Tony Pulis column: Why the academy system needs an overhaul
One of my favorite moments of the season came last week, I was watching ArsenalMax Dowman burst forward from his own penalty area to score the goal that sealed his side’s Premier League win Everton.
Young homegrown talents are always appreciated by their team’s fans and from what I’ve seen from the 16-year-old so far, Arsenal fans will enjoy more special moments from him in the years to come.
But for every Max Dowman who emerges from the academy system and realizes his dream of a career in professional football, there are thousands of boys and girls who fail to progress through the different stages and have to face crushing rejection at a young age.
What concerns me are these players leaving academy football, because I don’t think the current system adequately informs them of their chances or deals with them when they are kicked out.
It needs an overhaul and when I retired from management in 2020 I compiled my own report into the academy system, including recommendations on how it could be improved, and then spent almost a year filming a documentary series on the subject for Sky Sports called ‘Chasing the Dream’.
He explored his path to men’s football; Our research has shown that 91% of young players in academies never play a professional game.
While working on the series, I traveled around the country speaking to people at all levels of the football pyramid about their experiences, good and bad, in the academy system.
During the many moments I saw success and failure, I came across the tragic case of Jeremy Wisten, a teenager released by Manchester City who committed suicide in 2020 at the age of 18.
She wasn’t the only one who couldn’t cope with what could have been an unbearable situation, and her mother was very open and honest when talking about her journey on the show.
We have also met young people who have become trapped in the drug trade or have serious mental health problems due to the rejection they experienced when they quit football, as well as the void created by not being able to wake up to any other job opportunities.
The facilities I saw when I visited different academies were incredible, but I still don’t think the balance with education was right. It seems to me that we have a responsibility to not only develop elite players, but also good people, including those who do not succeed.
This means taking better care of them than we do now, especially when they are told they are not good enough, which happens to the vast majority of children.
