The Full Monty For United’s Young Stars. Are They Worth It?
Does teenager Medi Abalimba read the newspapers?
The Southend 16 year old probably still hasn’t come down from dancing on the ceiling after scooping the chance of a dream move to United.
“He will go to Manchester at the end of the month and they assess him in training and maybe take him a bit longer so he can play in a game,” said Southend’s head of youth development Ricky Duncan. “As a club, we don’t want to lose our players to bigger clubs but we should not stop them experiencing these types of things when they come along.”
It is to be hoped that the midfielder comes to Carrington, shows the form of a young Cruyff and goes on to save United millions in the transfer market, as his forbears from the golden generation did all those years ago.
But past form shows that the young Shrimper will be in for a rude awakening, even if he does convince the United staff. A quick glance at the press in recent days offers damning evidence of Abalima’s medium term chances. Headlines announce that Master Eckersley has gone. Young Martin has gone too and the slightly older Bardsley is on his way to the United of Sheffield, to help save Bryan Robson from the dole queue. Did the much-travelled Bardsley even bother to unpack his suitcases last summer?
The manager is unlikely to stop with the aforementioned trio, after committing himself to loan deals for his younger players in the wake of an embarrassing defeat against Coventry in the League Cup last month. Those lined up for January moves could include Chris Eagles, Dong Fangzhou and even Irish wonder starlet Jonny Evans.
There will be much moaning about this among fans and AbsolutelyUNITED seems only too happy to rehearse the main themes put forward in favour of youth development, given grist to its mill by reports hinting at the reign in Spain of the recently departed Giuseppe Rossi.
But fair play to United’s top brass. They must be as gutted as any fan when a young player fails to make the grade. Think about it? Scouts’ fees, signing on bonuses, gifts to the family, bungs to the agent, relocation expenses for player and sometimes family, lodgings plus salary, amount to a hefty slice of United’s revenue on players with no more than promise to their names.
Take the example of the unlamented Kieran Richardson. United pulled out the red carpet for the teenaged wizard and gave him and his family the full monty treatment. The Richardson clan was moved from London to the north west, so desperate was Ferguson to land the player and so confident was he that the family’s prized teenager was a gem waiting to be polished.
As every fan remembers, Richardson was a dud. Do United fans think the club got value for money from the investment in Richardson? After years of underachievement, United recouped nearly £6 million when the player signed for Sunderland last summer. Who would bet against the winger being a Championship player within five years?
For Richardson, read Jonathon Spector, Sylvan Ebanks-Blake, David Jones and a host of other players who just didn’t have the the right stuff. At least United got a decent fee for Richardson and Rossi. Fans may not like it but United’s youth have let down the club, not the other way around. Disagree? Well, show me the young player given the elbow by Ferguson who has proved him wrong?
Is it any wonder that most managers have no time for young players. They buy established stars knowing with far greater certainty what they are getting. It is a fast track to success which often brings immediate rewards but just as easily burdens clubs with ageing stars on big contracts who sooner rather than later lack the hunger to stay at the top.
And here lies the rub. Investing in youth pleases the fans and generates warm headlines but is fraught with risk. If the ploy comes off it could benefit the manager after the manager who showed faith but got the sack before the rewards were reaped.
Eschewing youth on the basis that it’s just too risky is a conservative route to footballing success that has a mixed track record. Real Madrid’s ‘Galacticos’ strategy is the very expensive high-point of an approach which is now so discredited that it is unlikely to be repeated in the near future, although Emperor Abramovich may test that theory next summer.
Arsene Wenger is credited with forcing the swing of the pendelum back towards the production of home grown stars. Last season’s losing Carling Cup adventure was a towering tribute to Wenger’s unrivalled scouting system, the thoroughness of his methods and the patience of the Gooners’ board and fans, not to mention the indulgence of the London press. Wenger has benefited from the emergence of a virtuous circle in north London, where new stadium debt combined with the manager’s own values, to allow him the opportunity to develop a team of young stars. He must hope that this season rewards his confidence.
Over at Old Trafford, Sir Alex scoffs at the notion of any Gooner hegemony, fortified by the youthful wonders in his own ranks - Rooney, Ronaldo, Anderson, Pique and Nani. But inescapably, 50 years after the Munich disaster dealt a death blow to the Busby Babes but ensured United would be forever joined with the promotion of youthful talent, Sir Alex presides over an exciting project which nevertheless is a cheque-book enterprise. As Scholes, Giggs and Neville confront the end of their careers, there are few talents stamped with the imprint ‘Made In Carrington’ who appear ready to take up the baton. Ferguson’s credentials as a believer in youth are beyond doubt. But increasingly where youth talent is concerned, he is less Sir Matt and more Ron Atkinson. Does he have any choice?
