Younger Players, Expectations Being Managed?

[Port Said Red]

I was going to post this on one of the Engvall related threads, but I feel it is something that is part of a more general discussion. 

This is not just about Bristol City either as it is clear that there has been a change of structure at lower levels in the last couple of years. I feel like that football fans are having their expectations managed around what we should expect from younger players.

The main area is with the change back to an U23 league, U23's used to be the norm at international level back when I first started watching football and changed to U21's in the mid 70's I think. It used to be considered that any player making a name for themselves as a teenager or at least before they were 21 was considered something of a protege. Now we have the U23's and I think that we will be expecting to move that consideration into the early 20's for some players. Posters on here joke about "young Bobby" or "Young Joe" but I wonder if still considering these players "young" into their early 20's will be considered the norm within a few years? In this scenario, at 21, Gustav Engvall should still be considered in a key area of his development and as LJ says, if he was coming through our set up, he probably would be.

I think there are a couple of reasons that this might be the case, firstly "burn out", there have been countless examples of this and articles about this over the years, young players that have burst on the scene and then faded away due to over exposure, over training or injury caused by over developing young bodies. Then I think there is a general feeling that players can play longer and stay effective longer these days, witnessed by the kind of amounts being paid for players who in the past would be at an age (29 - 33) where you might consider they are on their last stage of their career. Finally, and probably an unpopular development, is the amount of money younger "development level" players can earn; although this may seem crazy to many of us, it does mean there is a reduced pressure on the younger players to push for that big break too soon, just to make money. 

It will be interesting to see if there is a seed change in the way the average supporter views younger players in coming years.

[grifty]

I think the young bobby and young joe terms are more nicknames because that is what they were called 6-7 years ago when they first got involved with first team. They are still relatively young as footballers but are not at the age that they need to play week in week out.

i feel fans expect the majority of 17-18 years old need to be playing regular first team football to develop and if they are 20 and not broken in then they need to leave which is wrong imo

[Port Said Red]

I see that @Thatch35 has rubbished my post, so I think I might be on to something here.  

[grifty]

Double post

[Davefevs]

@Port Said Red interesting post.  Not sure I know the reality.

One thing I do know is that the demands on our academy players to get in the first team has increased.  I'm looking at this rather simply, so take it with a pinch of salt, but I think there's something in it.

If you take 13/14, 14/15, for a youngster to get into the first team, he had to be League One standard.  Now our youngsters has to be Champ standard.  This will take a bit if an adjustment (a spike) in our development needs.  To some extent it proves that Bobby Reid has done well to 'ride' the increased demands and still be here.  As a League One club, there aren't many who thought he'd be a regular match day 18 member in the Champ.  Most thought he wouldn't make League One!

So City academy players might have to wait a little longer to develop whilst we make that adjustment....but also now that demand us at a higher level, less are going to make it through to the required level.

Question:  what are the objectives of our Academy programme.  Obviously to create the pathway into the first team.  But I'd still see it as an achievement to get any academy player into a professional career at league Two level.  It's still small percentages that carve a career, even at League Two.

[Spoons]

Maybe a case of overthinking things here??