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I can see Rodri moving further forward to the Gundo role in the future. He’s got a good engine and we saw at Arsenal once he’s further forward he’s keen to get in the box and mix it up.

Looks like another highly rated kid, Sam Edozie, is off to Germany..

Mase wrote:Looks like another highly rated kid, Sam Edozie, is off to Germany..

Who by?

He was around the first team squad at the start of last season and looked out of his depth to me.

Tokyo Blue wrote:

Mase wrote:Looks like another highly rated kid, Sam Edozie, is off to Germany..

Who by?

He was around the first team squad at the start of last season and looked out of his depth to me.

Pep played him pre-season and then he got injured. So I’m assuming Pep rated him to do that.

He was also one of a few that was promoted to first team training before his injury.

Pep Guardiola has described young Manchester City winger Sam Edozie as 'incredible' after the teenager made it three goals in as many pre-season games.

“He's an incredible young player, good pace. Be patient with him. With minutes they play good and this is important.”

He played cos everyone else was on holiday. And Pep isn’t going to say he’s cack, is he?

Whatever, the next age group down won the league as well, so decks need to be cleaned and choices need to be made. You can’t keep every young player at the club, sadly.

Tokyo Blue wrote:He played cos everyone else was on holiday. And Pep isn’t going to say he’s cack, is he?

Whatever, the next age group down won the league as well, so decks need to be cleaned and choices need to be made. You can’t keep every young player at the club, sadly.

I think he's 'ok'. Might go on and develop in his 20s. BUT he's not ready to be a first teamer yet.
It's only fair we let these players leave so they can find their level and allow the next group to see if they are good enough.
Honestly I think that's how we sell the academy to these kids and the parents.
'Come and learn here, in the best environment. If you're good enough you'll get your chance. If not we'll help you find the right club and won't ask for a stupid fee. We'll likely have a sell-on clause etc... and could bring you back.
Now it's up to you to show you're good enough.'

Tokyo Blue wrote:He played cos everyone else was on holiday. And Pep isn’t going to say he’s cack, is he?

Whatever, the next age group down won the league as well, so decks need to be cleaned and choices need to be made. You can’t keep every young player at the club, sadly.

Pep called him “incredible”. He scored 3/3 in pre-season and was chosen to train with the first team. Not sure what else would be classed as highly rated.

Two's Kompany wrote:

Tokyo Blue wrote:He played cos everyone else was on holiday. And Pep isn’t going to say he’s cack, is he?

Whatever, the next age group down won the league as well, so decks need to be cleaned and choices need to be made. You can’t keep every young player at the club, sadly.

I think he's 'ok'. Might go on and develop in his 20s. BUT he's not ready to be a first teamer yet.
It's only fair we let these players leave so they can find their level and allow the next group to see if they are good enough.
Honestly I think that's how we sell the academy to these kids and the parents.
'Come and learn here, in the best environment. If you're good enough you'll get your chance. If not we'll help you find the right club and won't ask for a stupid fee. We'll likely have a sell-on clause etc... and could bring you back.
Now it's up to you to show you're good enough.'

Pretty much how I see how the academy is set up. The hope that we get a great player periodically but the rank and file learn about football in the best training facilities in the country in the company of the best team to give them a decent start.

And if course the transfer fees they bring in help pay for new recruitment

Mase wrote:

Tokyo Blue wrote:He played cos everyone else was on holiday. And Pep isn’t going to say he’s cack, is he?

Whatever, the next age group down won the league as well, so decks need to be cleaned and choices need to be made. You can’t keep every young player at the club, sadly.

Pep called him “incredible”. He scored 3/3 in pre-season and was chosen to train with the first team. Not sure what else would be classed as highly rated.

Maybe he didn't kick on the way the coaching staff had hoped?
Maybe the lad in his position in the age group below him is considered a better prospect?

nottsblue wrote:

Mase wrote:

Tokyo Blue wrote:He played cos everyone else was on holiday. And Pep isn’t going to say he’s cack, is he?

Whatever, the next age group down won the league as well, so decks need to be cleaned and choices need to be made. You can’t keep every young player at the club, sadly.

Pep called him “incredible”. He scored 3/3 in pre-season and was chosen to train with the first team. Not sure what else would be classed as highly rated.

Maybe he didn't kick on the way the coaching staff had hoped?
Maybe the lad in his position in the age group below him is considered a better prospect?

He got injured and was out for most of the season.

In recent years, our first team squad and academy has reached the level where City dominate both areas domestically.
We initially reached up to become a top four club in the Prem, seeing off challenges from the likes of Spurs and eventually overtaking Arsenal and Chelsea and for the main part keeping the Dippers at bay. The rags did their own imploding that helped us to become the dominant force in domestic football.

We need to understand that we are now reaching out to challenge and hopefully become dominant against the likes of Bayern, Madrid, Barca etc. It is a new challenge that has and will see us change our approach to buying and selling players.

