Premier League Rules Change

[LarryHagman]

I'm all for the Premier League reducing the number of foreigners and, particularly, young players from abroad. No question.
And as long as it's done in the fashion of 'squad must contain' rather than 'squad shouldn't contain', then I don't see how it can be challenged.
I think it's odd that people aren't in favour of it.

 

[gkmacca]

I think it would be better to seek to change, gradually, the composition of academies, rather than attempt to dictate the composition of squads. Squads should be about merit, plain and simple, judged by the manager. The ideal is fair enough, but the method of achieving it is cack-handed.

 

[LarryHagman]

I agree, gradual change is best.
However, like the Rugby (or at least the aim of), I think the ultimtate point of these initiatives should be that 8 out of 11 players in our teams are English, 3 are foreign. Otherwise, I don't see the point of the journey we're on.
Sounds radical, but that's where we should be going.

 

[gkmacca]

Yes. I just don't think that quotas work. They symbolise a more deep-rooted failure.

 

[TheBunnyman]

[quote author=LarryHagman link=topic=35829.msg943906#msg943906 date=1253028421]

I agree, gradual change is best.
However, like the Rugby (or at least the aim of), I think the ultimtate point of these initiatives should be that 8 out of 11 players in our teams are English, 3 are foreign. Otherwise, I don't see the point of the journey we're on.
Sounds radical, but that's where we should be going.
[/quote]

Eight English players out of 11? Has *any* Liverpool side ever had those statistics?

 

[Richey]

[quote author=TheBunnyman link=topic=35829.msg943949#msg943949 date=1253032914]
[quote author=LarryHagman link=topic=35829.msg943906#msg943906 date=1253028421]

I agree, gradual change is best.
However, like the Rugby (or at least the aim of), I think the ultimtate point of these initiatives should be that 8 out of 11 players in our teams are English, 3 are foreign. Otherwise, I don't see the point of the journey we're on.
Sounds radical, but that's where we should be going.
[/quote]

Eight English players out of 11? Has *any* Liverpool side ever had those statistics?

[/quote]

Certainly hasn't happened often!

In the late 70s/early 80s we were very English (Clemence, Neal, Hughes, Smith, Thompson, both Kennedys, Case, McDermott, Keegan, Fairclough, Johnson, Callaghan) but since then we always had a lot of non-English players.

I remember when we first went back into Europe we could only use 4 non-English players. It was a right hassle as I recall.

 

[Dreambeliever]

[quote author=LarryHagman link=topic=35829.msg943906#msg943906 date=1253028421]

I agree, gradual change is best.
However, like the Rugby (or at least the aim of), I think the ultimtate point of these initiatives should be that 8 out of 11 players in our teams are English, 3 are foreign. Otherwise, I don't see the point of the journey we're on.
Sounds radical, but that's where we should be going.
[/quote]

Back to the 90's so.

 

[drizzt]

[quote author=gkmacca link=topic=35829.msg943911#msg943911 date=1253028644]
Yes. I just don't think that quotas work. They symbolise a more deep-rooted failure.
[/quote]

And part of that failure is the reserves league. 18 games a season against mostly crap teams to bridge the gap between academy and the premier league. It's farcical.

 

[Ryan]

Rafael Benítez hits out at home-grown ruling for missing the point

• Liverpool manager says rules deal with quality, not quantity
• Manager prepares for 300th Liverpool game against Debrecen

Andy Hunter The Guardian, Wednesday 16 September 2009 Article history



Rafael Benítez has claimed the Premier League's new quota on home-grown players is being introduced too quickly and fails to address the fundamental problem of a lack of quality in the British game.

The Liverpool manager has long called for an overhaul of the academy system in England, including a proposal for leading Premier League reserve teams to compete in League Two, and will be deeply affected by the requirement for eight home-grown players in a 25-man league squad next season. Liverpool have one of the highest proportions of foreign talent in the country and only met the Champions League criteria of eight home-grown players in a 28-man squad this season by including Stephen Darby, Martin Kelly, Jay Spearing, Nathan Eccleston and David Amoo on their list. Not one has ever appeared in the Premier League for Liverpool.

Benítez, who takes charge of his 300th game as Liverpool manager against Debrecen in the Champions League tonight, accepts the Premier League has been under pressure to introduce a quota system but fears its regulation addresses only quantity, not quality.

"Maybe it has been brought in too soon," said the Liverpool manager. "In the Champions League we had two or three years to increase home-grown players. The problem in England is that there is a big gap between the academies and the first team. The reserve league is not filling this gap. It may now be difficult to maintain quality, but we will continue to do our best. The number of players is not the point, the quality is the point.

"If a top side has to find eight players from the academy straight away, it may well be difficult. Academies do not produce too many in England, [home-grown] players tend to play in lower divisions because they may not be good enough for the very top. Clubs have to bring in the best young players from around the world at a young age to produce the quality and we have been expecting some sort of rule change like this."

Liverpool have embarked on a global recruitment policy for young players under Benítez and, like Arsène Wenger, the Spaniard believes the Premier League should be more concerned with attracting the best talent than British passports: "People talk too much about the age of players and where they are from. They forget about quality. The Premier League is the best league in the world because of the quality, not because of where the players come from. Players like Michael Owen, Wayne Rooney and Steven Gerrard - when they were 17 - were playing in the first teams. But not too many, because the level is too high. Most players need time but between 18 and 21 years of age, the reserve league is not good enough for them."


Benítez admitted he expects to recruit more first-team players when the transfer window reopensin January, although he is not sure whether he can receive an advance on Liverpool's new £20m-a-year sponsorship deal with Standard Chartered, which will come into effect for the 2010-11 season. "We haven't spoken about when money will be available, it is too early," said Benítez. "But we will talk about January because clearly we need to do something. You have to be pleased [with the deal] because it shows the club is moving in the right direction. Bringing more money in maybe means we have more money in the transfer budget. It's also positive for the image of the club."

Last night Liverpool's co-owner Tom Hicks said reducing the club's debt was a priority. "Our debts levels are at a very comfortable level and we are going to continue bringing it down," said the Texan who, along with George Gillett, has agreed to reduce Liverpool's debt with the Royal Bank of Scotland by £60m to £250m over the next year. "Our goal is to have less debt than any of the top clubs and that's a commitment we have made and will continue to make." He described Manchester City's heavy spending as "not sustainable ... They won't continue to invest like that as it doesn't make good economic sense."

Benítez confirmed he is to appeal the Football Association's decision to charge him with improper conduct following criticism of the referee Phil Dowd after last month's defeat at Tottenham Hotspur. His immediate focus, however, is the meeting with Debrecen, the first Hungarian team to reach this stage of the Champions League since 1995. "It's not easy to know the real level of the other team but our reports say they are a good team so we won't change many players," added Benítez