Scouting infrastructure problems

[Bladesman]

Manchester City transfer news: Squad overhaul from a 650,000-strong database

BBC Sport goes inside Manchester City's data team, who have been a key part of their rebuild over the past 18 months.

www.bbc.co.uk

I can imagine our database consists of 7/8k British players.

I know it’s Man City but surely when you are tight for money it’s better paying for a good scouting network and having a larger world database than just spunking millions on culture carriers.

Maybe we need culture carriers that can use a computer?

 

[FMBlade1]

Maybe we need culture carriers that can use a computer?

What did Wilder mean when he said that he prefers British players who have strong work ethic?

How an earth did those lazy Spaniards win the World Cup?

 

[Bladesman]

What did Wilder mean when he said that he prefers British players who have strong work ethic?

How an earth did those lazy Spaniards win the World Cup?

They dazzled the opposition with their laziness.

 

[Nick Jansky]

Maybe we need culture carriers that can use a computer?

I’m not sure that exists.

 

[Big.Dane.w]

Fuck me just watched this and the blokes actually become David Brent!

 

[FMBlade1]

Fuck me just watched this and the blokes actually become David Brent!

Its pretty sad really.

He's a good bloke and has done a great job for us over the years but has this embarrassing tendency to say ridiculous things revealing shortfalls.

We can add this to:

• Do gooders and leftists
• PlayStation managers
• The Leicester away meltdown
• Sandwiches

If he has these backward opinions about foreign players he would be wise to keep them to himself.

 

[sufc323]

Watched that clip doing the rounds on twitter of Tony Pulis knowing everyone so Wikipedia'd him, and this stood out. Bear in mind this was 20 years ago, when scouting and data analysis wasn't anywhere near as advanced as what it is now:



So even Stoke 20 years ago recognised how moronic and backwards it was by only targeting British based players but our club puts all the decision making and future proofing with one man with an agenda.

We've regressed even going back nearly 30 years ago when we signed players like Marcelo, Borbokis, Dellas, Donis, Nilsen, Tebily and Katchuro from overseas clubs. Maybe Wilder's still bitter that Borbokis took his job.

 

[Upton_Blade]

Watched that clip doing the rounds on twitter of Tony Pulis knowing everyone so Wikipedia'd him, and this stood out. Bear in mind this was 20 years ago, when scouting and data analysis wasn't anywhere near as advanced as what it is now:

View attachment 244741

So even Stoke 20 years ago recognised how moronic and backwards it was by only targeting British based players but our club puts all the decision making and future proofing with one man with an agenda.

We've regressed even going back nearly 30 years ago when we signed players like Marcelo, Borbokis, Dellas, Donis, Nilsen, Tebily and Katchuro from overseas clubs. Maybe Wilder's still bitter that Borbokis took his job.

Unfortunately because we haven't moved with the times and put a modern structure in place we'd have no hope of picking up players like those nowadays as they would be picked up by other teams before we'd even heard their names.

I still stand by my long held view that Borbokis' debut is the best I ever saw in a Blades shirt.

 

[blades78]

Unfortunately because we haven't moved with the times and put a modern structure in place we'd have no hope of picking up players like those nowadays as they would be picked up by other teams before we'd even heard their names.

I still stand by my long held view that Borbokis' debut is the best I ever saw in a Blades shirt.

100% re Borbokis v Sunderland. Considering we had Deane back, McGrath etc I still remember thinking, how have managed to get him to sign for us!!

 

[KMC-1889]

Maybe Wilder's still bitter that Borbokis took his job.

Given how petty he is and how big that chip on his shoulder has got you might not be a million miles off the truth.

 

[Akrotiri_Blades]

He has said it in interviews countless times about club culture, yes there is one here as an "old club" this forum has it's own culture of doom and gloom merchants and as a fan base positivity isn't usually something we like, whether that comes from the city/region or just in general who knows. However for me you have to expand to "culture" of the league" when focusing on players we are bringing in, as a professional footballer you shouldn't have a problem playing at clubs, there aren't many one club players anymore. We should be looking at players that fit the championship, they have to, have stamina (currently lacking), pace (currently lacking) calm under pressure (often lacking) and additional attributes, technical ability (often lacking), a 15+ goal a season goal scorer (currently lacking), height and strength (have these in some areas but often one or the other).

If you breakdown the "culture of the championship", the must haves do not fit the model of the "culture" of the vast majority of our squad. It's alright saying yes x player is a good laugh and brings morale around the group, or y is a grafter but if that is all they are bringing to the group we may as well employ a stand-up comedian.

We could easily be looking in the free market abroad or picking up talent from established leagues, such as the French/Spanish/German/Portuguese 2nd division, as the qualification of players under the work permit is quite easily achieved when the player in question has played minutes for their country providing it's ranked correctly and that's on top of the 4 ESC players that we can have. A lot of players don't make the national squad of France/Spain etc but have made the U21s and are decent players that would be worth a look. You have players like Ndiaye who although we picked up via a different route, there could well be the next one that has been overlooked as not quite good enough for Ligue 1 in France yet but would easily be good enough in the Championship.

A couple of examples just by a Google search (easy scouting) in the Winger position last season at Pau, you had Giovani Versini a French U21 international that has now moved onto Brest. At Saint-Étienne they have Georgian international Zuriko Davitashvili he is 25 now but was their top goal scorer last season with 14 in 29. It's players like that, we should have been tracking when we had the opportunity to offer a decent contract in the Premier League. In Ligue 2 in France transfer fees for players like Davitashvili are in the £3million mark and seem to provide good return.

 

[CrookesBlade]

Whilst I don’t think he’s phrased it very helpfully I’m assuming his point is

We don’t have the infrastructure to pick up foreign players who can cut it in the Championship AND don’t need a long assimilation period (clubs with proper infrastructure will hoover them up) so it’s more efficient short term to pick players up players who are already playing in British/Scandinavian football.

For me it comes back to the owners and their lack of investment - Wilder will have just been told to try and package it up as something vaguely coherent for the punters.

If we sack him I don’t think the recruitment changes much, just a different set of old boys for the manager to bring in.

 

[BrianTheBlade]

There is zero point spending all this money on scouting and signing players if the manager simply refuses to give them a proper chance, as Wilder has done.

Whatever has been said about the “AI signings”, we will never truly know how good they were because most were never given a fair opportunity. Soumaré looks to be doing well at Stoke, and one of the others was playing Champions League football before coming here.

You cannot judge recruitment properly if the players are barely used.

 

[Aganarama]

Grbic & Olsen we’d have conceded goals playing both of them at the same time.
I remember us having that Italian under Warnock. Can’t remember him playing a game or his full name, just remember the Warnock documentary where Warnock wants names for players to go in the sea and he’s just shouting “the sea Gabby the fucking sea”

Emanuele Gabrieli - he was a defender from Rieti. I think they were in Serie C at the time.

 

[FMBlade1]

What did Wilder mean when he said that he prefers British players who have strong work ethic?

How an earth did those lazy Spaniards win the World Cup?

To add to this from years gone by the follow have flourished using foreign contacts:

Swansea: Spanish players Michu & co.

Watford: The Italian loan Mafia

Leicester: French connection (Some were in PL like Kante and Mahrez were)

Huddersfield: Germans

Brentford: Dane Pastries

Their players didn't have much difficulties adapting. In the 21st century with regular Ryanair flights I don't see what the problem is with getting settled in this country.