Yesterday, 05:31
My view on sporting directors? I think there's too much going on at clubs now for just the manager or head coach to oversee. It was starting to get that way when fergie retired and definitely when Wenger did, the last of the dying breed. Gone are the days where it would be 3/4 coaches looking after 20 players, with 2/3 old blokes doing the scouting, one or two others would deal with the reserves and youth. There'd be a physio who'd tell you if a guy was knackered or not but generally if the player felt he could play, they would. No data analytics no performance analysis.
Now there's data to deal with, footage of an opponent from years ago, every player can be tracked by a touch of a mouse, scouts can watch a player in Brazil easier than one in brighouse. The backroom numbers are massive, I know it's cricket but at one point it was said England take 18 players abroad, but there's the same in staff. It's not too dissimilar with football, then there's the agents etc and we haven't even got to the training pitch yet. I mean talking of coaches, you now have set pieces coaches, defending coaches, attacking, goalkeeping, fitness, Liverpool at one point had a throwing technique coach. It's too much for a manager to be overseeing, the sporting director takes the weight of the stuff away from the ground, it's still a lot for Markham, he's doing mental, academy and women's, but there's still a whole lot going on between him and each role, might be 3/4 people who are reporting to him and providing information.
Now I know Chris personally and I know his dad took, so I ain't gonna sit and say he'll be shite nor am I going to blow smoke up his arse, but him being at town once before helps, him being a town fan like me and you helps, he has a far better understanding of what we all want than any pen pusher coming in ever would. He watched the dark days of Wadsworth, he watched Ritchie. Im sure he has a black book, probably better contacts than Cartwright, I mean he has Webber, Wilson, Wagner, Rhodes and robins to begin with let alone Southgate et al from England times. There's a lot of work to be done and my main concern is about how long it has taken town to go through this process, only to appoint someone who was available way before the summer, just weeks before the January window, especially when that someone is on our doorstep. Now Chris is heavy on the data, and that has often led to Bolton getting technically good players but the downfall being fitness, but their budget wasn't massive either. So if ours is bigger maybe we/he can identify players with less physical issues, but the modern footballer is full of them, we keep asking for fit players, but they don't exist anymore, every player is a brand, they ain't these robust characters that get covered in mud and blood anymore
Now there's data to deal with, footage of an opponent from years ago, every player can be tracked by a touch of a mouse, scouts can watch a player in Brazil easier than one in brighouse. The backroom numbers are massive, I know it's cricket but at one point it was said England take 18 players abroad, but there's the same in staff. It's not too dissimilar with football, then there's the agents etc and we haven't even got to the training pitch yet. I mean talking of coaches, you now have set pieces coaches, defending coaches, attacking, goalkeeping, fitness, Liverpool at one point had a throwing technique coach. It's too much for a manager to be overseeing, the sporting director takes the weight of the stuff away from the ground, it's still a lot for Markham, he's doing mental, academy and women's, but there's still a whole lot going on between him and each role, might be 3/4 people who are reporting to him and providing information.
Now I know Chris personally and I know his dad took, so I ain't gonna sit and say he'll be shite nor am I going to blow smoke up his arse, but him being at town once before helps, him being a town fan like me and you helps, he has a far better understanding of what we all want than any pen pusher coming in ever would. He watched the dark days of Wadsworth, he watched Ritchie. Im sure he has a black book, probably better contacts than Cartwright, I mean he has Webber, Wilson, Wagner, Rhodes and robins to begin with let alone Southgate et al from England times. There's a lot of work to be done and my main concern is about how long it has taken town to go through this process, only to appoint someone who was available way before the summer, just weeks before the January window, especially when that someone is on our doorstep. Now Chris is heavy on the data, and that has often led to Bolton getting technically good players but the downfall being fitness, but their budget wasn't massive either. So if ours is bigger maybe we/he can identify players with less physical issues, but the modern footballer is full of them, we keep asking for fit players, but they don't exist anymore, every player is a brand, they ain't these robust characters that get covered in mud and blood anymore
Another day, another door, another high, another low