Really, it should just go without saying that in anything in life, having people with experience in the field in any job at all, will help, especially if you are integrating youngsters.
Think of it as a trades job. You have an apprentice in, they are learning on the job. You don’t send them out by themselves, they have an experienced person leading them, training them, and nurturing them in the role. It’s just smart, and obvious. You can’t run before you can walk, and to be able to learn to walk, you need help with people who can actually walk.
In a football team, if you have all young players, they will lack those mentors on the pitch who can help them, talk to them, develop them, nurture them, protect them, take the pressure off them, and just generally help them along the way. Honestly for me, it’s not even a debate. You need that motivation and teaching.
I hate that Chelsea have me agreeing with Jamie Carragher so much lately, but that’s where I’m at.
Carragher says clubs must have senior figures in the squad when integrating young players. You can watch the full video on Sky Sports (I can’t embed it as Sky don’t allow it to be downloaded).
The quotes:
“It’s so obvious. People forget Man United didn’t win with kids. The reason that team won, they had Cantona, Schmeichel, Steve Bruce, Roy Keane. these people got them through the first couple of years. Then these people become leaders and have Ronaldo, Rooney, under them.
“That’s what you need. You need those older experienced players. Not every player you bring in is going to work. The idea that you can buy a team of all young players and they’re all going to grow in the next 3 or 4 years and what a great team we have. I don’t think football is like that. When you go back to Chelsea in the previous regime when they won the Champions League, who was centre back? Thiago Silva, he was 37/38, he had a huge influence.”
It’s been so obvious for the last two season what we need and what we have lacked. SO obvious. It’s finally time to admit it and add in what we need. Will they? I doubt it. but as I say every day, I won’t stop banging this drum.
