Like Cheryl Cole let loose in Harvey Nicks with Ashley`s platinum card a day before their divorce settlement, the Premiership has become a melee of panicked, overly priced and pointless spending. However in this mayhem Boro stand as a shining example of the benefits of a shrewd transfer policy, investing in youth and not complying to the myth that teams have to spend forty million to stay up.
Southgate`s faith in the quality of his youth players and composure in the transfer market have echoes of the fruitful youth policy that has served a certain Frenchman so well at Arsenal.
OK, Boro are still a long way from the fluency of football and levels of success as Arsenal, however the basic principles of having faith in youth and playing with an attacking mentality are there. Middlesbrough rely on academy players more than most teams in the Premiership, and unlike Arsenal, rear their talent themselves using English players, testament to which lies in the selection of Wheater and Downing into Capello`s most recent England squads.
Despite Boro`s misgivings, flair and creativity lies in the team through players such as Tuncay, Downing, Aliadiere, who can put together the odd 8-1 thrashing when they put their minds to it.
Like Arsenal, Boro have managed to avoid the infectious virus of believing spending is the key to success, while certain other clubs in the North East have been well and truly paralysed by the bug. Newcastle, who have long been famed for hemorrhaging cash on poor signings(just ask Carl Cort or Albert Luque, you will find them laughing heartily, on their way to the bank) managed to finish all of one point above Boro despite their signing of so called ‘quality` players from top four clubs such as Geremi or Alan Smith. And then there is Sunderland, who spent nearly fifty million on players, yet still look like they have a championship quality squad and hovered precariously above the drop zone all season.
Yes, Boro splashed big cash on Woodgate and Alves, but Woodgate was sold on for a profit and can be considered good business now that David Wheater has emerged as a more than capable replacement, and cost the club nothing as an academy graduate.
The extent of Southgate`s loyalty to youth is shared nowhere in the Premiership other than at Arsenal, and this policy is showing signs of providing similar dividends. Don`t expect to see Gallic shrugs and an inability to see penalty decisions on the sidelines at the Riverside just yet, but Southgate is definitely learning something from North London to good affect for the club.
Jack Ruane
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Southgate has pulled off a number of masterstrokes so far, very good managerial prospect and will do very well for this club. All the spuds who were calling for his head at some point over the last couple of years will be proved wrong big time.
interesting perspective there, I feel educated!
Will he be forced to sell his main youngsters though when some of the big clubs come sniffing?
Wheater not in the same League as Woody though.
I agree, AJ may be on his way out of the Riverside if the price is right. Wheater is not the finished article yet but he does possess something that Woody doesn’t have, the ability to stay injury-free for more than 10 days at a time. (touch wood).