Most liked posts in thread: Greenwood

The basic idea is moronic.

Players get released from big clubs all the time. Some of them are good enough for League One or League Two, and they duly get signed and play first team football.

The concept of a development squad seems to be to take cast offs who are NOT good enough for the bigger clubs and NOT good enough for League One or Two and assume that a bit of intense training will make them adequately talented despite the fact superior coaches working at superior facilities could not - and the reason it 'should' work is because they're no longer just a face in the crowd but a meaningful employee.

All this for at considerable expense, while hoping to recoup profits by selling any sign of success.

NO. THANK YOU.

Now if a development squad was not focused so intently on failures, it might be worth it.

Can you scout the entire non league system and somehow persuade likely candidates to come in and make a team without clubs demanding far too much money? Probably not, given how teams like Peterborough pay good money for the cream of the crop.

Listen, if a League One or League Two side can make it work, fair play to them

But to me, it's a dumb concept.

 

No brained I’m afraid!

 

Didn’t they poach Graham Tomlinson off us?

 

Ollie McBurnie went to the slightly less bigger boys at a similar age. Happens.

 

Great fella too, used to work for him at Sportsshoes. My old man used to play football with him when they were younger at school and for Bradford boys.

 

Even more so now when all they have to do is pay training fees

 

no gaurantees that if he’d have been picked up by city at the same age he was by man united he would’ve developed to be the same player he is now.

more than likely he wouldn’t.

 

You do realise even if we had spotted him etc in today's day and age someone of that quality would not have made it to our first team. They would have been snapped up for peanuts. Our only hope is for someone to go under the radar and be a late developer

 

A certain Jacob Butterfield was at Man Utd's academy for many years.

So we may expect Mason Greenwood playing for us in League Two 2027/28 (T.I.C)

 

I've said this before but we can't compete against the teams on the M62. As bad as it sounds the reality is we're very bottom of a big pile.

 

That is the unfortunate truth. We are a club that will require serious investment across the board. We have potential to be a vibrant club given our fan base. Nevertheless, we do not have an owner who is interested in investing any more money. Investment might be stretching it, it will require money for the foreseeable future without any return.

Therefore our previous exploits in the PL, cup runs and promotion candidates, need to be put aside. It feels very much like the mess we were in when we were in admin. The only prospective buyer that could start a full rebuild is a fan to be honest, normal investors require a projection of profit or return, we can’t guarantee that. A labour of love if you will.

 

Confirmed by one of our academy scouts on Twitter that we were fully aware of him but couldn't sign him until at the end of his U8 season but by the time we could sign him Man utd signed him https://twitter.com/clivemichallat1/status/1127574651868262400

 

On the mark again tonight against Partizan Belgrade.

 

Academy or no academy, I'll tell you one thing: development squads outside the top two divisions is one of the worst ideas in history, and we tried it TWICE.

 

calling him the new Van Persie.

Oh well, another one slipped through the net. Not that he'd have ever stayed with us if he was on our books - but a sell on clause would have been nice.

 

The highlighted line echoes my thoughts entirely, Jon.
The 'system' can work, but only if limited and well managed, selecting only the 'cream'.
By integrating those with our best senior Academy players, City would perhaps see some light toward the objective. Mix those with a couple of pros, and you can see why I'm an advocate of Reserve League football.

 

Errrrrrr .......... Kinda questioning Citys (albut) redundant 'production line' of talent.

 

The Boro striker, Ashley Fletcher, is from Keighley. Signed for Bolton at 9, then moved to Man Utd.

 

Another one ! Fabian Delph the nephew of former City Women's Paula Delph. Recall her bringing him along on a Sunday to watch City Women. He used to do keepy uppy on the touchline sat down feet - shoulder- head and rarely lost the ball. I said then hes a player what happened? Plays for the Premier League Champions and England. If City had harnessed half the talent passing through we might still be looking at playing the team in Red in Manchester next season and I don't mean the pub team from a back street in blooming Salford !

 

When his name was originally brought up and was quoted by Clayton Blackmore he was the best prospect he'd seen at his age.
With me being a Wibsey lad I asked around guys I know in junior football and my grandson and his mates as he is the same age as Mason and might have gone to the same school.
Nobody knew about the kid so you can only assume Manchester United got him tied up with regards football at a very early age.