The success of Erik ten Hag's Man. United project largely depends on the club getting the recruitment process right. The current method of operation —from scouting to acquisition— puts the club in danger of missing out on certain profiles & of being left behind by the elites.
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Considering the current trajectory of football, the value of these player profiles in ⚽ will surge in the coming years.
- Traditional CFs with high levels of physical capacity.
- High-volume, high-efficiency-dribbling wingers.
-MFs with extensive ground coverage.
- Traditional CFs with high levels of physical capacity.
- High-volume, high-efficiency-dribbling wingers.
-MFs with extensive ground coverage.
- Physically-dominating central CBs with organizational skills, composure & high-level on-ball skills.
- Creative players with large zones of influence.
- Small-space dribblers with good decision-making ability & feel for the game.
- Physically-dominating wide defenders.
- Creative players with large zones of influence.
- Small-space dribblers with good decision-making ability & feel for the game.
- Physically-dominating wide defenders.
The neighbors have all 7 profiles, some of them at the top of their classes, the others not, but still at high levels.
- Haaland.
- Doku.
- Nunes.
- Dias.
- KDB.
- Bernardo.
- Aké/Akanji/Walker.
Arsenal have 6, Bayern 6, Madrid 5, Barça 5, Liverpool 5.
We have just two.
- Haaland.
- Doku.
- Nunes.
- Dias.
- KDB.
- Bernardo.
- Aké/Akanji/Walker.
Arsenal have 6, Bayern 6, Madrid 5, Barça 5, Liverpool 5.
We have just two.
The most impressive thing -for me- about Pep Guardiola is his ability to look into and prepare for the future, to spot trends at their nascence, to constantly reverse-engineer & accurately develop solutions to problems not yet manifest.
Couple that foresight with his mentality —his constant search for perfection, always looking to improve, never lost in the present, always evolving— and you see why he has no true competition and will continue to dominate for as long as he's in the game.
Applying this approach to our recruitment is what will take us back to our previous heights. Recruitment with long-term focus, in-line with present & future trends, acquisition of the best of the best of the best, relentless & ruthless squad-building.
We can't afford to be satisfied with band-aid players or players that need plenty of tactical support to be impactful while our rivals keep hoarding the biggest talents.
The caliber & number of coaches we hire won't matter as long as our recruitment process remains flawed.
The caliber & number of coaches we hire won't matter as long as our recruitment process remains flawed.
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