The Nowhere Men (36 page)

There was a plane to catch, a player to assess, and a dream to pursue.

The page references in this index correspond to the printed edition from which this ebook was created. To find a specific word or phrase from the index, please use the search feature of your ebook reader.

Abramovich, Roman 132, 176

academies, football youth:

budgets 5, 8, 336

categories of 8, 71, 76

drop out rates 5, 128–9

Elite Player Performance Plan (EP3) and 7–9, 71, 73–4, 75–6, 132, 226, 234

exit trials and 210–26

failure of 132, 133, 255, 317

French 321

importance of 41

NextGen Series and 78–82, 89–99, 305–6, 308

Nike Academy 216–26

poaching/’nicking’ kids from 7–8, 75–6, 80–1, 226, 234–5, 236, 315

release of players from 86–7, 210–26

see also
scouts
and under individual club name

Accam, David 217

Accrington Stanley 192

Achterberg, John 151, 160, 163

Adam, Charlie 26, 340

Adkins, Nigel 297

AFC Wimbledon 167, 208, 262, 264

agents:

appearance/character of 1–2, 9–10

approach players 76

assessment of players 28

baseball 173–4

clubs dealing directly with 313

coaches operating as 174

French 94

media-savvy 91

Redknapp criticises 345

Russian 254

shady practices 370

South America and 51–2, 326, 327

third-party ownership and 233–4, 326

usefulness of 313

using as scouts 75

ages of players, false 174

Aibangee, Ose 59, 66–7, 70, 71, 75, 76, 79, 228

Ainsworth, Gareth 357, 358

Ajax 81, 82, 130–1, 295, 362, 369

Akinde, John 207

Akpom, Chuba 308

Al-Hasawi, Omar 306–7

Al-Mutawa, Bader 307

Al-Rashidi, Khalid 307

Albert, Florien 138

Aldridge, John 204

Allardyce, Sam 104

Allen, Clive 14

Allen, Martin 200, 355

Allison, Malcolm 259, 260

Alvechurch 202

American College system 216, 292

American Soccer League 191

Amiens 322

analytics 2, 143

analysis of heart rate, recruitment and 356–7

baseball and 21, 36–7, 170, 172–5, 186, 187, 335, 336, 343, 355–6

basketball and 182, 292–3, 330–1, 332–3, 334–5, 336

Bill James and 36, 172–3, 187

Billy Beane and 21, 27, 36, 37, 335

Charles Reep and 171–2

Damien Comolli and 12, 13, 20–8, 33–7, 340–2

driven by bloggers and statisticians 185–6, 187–8

Everton/Moyes and
38–56

football and 2, 20–8, 33–7, 38–56, 175–88, 332–44, 356–7, 360–1

future of 370–1

limitations of 360–1

Liverpool and 20–8, 33–7, 340–2

Matthew Benham and 332–43

Moneyball
and 21, 26, 36, 171, 172–3, 176, 184, 188, 331, 335

Nate Silver and 355–6

NBA and 330–1, 332–3

NFL and 344, 356

Opta and
see
Opta

overconfidence in 337–9, 340–2

Player Archaeology 184–5

players as unstable platforms on which to test theories formed in

the vacuum of academia 177–8

plus-minus principle and 331,
332–3

problems with football model 333–5

problems with interpreting data 177–85, 333–43, 360–1

Pythagorean Expectation 343–4

randomness in 339–40

Shane Battier and 330–3

Stan Cullis and 171–2

technology and 46, 110, 179, 181–5, 186, 197, 331, 360

Anderson, Chris 356

Anderson, Lee 31

Anderson, Mark 6, 7–8, 12, 17, 31, 32, 77, 83, 90, 91–2, 94, 230–7

Andrews, Justin 79

Anelka, Nicolas 142

Anzhi Makhachkala 345

Appleton, Michael 297, 364

Are We Getting Too Clever?
(Reep) 172

Argentine League: Primera Divisón 328

Armero, Pablo 94

Arnesen, Frank 142, 152, 153

Arsenal:

Academy 59, 67, 69, 91, 132

EP3 and 8

as a family 274–5

NextGen Series and 305, 308–9

performance analysis and 179–83

scouting/recruitment 16, 21, 24, 28, 31, 34–5, 41, 49, 67, 68–70, 74, 76, 83, 91, 92, 111, 126, 132, 137, 141–2, 151, 200, 205, 226, 236, 269, 271–84, 285, 290, 291, 292, 293–5, 305, 306, 308–9, 317, 322, 339

