The Lowdown

I was delighted to sit down recently and record with one of my favourite authors; Sam Walker. Sam’s extensive research on leadership has reshaped many peoples thoughts including my own on sculpting a team. 'The Captain's Class' is a book which will certainly stand the test of time. Here in this hour long conversation Sam debunks the myths and fallacies over what true leadership looks like, describing some of the characteristics we come to eulogize Tier One captains by. Furthermore we also discuss how his research has influenced important decisions taken by Gareth Southgate and Thomas Tuchel in recent times. Expect to hear more about;

- How this was the outcome of 14 years of extensive research!

- Sam's consensus as to why there is such a diverse range of Tier One teams?

- How much at odds is this idea of leadership with today's individual powered society?

- Can a star player also be the key leader?

- Insights into the selection process of Harry Kane as Gareth Southgate's captain.

- Why exactly are dynasties so rare?

- How transferable are these lessons to the business world?

Timestamps;

00:00 - 06:42 - Intro

06:43 - 15:49 - Carrying Water

15:50 - 23:48 - Intelligent Fouls

23:49 - 36:26 - Leadership Vacuums

36:27 - 41:48 - Why dynasties fail

41:49 - 51:30 - Intentional Leadership

51:31 - 58:48 - Sport v Business

Sam's Twitter; https://twitter.com/samwalkers?lang=en

Sam's Website; https://bysamwalker.com/

Rhys Carr is a UEFA A Licensed individual development coach who's most recent role was at Sheffield United. If you are inclined like me and enjoy the finer intricacies of the game then sit back and listen to an expert from his field. Rhys opens up on his coaching journey to date divulging insights as to what it takes to make it the top. Furthermore he discusses how coaches can help improve that transition for players between passion and profession. What struck me about Rhys was his curiosity, thirst for knowledge and hunger for improvement. We close speaking about the future game and what this requires of the future coach. Expect to hear more about;

- The cultural evolution of youth development.

- Reflections upon his time at Sheffield United.

- The two core tenets behind his individual development philosophy?

- What lies behind the art of coaching?

- How to improve the transition between passion & profession?

- Aligning individual development plans to your game model.

Timestamps;

00:00 - 04:28 - Intro

04:29 - 10:51 - Sheffield United

10:52 - 20:55 - The Philosophy

20:56 - 28:36 - Individual within the Game Model

28:37 - 34:15 - Principles v Matchday

34:16 - 39:36 - Advice

Rhys' Twitter; https://twitter.com/rhyscarr86?lang=en

Dalibor Plavsic is an analyst with the Canadian men's national team. Yet who is he and how did he get here? In this episode Dalibor gives us an insight into the power of the beautiful game. We speak about the unifying power football can have on a country, best coaching practices, how principles have usurped systems and what he thinks the future of the game ought to look like. From escaping the Yugoslavia war as a young refugee, arriving in Canada to now working with the national team on the verge of making history, this is his story. Expect to hear more about;

- How football helped to integrate Dalibor within society?

- Why football is increasingly becoming a game of principles and not systems?

- The art of coaching beyond “what & if scenarios?”

- Embracing chaos in session design.

- Insights into the analysis process within the Canadian men's national team.

- What is so special about the culture within the Canadian setup?

- Dalibor's thoughts as to what the future game of football looks like?

Timestamps;

00:00 - 07:52 - Unifying power of football

07:53 - 13:30 - Principles > Systems

13:31 - 20:52 - Embracing chaos

20:53 - 28:30 - The player

28:31 - 35:32 - Analysis

35:33 - 41:07 - The future game

41:08 - 44:09 - Advice

Dalibor's Twitter; https://twitter.com/DaliborPlavsic_

We have a special episode this week as we gear up for the EURO 2020 Final between Italy & England. We discuss everything including;

- Why this maybe our favourite international tournament ever?

- The tactical trends which have defined Euro 2020.

- How top level football is increasingly becoming more and more about systems?

