The ghost of Brexit is set to haunt our clubs’ rising youth academies
Michelle Collins on the stage role that helped her get her mojo back
Liverpool’s startling comeback against Villareal to win their place in the Champions League Final made Jurgen Klopp’s side the talk of the steamie across Europe and beyond.
Amid all the celebration and anticipation, news of the Anfield club’s interest in not one, but two Aberdeen players is unlikely to have featured highly on the Richter scale of Merseyside gossip.
In Scottish terms, however, the Reds’ admiration for the young Dons were intriguing as further evidence of two distinct trends in the game here.
Calvin Ramsay, tipped to be signed by Liverpool as cover for Trent Alexander-arnold, is every inch a full-back of the modern era.
A natural athlete who loves to get forward at every opportunity, he is further confirmation of something we all know to be true – Scotland is producing fantastic full-backs.
The 18-year-old himself acknowledges Andy Robertson and Kieran Tierney as role models,and has paid tribute to the huge progress made at a young age by 20-year-old Nathan Patterson, and Aaron Hickey, who’s a year younger.
When you consider the quartet play their club football for Liverpool, Arsenal, Everton and Bologna, Steve Clarke looks exceptionally wellcovered in the short, medium and long term.
Even if Ramsay does not end
The sale would make solid business sense for the Dons as they will take in millions
up with Robertson at Anfield, the concession by Jim Goodwin that Aberdeen will not stand in his way means he is liable to be plying his trade in the English Premier League or Serie A next season.
From the Pittodrie club’s point of view, the sale would make solid business sense as the millions they
will take in will allow their new manager funds to rebuild his side.
More concerning is the Liverpool link to the Dons youth striker, Lancelot Pollard.
A prolific goalscorer, he played as a 14-year old in higher-age groups last year and has also attracted the attention of Rangers and Manchester United.
So, given Aberdeen are liable to pick up a six-figure fee by way of compensation for his loss, what is the problem?
The issue lies not with Pollard himself, but the fact he would be just one part of a mass exodus of Scottish kids heading south.
With English clubs finding it extremely difficult to pick up young European players in the wake of Brexit, they have turned their attention to the Scottish market.
Not just any players, but the best and brightest of prospects of their
generation, could be leaving before they have barely had a chance to kick a ball for the clubs who have developed them.
A perfect example is Liverpool’s signing of Ben Doak from Celtic for around £600,000 back in March.
Celtic rated the 16-year-old highly, and had given him his senior debut against Dundee United in January, and used him off the substitutes’ bench in the Old Firm derby the following month.
They were unable to persuade him to sign a full-time professional contract, so lost him for compensation cash.
Doak’s fellow academy graduate, Josh Adams, has quit the Hoops for Manchester City, who also snapped up Scotland Under-17 internationalist, Liam Smith, from Kilmarnock.
Another Smith, 17-year-old Kerr of Dundee United, went off to Aston Villa in January, for a fee in excess of £1-million.
The Birmingham club are almost certain to be back in the summer for Ewan Simpson of Hearts, having already made a concerted effort to take the 15-year-old south.
Rangers, who famously lost Billy Gilmour to Chelsea for next to nothing, received £16m – including add-ons – when selling Patterson to Everton.
They are now set to see 18-year-old Alex Lowry depart, with the midfielder being eyed by Newcastle United and Manchester City.
Scouts, not from just the biggest clubs but also the likes of Salford and Walsall, are regular spies at games here, all eager to spot potential.
As much as the moves are just market forces, those inside the game say they also highlight a big issue – namely the gaping void between Under-18s and first-team football in Scotland.
The reserve leagues are gone. With the best will in the world, Premiership managers are not going to play 16 and 17-year-olds in their first-team every week – so where do they play?
In England, the pathway is clearer with Under-19 and Under-23 football providing a bridge to the first-team.
Rangers and Celtic have addressed the problem by running colts teams in the Lowland League, where they are up against men week in, week out, and Hearts are poised to join them next season.
The set-up allows those clubs to lay out an obvious route to success when bringing in players. For others, however, it can be a tougher sell.
Of course, plugging the gap by introducing an extra level, say at Under-23s, would take extra funding from clubs, and those who run the game.
However, as we have already seen with the drawn-out introduction of VAR, sometimes the cost of not taking action is just too great.