I think it's more about opportunity in those cases; I think getting a chance at the right time, in the right team, with the right manager is important for some young players. In Wrighty's case though, do you think he significantly improved his technical ability or tactical ability in prison, or whilst cleaning toilets or laying bricks? It's more likely he was a skinny, weak kid (I know he has said he was told he was too small after many a trial) and had other mental issues which he grew out of, and when he finally got his chance to impress on trial at Palace, everything came together for him and he smashed it.
Mirth wrote:
Well, yeah - technical development is one part of it but there's the tactical and mental aspects that need guidance when your in your teens. It's also selective sampling to pick Messi, Iniesta etc - you need to widen it across all levels and talent to factor in the role of the club to help players become the best that they can be. Eg. Iwobi who by all accounts was never the most talented player in his group. Until he was.
In Iwobi's case, I'd argue physical development played the biggest part in his rise from academy also ran to first teamer; he was a late bloomer, and although he's not overly quick, he's over 6 foot, strong and stocky. A different proposition to the kid that didn't tear up any trees in the U18s/23s. And whilst I don't disagree that a young player's ability to cope with the mental and tactical side of professional football is decisive in their development, I think, generally, that which scouts are looking for; superior technical skill and athleticism, are well developed in most cases by 13 or 14 years old.
jones wrote:
Messi is obviously an outlier but do you really think the likes of Xavi Busquets or Iniesta just happened to be in roughly the same area and would've become the players they are if they had been signed by Espanyol?
Obviously recruitment plays a major role but big clubs rarely have that as the major issue even if you can always improve your scouting at that level. Bigger influence however is what you teach them kids from that point on - and clubs like Barcelona have historically always had a strong coaching staff core, e.g. see how Pique or Ter Stegen became world class even though they weren't before at their old clubs.
I think all of Ter Stegen, Pique, Busquets, Xavi and Iniesta would have become top class players at other clubs, provided they were afforded the same first team opportunities and, in a few cases, played in a team that suited their game. All but Busquets were elite talents and played all the way through the age groups of their national teams.
I think too much credit is given to the role of a coach in the improvement of young players generally. In my view of how development works, in order to stand out as exceptional when these kids are signed at 7 years old or 13 years old, they had to put in lots and lots of hard work (although at that age it might not feel like work, it amounts to exactly the same as practice); it's not the effortless unfurling of god-given ability. It's time with a ball, intelligence and hard work.
And the kids that have worked the most at 10 years old, are very likely to work harder than their peers as they progress through an academy, and then the most motivated, intelligent and hard working are the ones that can sepaerate themselves from their peers in top level professional football. Cristiano Ronaldo, for example, did not need Alex Ferguson to tell him what to improve at 18 years old. He watched, learned and worked, worked, worked. And fortunately for him, he also grew into one of the best athletes in football (even if, to his credit, he maxed that natural advantage out with hard work). And physical development is a variable that a young player can't control and is absolutely a limiting factor in how far they can go, even with all the hard work and intelligence in the world.
