[Albion] Why are we buying players who then play for someone else ?

[Easy 10]

This is EXACTLY my point.

We've been a premier league team with a top academy for precisely 12 months, and you want us to have already produced strikers that are excelling in someone's first team.

The fact that we've only been in the PL for 12 months and have only had a top academy for a few years is irrelevant. Not ALL clubs operate with top academies and brilliant facilities. Clubs with far inferior facilities to our own seem able to produce good young strikers who can make a living at Championship level and above. Just never ourselves. Not in my lifetime anyway.

HOPEFULLY that will change in the future. But with or without all the supa dupa training faciliities we have now, our track record so far of bringing through strikers who can actually earn a living in the game is unquestionably dismal.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

If you give enough Monkeys a typewriter eventually you might find the next shakespeare

Thought we weren't allowed to mention Timmy anymore?

 

[lawros left foot]

I see that you have purposefully specified strikers because you know that is the area we've had the least success. Off the top of my head only Brennan Dickenson is playing in the football league having come through our academy. If you had said defenders, we have Dunk, Cook, Elphick, Lynch and Hall all playing Championship level or higher (and potentially White if a loan move materialises, while Hunt was rumoured to be interesting Forest and Wigan).

But how are you supposed to change that trajectory immediately overnight without investment over a period of time? As far as I can see there is clear progress, and in the next few years I expect a couple of Walton, White, Molumby, Sanders, Cox or Sanchez to become first team players.

We are a PL club, only the most extraordinary teenagers will be jumping straight into our first team. We have no Mbappe, Rashford or Sessegnon, so these players must develop elsewhere first .

Can we count Maguire-Drew as well?

 

[Easy 10]

Why specfically a striker? We have plenty of talented players in our current Under 23 team. Same old argument, if you can't see the value and benefit of the under 23 team then there is no point in discussing it.

Because this thread is about Percy Tau, a striker.

I'm not saying there is no value or benefit to the U23 squad, there clearly is as our 1st team has benefited from it already. But on the STRIKERS front, its a graveyard. I know not why, but we don't need to list all the "promising strikers" who have joined it, and sunk without a trace without getting within a sniff of the 1st team.

Had Tau joined for the U23 squad, frankly I'd have been "meh". As he's going straight out on loan, hopefully to a decent League in Europe, I'm much more hopeful of him having enough about him to be of use to the 1st team maybe a year down the line. Thats all.

 

[Tony Towner's Fridge]

They've clearly identified him as a talent, and at 24 (with 12 full caps and 5 goals), he's not just another wet-behind-the-ears teenager with no first team experience who would just disappear into our U23's black hole, never to be seen again.

The club have obviously made a big effort to get this guy on our books, even if it means loaning him out till he can get the requisite caps and experience for a work permit. Sounds like they think he'll be worth the wait, and given our recruitment teams track record of late, I'm more than happy to trust them on this one.

Succinctly and expertly summarised. Says it all. I think this is a very very good bet by TB and team.

TNBA

TTF

 

[Machiavelli]

They've clearly identified him as a talent, and at 24 (with 12 full caps and 5 goals), he's not just another wet-behind-the-ears teenager with no first team experience who would just disappear into our U23's black hole, never to be seen again.

The club have obviously made a big effort to get this guy on our books, even if it means loaning him out till he can get the requisite caps and experience for a work permit. Sounds like they think he'll be worth the wait, and given our recruitment teams track record of late, I'm more than happy to trust them on this one.

Can [MENTION=11236]brianwade[/MENTION] read this and take it on board.

 

[Munkfish]

Because this thread is about Percy Tau, a striker.

I'm not saying there is no value or benefit to the U23 squad, there clearly is as our 1st team has benefited from it already. But on the STRIKERS front, its a graveyard. I know not why, but we don't need to list all the "promising strikers" who have joined it, and sunk without a trace without getting within a sniff of the 1st team.

Had Tau joined for the U23 squad, frankly I'd have been "meh". As he's going straight out on loan, hopefully to a decent League in Europe, I'm much more hopeful of him having enough about him to be of use to the 1st team maybe a year down the line. Thats all.

The only reason he is going out on loan is to get a work permit, otherwise he would be straight in the 1st team, he is being touted as a First Team signing. No ifs and buts about it. The only thing stopping him from being in our squad next season is the Work Permit.

 

[Easy 10]

The only reason he is going out on loan is to get a work permit, otherwise he would be straight in the 1st team, he is being touted as a First Team signing. No ifs and buts about it. The only thing stopping him from being in our squad next season is the Work Permit.

Yup. We're not even arguing.

Hopefully by this time next year he'll have his work permit, and will be providing some back-up and competition to push our incredible 43-goal Locadia-Andone partnership.

 

[Seagull kimchi]

Prospecting

 

[bluenitsuj]

As if this has not been done to death already.

 

[Gazwag]

Thought we weren't allowed to mention Timmy anymore?

Wrong analogy, that's one monkey, one typewriter

 

[Behind Enemy Lines]

They've clearly identified him as a talent, and at 24 (with 12 full caps and 5 goals), he's not just another wet-behind-the-ears teenager with no first team experience who would just disappear into our U23's black hole, never to be seen again.

