Post by QPR Report on Sept 20, 2009 7:09:03 GMT
Observer/David James
Premier League's cap still doesn't fit English players
New proposal to limit squad sizes is not the way to boost the future of home-grown talent
The announcement about capping the squad sizes of Premier League clubs next season seems like a good idea – but I'm not so sure.
Currently, English players account for an estimated 35% of all those playing in the top flight, a statistic that we'd all like to see improve. Introducing the new rule about home‑based players, whereby at least eight of the 25 named in the squads must have been developed in England, seems positive for the future of domestic talent in the game.
Scratch the surface of the proposal, however, and this initiative is not all it appears to be. For a start, if eight out of 25 players are English and the rest are not that equates to 32% of the players – less than we already have.
Then there are the unavoidable problems with defining "home-grown" talent. According to the Premier League, whose stated aim is to encourage more English talent, any player who has spent three years being nurtured at an English club will be regarded as homegrown.
That effectively means that any club can buy in a bunch of 18-year-old foreigners and by the time they turn 21, those players will be seen as complying with the domestic quotas. EU employment law means there are plenty of non-British players here anyway, and with the new regulations coming in, we could find in three years' time that we have squads made up entirely of foreign-born players.
We have to wonder what the repercussions will be for the standard of the Premier League. The Champions League is the big carrot for top clubs these days, but with smaller squad sizes for league games, English clubs will be at a disadvantage when they meet foreign competition such as Barcelona, Real Madrid or Inter Milan. With smaller squads there will be less opportunity for English clubs to rest players.
The Premier League prides itself on its global appeal, but even that could be put in jeopardy. Ask the Thai fans who were able to watch Liverpool in pre-season games this summer what they think about the new ruling - I'm not convinced they care two hoots if English players are in the side. It's the brand they love, and in recent years that brand has been built on a bedrock of foreign talent. Limit that talent and you risk damaging the brand.
The economic effects of the new rule will be interesting, and there could be significant changes in the transfer market over the next two years. With a limit on the number of named players in the squads, overall wage bills of the richest clubs would be expected to come down. Could the result be, though, that the savings are spent to secure star signings on astronomical wages? That would also be a solution to keeping the best foreign talent in the Premier League rather than moving to Serie A or La Liga.
With talk of a European league seemingly gaining momentum, and Arsène Wenger and Rafa Benítez spitting feathers about the new ruling, any shift in power could even spark a breakaway move from the Premier League.
Whatever the rights and wrongs of the "homegrown" debate, I can't help feeling that this new system shirks the real issues. Let's be honest, we are lacking in English talent, so how will limiting foreign imports help? Even if the ruling did result in creating more opportunities for English players what is to say they will be up to scratch?
In economic terms (Economics for Dummies is my latest read) the new rules amount to protectionism, an unreliable solution to solving the problems of domestic industry.
Our academies are simply not up to scratch. If they were we wouldn't be in this position in the first place. The real solution is surely to force clubs to invest in their youth development structures.
Quite simply, if your neighbour's dog keeps pooping on your path, changing your shoes isn't going to stop you treading in it.
David James has donated his fee for this column to charity
www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2009/sep/20/premier-league-david-james-football-sport
Premier League's cap still doesn't fit English players
New proposal to limit squad sizes is not the way to boost the future of home-grown talent
The announcement about capping the squad sizes of Premier League clubs next season seems like a good idea – but I'm not so sure.
Currently, English players account for an estimated 35% of all those playing in the top flight, a statistic that we'd all like to see improve. Introducing the new rule about home‑based players, whereby at least eight of the 25 named in the squads must have been developed in England, seems positive for the future of domestic talent in the game.
Scratch the surface of the proposal, however, and this initiative is not all it appears to be. For a start, if eight out of 25 players are English and the rest are not that equates to 32% of the players – less than we already have.
Then there are the unavoidable problems with defining "home-grown" talent. According to the Premier League, whose stated aim is to encourage more English talent, any player who has spent three years being nurtured at an English club will be regarded as homegrown.
That effectively means that any club can buy in a bunch of 18-year-old foreigners and by the time they turn 21, those players will be seen as complying with the domestic quotas. EU employment law means there are plenty of non-British players here anyway, and with the new regulations coming in, we could find in three years' time that we have squads made up entirely of foreign-born players.
We have to wonder what the repercussions will be for the standard of the Premier League. The Champions League is the big carrot for top clubs these days, but with smaller squad sizes for league games, English clubs will be at a disadvantage when they meet foreign competition such as Barcelona, Real Madrid or Inter Milan. With smaller squads there will be less opportunity for English clubs to rest players.
The Premier League prides itself on its global appeal, but even that could be put in jeopardy. Ask the Thai fans who were able to watch Liverpool in pre-season games this summer what they think about the new ruling - I'm not convinced they care two hoots if English players are in the side. It's the brand they love, and in recent years that brand has been built on a bedrock of foreign talent. Limit that talent and you risk damaging the brand.
The economic effects of the new rule will be interesting, and there could be significant changes in the transfer market over the next two years. With a limit on the number of named players in the squads, overall wage bills of the richest clubs would be expected to come down. Could the result be, though, that the savings are spent to secure star signings on astronomical wages? That would also be a solution to keeping the best foreign talent in the Premier League rather than moving to Serie A or La Liga.
With talk of a European league seemingly gaining momentum, and Arsène Wenger and Rafa Benítez spitting feathers about the new ruling, any shift in power could even spark a breakaway move from the Premier League.
Whatever the rights and wrongs of the "homegrown" debate, I can't help feeling that this new system shirks the real issues. Let's be honest, we are lacking in English talent, so how will limiting foreign imports help? Even if the ruling did result in creating more opportunities for English players what is to say they will be up to scratch?
In economic terms (Economics for Dummies is my latest read) the new rules amount to protectionism, an unreliable solution to solving the problems of domestic industry.
Our academies are simply not up to scratch. If they were we wouldn't be in this position in the first place. The real solution is surely to force clubs to invest in their youth development structures.
Quite simply, if your neighbour's dog keeps pooping on your path, changing your shoes isn't going to stop you treading in it.
David James has donated his fee for this column to charity
www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2009/sep/20/premier-league-david-james-football-sport