Lessons from working in an elite academy

3 - Be yourself

Working in an academy means you are there to help young players get a job in the game and to support the ones who fall short as best you can.

Being authentic is vital in any professional environment and positioning yourself in a place where you can be most useful is important. Your experiences in football will usually determine this. Scholars and young professionals need people who have been on the journey. People whose experiences can be influential and support players’ practice and learning. The same goes for the foundation and youth development phases.

Egos need to be parked. Liking the thought of being the under-18 coach isn’t good enough. Having the experience, knowledge and commitment to get there is. 

This does not mean that people without a background in professional football cannot work with older players. Far from it. But those of us who were part-time footballers need to work doubly hard to gain the knowledge and knowhow required to be helpful and effective in those phases.

4 - Never promise what you can’t deliver

Becoming a professional footballer at any level of the game, and then having a career over any length of time is a really tough assignment. The odds are stacked heavily against most of the youngsters in the academy and very few have the right stuff. 

A good number will gain scholarships and have a productive youth career but the numbers going on to perform consistently in first teams, particularly at Premier League and Championship clubs, are pitifully few.

Honesty is always the best policy when building trust. As coaches, we cannot promise players careers. Yet, within this tough and challenging environment, there are certain things we can promise. These are:

• Giving players opportunities to show what they can do in training and on match days
• Giving players the chance to develop technically, tactically, physically and mentally
• Giving players regular updates on their progress
• Providing a positive learning environment for the players and their parents
• Supporting players with well-motivated, qualified, expert staff in all phases of the academy
• Looking after players when they are injured, over the long or short term
• Giving players access to best practice, advice and a top-class training facility
• Providing players with top-class kit and equipment to aid their development
• Supporting players’ academic programme if they join as scholars
• Supporting players as much as possible if they are released from their academy agreement.

All academies can do is provide excellent learning opportunities, coupled with consistent messages so that those youngsters who stick with the programme will have a better chance of awakening their elite traits and making a go of things.

“It is critical to say regularly out loud to the group, in training and on match day, that you would rather that they made a mistake than didn’t try anything”

5 - Put winning in perspective

To work in an academy long term, you have to be prepared to learn as much as you can about the game and how to teach it effectively to young players. This needs to be achieved formally through qualifications and continuing professional development, or informally with colleagues or friends who work in the industry, or by seeking out inspiration from other fields or sports.

More importantly, winning must be put in perspective in an academy setting. Too much emphasis on getting a result may compromise your ability to develop players’ match play understanding and decision making, as well as their willingness to push the boundaries of what they know and can do.

It may also make it more difficult to assess their attitude and character. It is much easier to play when you are 3-0 up and cruising, than it is when you are losing and you need to see who can step up to the plate when things are tough and the team is floundering.

Sometimes players need to experience different positions to aid their development, and this could compromise your chances of getting a positive result while they practice and learn.

This does not in any way mean you accommodate a less-than-positive attitude on match day. Players must always bring their game face no matter what the starting line-up or bench looks like. Attitude is a decision. You must always make it as hard as you can for your opponents – win, lose or draw. 

6 - Warm to young players and their mistakes

It is crucial to create an environment where youngsters are willing to push the boundaries of what they already know and can do. They need to get out of their comfort zones, especially on a match day where their perception of how a mistake is viewed is more damning.

Players need to know their coach has their back. It is critical to say regularly out loud to the group, in training and on match day, that you would rather that they made a mistake than didn’t try anything. It’s so important that they have the courage to go for things, rather than just be on the pitch playing things safe. That mood music is created and sustained by the coach and how they behave when mistakes are made.

This does not mean that mistakes are not reviewed or discussed. Analysis is an important tool and a key component for improvement helping individuals to go home better players. Things just have to be handled in the right way and looked on as learning opportunities and chances to get into credit next time.