see also under individual manager, scout and player name

Arshavin, Andrey 251

Ashworth, Dan 327, 328, 340

Aston Villa 10, 17, 49, 77, 83, 147, 185, 240, 258, 262, 267, 312, 338

Athletic Bilbao 322, 372

Athletic News
257

Atkinson, Graham 166

Atkinson, Ron 166

Atletico Madrid 372

Austin, Dean 6, 116, 164, 166–8, 208, 296–305, 306, 309, 364–7

Aveldaño, Lucas 329

Ayre, Ian 374

AZ Alkmaar 259

Ba, Demba 319–20, 321

Bailey, Dennis 206

Bakare, Sakho 210–14

Bakenga, Mushaga 82

Baker, Little Joe 277–8

Baldelli, Rocco 174

Bale, Gareth 12, 33, 152

Bamford, Patrick 17, 131

Banbury United 211

Banco Espirito Santo 325

Barcelona 17, 28, 59, 65, 66, 80, 82–3, 129, 265, 317–18, 327, 329, 333

Barkley, Ross 15

Barnet 67, 153, 203, 212, 213, 289, 305

Barnsley 319

Barron, Jim 166

Barton, Joey 349

Barton, Warren 128

baseball 21, 36–7, 170, 172–5, 186, 187, 335, 336, 343, 355–6

basketball 182, 292–3, 330–1, 332–3, 334–5, 336

Bassett, Dave 117

Bassong, Sebastian 245

Battier, Shane 330–1, 332–3

Baxter, James 235, 243

Beane, Billy 21, 27, 36, 37, 335

Beardsley, Peter 317

Beattie, Kevin 156

Beckham, David 12, 80

Being Liverpool
(TV documentary) 239

Belenenses 369

Bellamy, Craig 9

Ben Arfa, Hatem 320–1

Benfica 323, 325

Benfica Stars Fund 325

Benham, Matthew 80, 332–43

Benitez, Rafa 26, 235

Berbatov, Dimitar 254–5

Berg, Henning 245

Beswick, Bill 178–9

Bickart, Kevin 356–7

Bidwell, Kevin 83

Birmingham City 17, 50, 150, 154, 155, 200, 203, 240, 241, 242, 369, 373

Blackburn Rovers 93, 114, 364

Blackpool 117, 140, 208

Blake, Noel 114

Bloom, Tony 231

Boca Juniors 17

Boga, Jeremie 91

Bohemians 190

Bolton Wanderers 6, 107–8, 164, 165, 235, 246–7, 257, 297, 298, 312, 365

Boothroyd, Aidy 82

Boras, Scott 173–4

Borussia Dortmund 43, 53–4

Borussia Mönchengladbach 338

Bosman free transfer 251, 327

Bostock, Johnny 129

Boston Red Sox 36–7

Boswinga, Jose 351

Bournemouth 6, 102, 126, 267, 304, 354

Bowman, Dave 287

Bradbury, Lee 301, 304

Bradley, Michael 338

Brady, Liam 69, 293–4, 296, 308

Brazil 5, 17, 251, 288, 317, 325, 326, 327

Brentford 10, 59, 62, 79, 171, 201–2, 205, 261, 358, 372

Academy 71–3, 78–9, 80–7, 96–8, 226

Benham and 332, 335, 336, 339

Community Stadium 336

EP3 and 71–2, 75–6, 226

Griffin Park 72, 78, 89, 197, 336

Milk Cup, under-15 team 228

NextGen Series and 78–9, 80–7, 89–90, 96–8

scouting network/recruitment 58–77, 80, 198, 199–200, 228–9

see also under individual manager, scout and player name

Brighton and Hove Albion 7, 124, 125, 126, 137, 152, 230, 231–7, 306, 362

Bristol City 207, 354, 367

Bristol Rovers 45, 206, 312, 316–17

Britton, Leon 182

Broomfield, Ian 352

Brown, Isaiah 373

Brown, Steve 45–6, 141

Brukner, Peter 163

Brunt, Ryan 193

Bryant, Kobe 331

Buck, Danny 74

Buckle, Paul 206

Bundesliga 54, 251, 252, 313, 321

Burke, David 233

Burnley 192

Burns, Tommy 11, 244

Burt, Keith 354

Burton Albion 131

Burton, Terry 107, 275–7, 284, 285, 292, 293, 295, 303, 305

Bury 141

Busby, Matt 136, 201

Butland, Jack 50, 150–60, 351–2, 373

Buxton, Ted 200–1, 306

Cabaye, Yohan 320–1

Cahill, Gary 41

Caledonian Thistle 190

Callaghan, Fred 201

Calvin, David 32

Calvin, Jamie 32

Cambridge United 43, 152, 238, 267, 359

Campbell, Bobby 201, 276

Campbell, DJ 200

Canaries Cup 12

Cantona, Eric 244

Cardiff City 111, 198, 217, 286

Carolina Lightnin’ 191

Carr, Graham 313, 318–20, 321, 355

Carroll, Andy 26, 164, 340, 342

Cartwright, John 259–60

Cartwright, Mark 160, 373

Cassidy, Jake 194

Cedar Bridge Partners 326

celebrity culture, young players and 12, 293–4, 308–9

Celtic 11, 16, 74, 217, 244, 362, 374

Central America 324

Chalobah, Nat 12

Chamberlain, Mark 106

Chambers, Callum 144, 146

Champions League 27, 54, 78, 217, 247

Championship 10, 50, 96, 103, 104, 112, 209, 241, 253, 265, 307, 308, 315, 318, 338, 367, 372