- Which key spaces Italy & England will look to dominate on Sunday?

-What is so special about this group of England players?

- Our picks for moment, performance, player & team of the tournament.

Timestamps;

00:00 - 09:57 - Tactical Trends

09:58 - 23:53 - Final Preview

23:54 - 33:05 - England

33:06 - 46:16 - Moments of the tournament

46:17 - 56:49 - Team of the tournament

Ryan Baldi is author of “The Dream Factory; Inside the Make-Or-Break World of Football's Academies”. The book is a journey deep into the heart of English youth football, revealing in gripping detail how home-grown Premier League stars such as Marcus Rashford and Trent Alexander-Arnold are created, and at what cost. Ryan introduces a rich array of characters behind talent production lines at several Premier League clubs, including Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City, zooming in on the stories of Alexander-Arnold's unique development, how Rashford's sense of social responsibility was nurtured, and how Phil Foden has become a beacon to City’s young hopefuls. Nonetheless the book also explores the harsh realities of life away from the big academies, yielding unrivalled insight into the machine that manufactures these stars and everything it spits out in the process. Expect to hear more about;

- Why some clubs do not see the academy process as viable?

- How clubs are increasingly taking an individual stance towards development?

- What the process of creating a Marcus Rashford on and off the pitch looks like at Manchester United?

- Why support networks like Mason Mount's are all too rare?

- The La Masia of the lower leagues

- The Phil Foden v Dele pathway

- If Ryan believes a World Cup or European Championship win would vindicate the process?

Timestamps;

00:00 - 12:10 - English Academy System

12:11 - 17:25 - Individual Development

17:26 - 23:41 - Cultural Architects

23:42 - 33:40 - The role of parents

33:41 - 43:40 - Breaking tradition

43:41 - 47:15 - Foden v Dele pathway

47:16 - 53:23 - Fear

53:24 - 01:04:43 - Future Solutions

Juan Delgado is the Academy Director of Austin FC. As his academy travelled to Dallas for a youth tournament Juan joined me to explain how the project is progressing to date. Juan's experiences at Villarreal, Valencia and Aspire Academy have provided him with tremendous context as to what the future player may look like. In our conversation Juan discusses how we can examine youth development objectively in this increasingly complex era. Moreover we discuss how this process is shaped, refined and adapted to the player's needs. Whether you are building a game model, defining your principles of play or looking for inspiration this is a must listen. Check out below to learn more about;

- What does football mean to Juan?

- What's the most challenging part of building an academy?

- The power of knowing where you want to go.

- Bypassing fear in youth development.

- Why any philosophy should start with the player?

- What does the future game look like?

- The influence of Marcelo Bielsa on his beliefs.

Timestamps;

00:00 - 05:55 - Valencia, Villarreal & Aspire Academy

05:56 - 11:07 - Austin FC

11:08 - 15:25 - Culture

15:26 - 19:43 - Game Model

19:44 - 26:07 - The future game

26:08 - 32:11 - Principles of Play

32:12 - 36:14 - Advice

36:15 - 41:01 - Success

There are few people better qualified to give an insight into top flight recruitment than David Webb. Having initially begun his career with sights on an academy manager's role a trip to Germany changed all of this. Not long after David moved into recruitment roles at Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur & Bournemouth where he helped achieve a historic promotion to the Premier League. After this unprecedented success David soon moved into the boardroom with spells as technical director at Östersunds and most recently head of football operations at Huddersfield Town. David's story is one of lifelong learning and here he shares many of the lessons behind his success. Listen to learn more about;

- What is required of the modern day technical director?

- How a trip to Germany caused him to pivot?

- What does a high performance environment look like?

- What it was like to work daily with Mauricio Pochettino & Eddie Howe?

- How to use resource constraints to your advantage?

- How to compliment data alongside traditional scouting processes?

- Why David is continuously adapting and refining for his next challenge?