The club have obviously made a big effort to get this guy on our books, even if it means loaning him out till he can get the requisite caps and experience for a work permit. Sounds like they think he'll be worth the wait, and given our recruitment teams track record of late, I'm more than happy to trust them on this one.

The recruitment team are doing a fantastic job but our track record in buying and then bringing on young strikers who go onto the make the first team is one area where there's room for improvement. Lets hope The Tau is the one who can break through.

 

[Easy 10]

The recruitment team are doing a fantastic job but our track record in buying and then bringing on young strikers who go onto the make the first team is one area where there's room for improvement. Lets hope The Tau is the one who can break through.

This guy is a little different from your Harper / Bergkamp / Fenelon type junk though. He's 24 and has already got 80-odd 1st team appearances under his belt (albeit in Sith Ifrica), plus 12 caps for his country, so I'm expecting him to be a little more 'battle hardened' in that respect. He's had significantly more useful experience so far in his career than the usual "promising young strikers" we throw into the U23's never to be seen again.

Looking forward to monitoring his progress wherever he ends up this season, till he gets his paperwork and can vie for a place in our 25 next year.

 

[Sheebo]

I like it - we can end up keeping a close eye on whatever club he ends up at for a whole season!

 

[Cadiz Seagull]

I assume our recent appointment of a specialist loan manager had something to do with getting this guy in and then sending him straight out on loan? Certainly would make it easier to manage than just a straight forward loan.

 

[Kalimantan Gull]

The fact that we've only been in the PL for 12 months and have only had a top academy for a few years is irrelevant. Not ALL clubs operate with top academies and brilliant facilities. Clubs with far inferior facilities to our own seem able to produce good young strikers who can make a living at Championship level and above. Just never ourselves. Not in my lifetime anyway.

HOPEFULLY that will change in the future. But with or without all the supa dupa training faciliities we have now, our track record so far of bringing through strikers who can actually earn a living in the game is unquestionably dismal.

No, 'another one for the u23 black hole' is repeatedly said on here in reference to the huge number of players we've signed for the u23's over the last couple of years since we've had this amazing academy. Its boring and going to be proved spectacularly wrong.

We're a very different club now to the one thats been struggling along for the best part of 30 years with no money or facilities. Its a miracle we produced anyone during that time.

I was at the performance centre last month, it is astonishingly amazing. I'm hugely excited by all this young talent coming into the club. Its sad that some people think its just going to be same old same old, considering the effort TB and everyone have put into that side of the club.

 

[Easy 10]

No, 'another one for the u23 black hole' is repeatedly said on here in reference to the huge number of players we've signed for the u23's over the last couple of years since we've had this amazing academy. Its boring and going to be proved spectacularly wrong.

We're a very different club now to the one thats been struggling along for the best part of 30 years with no money or facilities. Its a miracle we produced anyone during that time.

I was at the performance centre last month, it is astonishingly amazing. I'm hugely excited by all this young talent coming into the club. Its sad that some people think its just going to be same old same old, considering the effort TB and everyone have put into that side of the club.

At the risk of labouring the point, nobody is dismissing the U23's as a whole. I've merely referenced the fact that so far, its been a graveyard for strikers here. That may or may not change in the future, but clubs in similar and poorer positions than ourselves have nurtured and brought through young strikers who have matured and flourished in the EFL and beyond. We haven't (yet). Thats just a fact. So I'm not unhappy that Tau isn't one of those bound for the U23's (he couldn't be anyway), but is instead going to Europe to get gametime somewhere so he can hopefully become eligable for us next season.

 

[Deleted member 2719]

The fact that we've only been in the PL for 12 months and have only had a top academy for a few years is irrelevant. Not ALL clubs operate with top academies and brilliant facilities. Clubs with far inferior facilities to our own seem able to produce good young strikers who can make a living at Championship level and above. Just never ourselves. Not in my lifetime anyway.

HOPEFULLY that will change in the future. But with or without all the supa dupa training faciliities we have now, our track record so far of bringing through strikers who can actually earn a living in the game is unquestionably dismal.

Exactly this, this has been my gripe for years we have always employed defensive coaches but never a quality forward coach. I always fancied having a Sheringham type of coach, someone that has been there and done it and that the lads can look up to, surely it's worth spending a bit in this department, after all, we all know the value of a top draw striker.

 

[Wardy's twin]

If you look at Chelsea, Man city, Southampton from a business point of view you can almost separate out the U23 and first team. They have large academies, produce players for other clubs and generally make a lot of money from doing it. The model is slightly different for Southampton as their players have gone on to bigger clubs. If the academy does not produce any PL standard players for us but still makes money then it is a success.

 

[Easy 10]

Exactly this, this has been my gripe for years we have always employed defensive coaches but never a quality forward coach. I always fancied having a Sheringham type of coach, someone that has been there and done it and that the lads can look up to, surely it's worth spending a bit in this department, after all, we all know the value of a top draw striker.

Its a decent shout. Perhaps bringing in a seasoned ex-striker who's been there and done it all to provide specialised coaching for our U23 forwards would be a step in the right direction. Obviously your Shearers and Wrights are all wrapped up in punditry and too well off to be interested anyway. But there must be any number of retired strikers (of Sheringhams ilk) who'd have something to offer. As you say, if they help coach a rough diamond out of our U23's who can really make an impact then it could be a very lucrative and worthwhile investment.