We are now financially at the top, meaning we must, and can afford to only buy players that we believe can push us on through the this new phase.
The question being, "Can this player help us regularly win the CL?"

Our academy is without doubt the best in domestic football and is producing some great talent. But again, the judgement has to be, can they become world class in the job we need them to do at that very top level?

It's always sad when we see homegrown talented kids being let go but such is our current status, only the very best can be retained and with our current first team squad, we only need 2/3 players each season.

The great thing about our academy is that it is now a constant conveyor belt of talent over a number of age groups and produces far more than we need for our first team squad. It does however provide us with constant revenue that allows us now to challenge the market at the top level.

It is not that long ago we were ducking out of deals we felt were above our financial limits. Now we can afford to buy the best.

Sadly, we are going to have to see some of our top kids leave and we are going to have to get used to it.

Indeed we are John, and we're also going to get used to the fact that we're not going to be giving the great majority of youngsters a "chance" in the first team.

patrickblue wrote:Indeed we are John, and we're also going to get used to the fact that we're not going to be giving the great majority of youngsters a "chance" in the first team.

I don’t think anyone is asking for the majority to be given a chance. However Pep did give a good number of them a chance against Wycombe last season, and with us having one of the smallest squads in the league if we want to keep first teamers fresh for the run in we need to think about giving kids a chance in the early rounds of the cups. Most likely why players like Walker were on their arse towards the end of the season

patrickblue wrote:Indeed we are John, and we're also going to get used to the fact that we're not going to be giving the great majority of youngsters a "chance" in the first team.

If everyone here finally gets to realise that, it will be a great day

Twas ever the same really - when we were crap, so were the youngsters. Now we have good youngsters the first team is stellar!

The youngsters are an important part of the financial business. Not too many Fodens about though

john@staustell wrote:

patrickblue wrote:Indeed we are John, and we're also going to get used to the fact that we're not going to be giving the great majority of youngsters a "chance" in the first team.

If everyone here finally gets to realise that, it will be a great day

Twas ever the same really - when we were crap, so were the youngsters. Now we have good youngsters the first team is stellar!

The youngsters are an important part of the financial business. Not too many Fodens about though

Palmer?

Outcast wrote:

john@staustell wrote:

patrickblue wrote:Indeed we are John, and we're also going to get used to the fact that we're not going to be giving the great majority of youngsters a "chance" in the first team.

If everyone here finally gets to realise that, it will be a great day

Twas ever the same really - when we were crap, so were the youngsters. Now we have good youngsters the first team is stellar!

The youngsters are an important part of the financial business. Not too many Fodens about though

Palmer?

It’s weird. We’re a completely different set up with the best academy facilities in England and up there with the best in the world. We are setting standards. It’s not 2004 anymore and we have Palmer and McAtee coming through - not Lee Croft.

Maybe it's just paper talk, and maybe Ake wants regular starts, but I don't see why we would consider selling him.
Most of the time at least one of our CB's is crocked (Usually Stones)
Last seson even Fern slotted in, so selling Ake would leave us vulnerable at CB, and I don't see anyone else ready to step up

hayling22 wrote:Maybe it's just paper talk, and maybe Ake wants regular starts, but I don't see why we would consider selling him.
Most of the time at least one of our CB's is crocked (Usually Stones)
Last seson even Fern slotted in, so selling Ake would leave us vulnerable at CB, and I don't see anyone else ready to step up

Ake has said he’s looking forward to coming back and challenging for the first team more this season. Just paper talk with him.

Mase wrote:

hayling22 wrote:Maybe it's just paper talk, and maybe Ake wants regular starts, but I don't see why we would consider selling him.
Most of the time at least one of our CB's is crocked (Usually Stones)
Last seson even Fern slotted in, so selling Ake would leave us vulnerable at CB, and I don't see anyone else ready to step up

Ake has said he’s looking forward to coming back and challenging for the first team more this season. Just paper talk with him.

Hopefully so. Good player, versatile. Also his recent injury needs time to heal and therefore not really a great time to buy him for big money, makes no sense.

I keep reading that this player or that would be good as a squad player. Totallydisagree with that. At the level we are at and the level we are tryingto reach, there can be no such thing as a squad player.
If we need to rotate the first selkections for any reason, exhaustion, muscle fatigue or injury, the player stepping up has to be as good as the player he's called upon to replace.
In the last couple of seasons, we have been forced to prioritise competitions and risk weakened teams in cup semi finals. That is a weakness that has to be strengthened and a gap in our squad that needs to be plugged.

The danger is that some players of world class may play less games than they would want to but it is a danger we have to accept. Ideally, we need two first teams with the 'squad players' being the cherry picked kids we believe could make it in our 1st team.

We are now in the later stages of our project that promised football domination, like a boxer who has used previous rounds to soften up an opponent, we have to be equipped to knock them out.