Timestamps;

00:00 - 08:38 - Career path

08:39 - 12:33 - Modern Technical Director

12:34 - 16:44 - Common recruitment mistakes

16:45 - 23:46 - Southampton & Mauricio Pochettino

23:47 - 29:48 - Bournemouth & Eddie Howe

29:49 - 33:10 - Data

33:11 - 41:35 - Huddersfield Town

41:36 - 48:28 - The next challenge

48:29 - 52:03 - Advice

Larry Sunderland is the Director of Player Development at FC Cincinnati. Having worked previously within US youth national team set ups alongside the academies of Chicago Fire & Portland Timbers, Larry knows exactly what it takes to make it as a professional footballer. During our wide ranging conversation we discussed all the internal and external factors which go into shaping young talents. Listen to this episode to learn more about;

- The importance of self-regulation in youth development?

- How he narrows the gap between what someone is and what they can become?

- What it is like to build an academy from the ground up?

- Why it is important to look past the low hanging fruits of success?

- The psycho-social components of establishing an identity?

- Which soft skill must all player's possess if they are to become professional?

Timestamps;

00:00 - 05:00 - Early beginnings

05:01 - 08:58 - Self-Regulation

08:59 - 12:55 - “Working in the gap”

12:56 - 17:42 - Environment

17:43 - 29:37 - Philosophy

29:38 - 33:10 - Identity

33:11 - 40:26 - Embracing Adversity

40:27 - 47:14 - Coach Development

47:15 - 49:36 - Legacy

David Dwinger is the founder of JOGO; an AI powered platform which aims to make talent development data & technology insightful and accessible to players and coaches all over the world. David has a brilliant seat at the top of the technology revolution that is gripping the football industry. Despite barely being 13 months old JOGO is now working with 65 academies worldwide and are involved with federations such as FIFA. By the end of our discussion I am even more convinced by the validity of David's work and how important a role software such as JOGO can play a role in youth development. Listen to this episode to learn more about;

- How artificial intelligence can give you an edge in youth development?

- How the football landscape is changing?

- The trials and tribulations of establishing a startup.

- Why the cognitive aspect of football is radically underappreciated?

- How clubs can optimize youth development?

JOGO website: https://jogo.ai/

JOGO App; https://apps.apple.com/us/app/jogo-ai/id1524472015

Timestamps;

00:00 - 03:01 - Early beginnings

03:02 - 06:38 - Football's changing narrative

06:39 - 09:02 - The startup process

09:03 - 13:27 - How does it work?

13:28 - 15:36 - Player ownership

15:37 - 24:40 - Cognitive aspect of football

24:41 - 28:26 - JOGO projects

28:27 - 31:29 - Advice for launching a startup

Tim Keech is the co-founder of MRKT Insights; a data focused football consultancy who supply data science, technical scouting, and recruitment services to football clubs and ownership groups. 90% of the clubs they have worked with have improved their league finishing position in the subsequent season. Tim joined me recently to explain how clubs can win infinitely and why and how an aligned strategy can springboard your club to success. Listen to this episode to learn more about;

- The inefficiencies of football's labour market

- Why this summer could increase the chasm between Europe's elite and the chasing pack?

- How a multi-club model can save Europe's elite?

- How strategy can bridge the revenue gap?

- What the due diligence process looks like for acquiring a club?

- Implications of Brexit on this summer and beyond?

Tim's Twitter; https://twitter.com/SBunching?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor

MRKT Insights website: https://mrktinsights.com/

Timestamps;

00:00 - 08:03 - Intro

08:04 - 10:40 - Sustainability catalysts

10:41 - 17:28 - Differential models

17:29 - 20:40 - Wage Expenditure

20:41 - 29:56 - The Ownership process

29:57 - 36:04 - Sushi & Chocolate Cake

36:05 - 41:46 - Club Partnerships

41:47 - 45:22 - Transfer Market

45:23 - 51:34 - Elevator Pitch