I’m no expert on the matter but it’s likely there will be some sort of Data Analysts probably hired to advise on signings rather than old school scouts.
There was an interesting podcast on how Memphis Depay’s agent found Lyon to be the perfect club for him by using these metrics. So it could even be agent driven in some cases. Agents/Players looking for clubs rather than clubs looking for players.
This is probably how it should work in today’s world but I’m not sure its how the operations have been traditionally set up. Scouting departments predated analytics and my sense is that a lot of clubs have found it difficult to blend them or get them working together productively.
There is clearly still a very important role for traditional in-person scouting in today’s game but I think its also almost certainly a role that requires fewer people and also individuals who are willing to adapt to the new approach - ie, working productively with analytics people, rather than seeing them as rivals; understanding your role less as someone who trawls a million lower league games to discover previously unknown players and more as someone who vets a smaller number of players that have been “discovered” by analytics and agents, doing a lot more of their scouting on video than in person, etc.
People are territorial and they don’t like change, especially if it seems to undermine the prestige of their position. In the abstract, I think its probably good that Arsenal are significantly revamping their (likely outdated) scouting operation. The question is really what will take its place.
Well I’ll start by saying I know fuck all about scouting, but I’m pretty sure it isn’t just finding the complete unknown under some rock in Azerbaijan and getting in there before he’s worth £60m.
Aubameyang played for 5 clubs before he went to Dortmund. He won’t have been an unknown to any decent European club, plenty of Ligue 1 games at various clubs, but what would be unknown is his ability to play at CL level as an elite goalscorer and make that step and Dortmund made that judgement at the right time in his career when he was 23/24.
I thought a big part of scouting was about deciding whether they could make that jump to your club and fit in, which is obviously a lot harder at a bigger club. Isn’t someone talking to previous coaches and getting insights into the player, how he lives, how he trains, what’s his temper like, do his teammates love him, do his coaches love him, does he do what he’s told. I imagine this is all part of the process and I just assumed it was the scouts responsibility to do all that kind of stuff.
Maybe our scouts are all actually a pile of shit and should be replaced but I don’t know if it’s as simple as scale that down and scale data up.
I think this echoes what a lot of people have been saying.
+Van Persie
This is precisely why I don’t think it’s a big deal. We’re progressing to a modern way of working and lowering our wage bill in the process.
Just don’t think it’s a big deal and hopefully people can stop sensationalising getting rid of staff that the club just probably won’t need moving forward.
I think the uproar has far more to do with the timing and the tone of it. Within context of COVID, the promises made to players when taking a pay cut and how they worded the post, they brought the backlash on themselves. If there wasn’t a pandemic going on that set up the current situation, I think the response would be different - it would still suck but it would be more about change and restructuring within. That’s fine. It will or won’t work. But they played the victim in the post, for lack of a better cliché.
What nonsense
Liverpool’s very recent success in the market is literally tied to Klopp providing a clear footballing vision on the pitch and him personally assuming further control of talent ID/target selection.
The “transfer committee” they had before klopp produced very mixed result with very little success on the pitch
The whole Man City model is only achievable for clubs being bankrolled, it’s not a sustainable model for a club like Arsenal to follow. Their wealth allows them to access a pool of players and talents that are relatively “known” already.
FTFY.
Without the Coutinho heist that Liverpool pulled off, they aren’t where they are just because of Klopp.
No other manager translates those proceeds into a CL and league win. Klopp pushed the club to sign VVD and Alison
Issue for me is, I’ve never seen any evidence this was the case at Arsenal. All indications point to the previous scouting set up embracing analytics heavily and other new methods.
From Mislintat directly who saw things first hand:
Previously we had a strong systematic approach to transfers, a mixture of watching things live as well as quality data and video analysis – Arsenal actually owns their own data company. That meant that we acted independently, we knew about all markets and players in all positions that came into question. However, the new leadership work more strongly with what they are offered from clubs or agents through their own networks.
I don’t think that description would apply to someone like Francis Cagigao, how often do you see scouts drawing praise from various high level players?
Trimming non playing staff numbers and excess in the scouting department is fine, concerns arise when senior figures are getting the sack and it isn’t clear how or which methods we’re going to use to replace them.
It doesn’t appear to me as the dismissals in the scouting department being related to analytics vs traditional scouting methods.
On Edu’s scouting change, if IT and data technologies are not properly implemented or only implemented superficially, without changes to the overall structure, then you won’t see any real increase in “productivity”.
Cagigao also seems to had a salesman role in recruiting the player, dealing with them personally apart from his scouting role.
I know people like this. Unless it’s their idea or enough water has passed under the bridge that they can make out like it is they just block block block.
He gone?
Depends on if you believe the football gerbil or not.
yeah i cant see that happening…total bollocks, however they said there might be a shocking departure so never know
Sooo Stan, but probably Josh, might have had a bigger hands on approach in the (financial) dealings of the club than we initially thought. The firings of the 55, and all those scouts, overpaying for Pepe. If I was not mistaken there were some rumblings about Sanllehi not wanting to fire Emery…