondering what prompted Sterling to join Liverpool and which clubs he rejected.
There's so many barriers for him to succeed at Liverpool. They signed around 20 first-year scholars and who's not to say it won't happen again? The number of professionals on your books suggests that it could well happen again.
I'm reminded of a certain Jack Rodwell whom Liverpool jettisoned too. Is anyone sure of what they're doing at Melwood?
Firstly, the Academy is not Melwood. feck, at least refer to wiki to make it look like you might know what you are talking about.
Liverpool didn't jettison Rodwell; he chose to go to Everton as their youth setup was in far better shape at the time. And he chose correctly in my view.
There are a vast number of first years in the U18's this year, hence the poor season they are having. They'll be better next season. But the past few years have been ok; a couple of cup wins and another final thrown in so again I am not really sure what point you are trying to make.
I agree, there are too many players and too much dross in the reserves but I think that is being sorted. Rafa took control of the academy this season after much politicking and many recriminations. So Melwood and the Academy are finally working in tandem and that is definitely to the club's (and any young recruit's) benefit, even if we don't see the results this season or next.
How is signing more players going to improve the fact there are too many players?
I'm not sure Rafa should be in charge of the Academy anyway - Ferguson, Moyes and O'Neill have a minimal input on the running of the Academy - obviously Wenger is more hands-on but even he lets his Academy run itself. Does Rafa know anything about an Academy? Surely phasing-out youngsters rather than signing more is beneficial.
I personally don't really see numbers dropping next year - you have 16 first-year scholars and presumably most will be offered second-year contracts.
I'm not sure Rafa should be in charge of the Academy anyway - Ferguson, Moyes and O'Neill have a minimal input on the running of the Academy - obviously Wenger is more hands-on but even he lets his Academy run itself. Does Rafa know anything about an Academy? Surely phasing-out youngsters rather than signing more is beneficial.
I personally don't really see numbers dropping next year - you have 16 first-year scholars and presumably most will be offered second-year contracts.
I don't really know much about Liverpools squad, can you tell me how many of your youngsters have been played 15+ games in the premiership since 2000?
I'd say youngsters must have played at least 1 year in the academy. (which rules out Ronaldo/Rooney/Rafael/Fabio for us).
I'd say youngsters must have played at least 1 year in the academy. (which rules out Ronaldo/Rooney/Rafael/Fabio for us).
Maybe but a 15 year old should not even be thinking about money now. He should be having fun. He has so much time to earn money. Right now he has to lay the foundation for his career and it is important that he learns properly and that is why you NEED to go to a team with a good academy when you are young. Even if you are fan, you need to do what is good for you. Ramsey was a fan of us, but he went to Arsenal so he could get more chances to play and not because of the money.
Looks like he could be a good player, reminds me of Walcott when still at Southampton.
Video here.
Video here.
Watch Rafa turn him into Kuyt Mk. 2.