Chance, The 217–18

Chapman, Herbert 171,
257

Chappell, Phil 111, 112, 134, 306

Charlton Athletic 6, 7, 100, 105–6, 109, 111, 112, 115, 134, 231, 234, 284, 306

Charlton, Jack 145

Charnley, Lee 321

Chelsea 353, 354, 372, 373

Academy 5, 91

analytics and 175–7

EP3 and 8

feeder clubs 52

culture at 175–6

FA Youth Cup, 2011/12 4, 10–12, 110

reserve team 108

scouting network/youth teams 10, 11, 12, 17, 29, 31, 69, 76, 104, 110, 131, 151, 175–6, 177, 218, 226, 228, 229, 236, 237, 294, 318, 319, 323, 325

Torres and 364

see also under individual manager, scout and player name

Cheltenham Town 149, 150, 151, 157,
158

Chester, Ewan 154–5, 242–8

Cissé, Papiss 321

City of London 59

City University, New York 344

Clark, Lee 240, 241

Clarke, Cindy 362

Clarke, Gordon 276

Clarke, Ray 361–4

Cleveland Indians 174–5

Club Brugge 82, 362

coaches:

anxiety of 179

attitude of players towards 280

bad player habits and 213

badges 260, 276, 298, 299

change of 254

changing culture of 236–7

complain about scout approaches 63

data analysis and 331

differences from scouting 365

directors ask scouts about 153

emotional attachment to job 180

FA syllabus for 58, 60

foreign players adapting to British 316

inspirational qualities of 88

lack of foresight 5

lack of knowledge in some 135

Moyes as 45, 47

operating as agents 174

performance analysis and 179, 180

players challenge 16

respect of players for 99

rotated around age groups 73–4

scouts as 6, 59, 129–30, 140

Spanish 235

spot players 32

teams reflect 61, 62, 64

wedded to winning 66, 178

Coe, Tim 361

Colchester United 101, 107, 110, 118–24, 155, 156, 198

Cole, Andy 280

Cole, Ashley 32, 91, 214

Cole, Devante 280

Coleman, Tommy 276

Collett, Ernie 276–7

Collymore, Stan 198, 202, 203, 360

Cologne 255

Colorado Rapids 111

Comolli, Damien:

appearance 21

Arsenal, career at 21

attempts to justify legacy at Liverpool 340–2

character 21–2, 33–4, 35–6

Dalglish and 24–6, 37

data evangelist 21, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 36–7, 341–2

dedication 20, 22

Liverpool Sporting Director 12, 13, 20–8, 29, 33–7, 55, 91, 95, 151, 161–4, 170–1, 205, 231, 237–8, 257, 340–2, 371–2

Martin Jol, relationship with 21

Matthew Benham on 341–2

Mel Johnson and 12, 24, 33, 91, 161–3, 170, 207–8, 231, 237–40, 371–2

Moneyball
and 21, 26

Robert Pires, remembers first impressions of 35

polarising figure 20–1

poor transfer choices and 26, 340–2

Raheem Sterling, scouting of and 29, 33

Ronaldo, remembers first impressions of 34

sacked from Liverpool 161–4, 170–1, 237, 340–2

Saint Etienne, career at 21

Tottenham, career at 21, 23

Van Persie, remembers first impressions of 34–5

Coney, Dean 201

Conference 4, 6, 87, 202, 203, 205, 297, 307

Convergence Capital Partners B.V. 52

Cooke, Robbie 43, 44, 47, 269

Coppell, Steve 206, 261, 298, 302

Cornell University 356

Cotterill, Steve 307

Coulibaly, Souleymane 133

Coulthirst, Shaquille 87

Coventry City 39, 305, 362, 368

Craddock, Jody 359

Crawley Town 105, 161

Crewe Alexandra 95, 161, 192

Crosby, Malcolm 241

Cruyff, Johan 42–3, 81

Cruz Azul 328

Crystal Palace 6, 31, 71, 90, 129, 145, 152, 157, 198, 200, 206, 234, 236, 260, 261, 297, 300–3, 358–9, 361, 365

Cullis, Stan 136, 171, 172

Curbishley, Alan 6, 7

Curle, Keith 365, 366

Czech Republic 13, 15, 16, 259, 274

Daily Telegraph
171

Daish, Liam 205

Dalglish, Kenny 20, 24–6, 37, 95, 163, 171, 207, 230, 231, 237, 243, 373

Darlington 256

Dartford 136, 146, 309, 318

Davey, Carl 228

Davis, Liam 167–8

Dede 17

Defoe, Jermaine 228

Dejagah, Ashkan 255

Dembele, Mousa 250, 259

Dempsey, Clint 250

Den Haag 329

Denswil, Stefano 81

Derby County 139, 165, 227

Devaney, Martin 190, 191–2