38 years ago Liam Brady arrived in London as a promising 15 year old, and with just a bag full of clothes, began his adventure with Arsenal. After a fantastic career, Liam was offered the chance to repay the youth system that had served him and many others so well, and took up the role of Youth Development Officer.
The coming campaign will be his 12th season in the role, and in an exclusive interview with ‘Soccer Lens‘, the Irish legend talks about a whole manner of subjects connected with job, from why he accepted the position, to the state of the facilities when he arrived.
Read on for the complete transcript.
Liam, what was it that appealed to you most about becoming head of youth development at Arsenal?
“In one word, Arsenal! I grew up at the club. It’s been part of me ever since I joined them as a youth player in 1970. There’s no question that Arsenal are a big club, with big facilities and they attract very good players on the back of that, which is attractive to someone in my position. But most of all I remember being a young player at Highbury and they were so good to me, so that’s why I wanted to go back and do the job for them.”
Why did you give up on senior management to work in youth football?
“I’d been manager at Glasgow Celtic and Brighton but I no longer wanted to be part of that managerial merry-go-round. When I got the job at Arsenal in 1996 I knew that it was a stable job, independent of the first team manager, and that as long as the board were happy and that I could also please Arsene Wenger, I knew I wouldn’t be moving anywhere else.”
What kind of state was the Arsenal youth set-up in when you arrived?
“Facilities-wise the club wasn’t the best when I arrived. As Arsene Wenger did in convincing the board to buy a new training ground, I in turn pressed the board to agree to let the youth system be part of that new facility. When we lost Highbury, we also lost a tremendous indoor training area which we used a lot for training the kids, so we’ve built a fantastic new facility at Walthamstow that’s ideal. It’s got easy access for parents and their children to get to. It has an all-weather pitch, an indoor area, and also four of five really smashing football pitches on the site too. We are well equipped now.”
How big an operation is the Arsenal youth system nowadays?
“It’s huge. When I say it’s huge I mean that I employ ten full-time staff, there are between 20 and 30 other people helping me to run it on a part-time basis and we’ve got about 150 boys on our books, from the ages of 8 to 18. We also have many scouts but mainly in London because of the rules and regulations. We don’t have scouts in Manchester or Newcastle and places like that as there is no point as they all have to go to their local clubs these days. However, we do have lots of scouts in London, Scotland, Ireland and around Europe.”
What exactly is Arsenal’s youth policy?
“We just concentrate on looking for all the things that we believe are vital attributes, and above all else the technical ability of each individual boy. We then try to develop that talent to a point where he is going to be good enough to operate at the top level. They have to be athletic, so we help them with their physical development, he has to be dedicated so we try to give them mentoring and guidance in that respect. A young player has to have the whole package to make it. However, technical ability is far and away the most important aspect we look for in a young player.”
How much emphasis is placed on guiding a young player on how to live their lives properly?
“We do our utmost to give them guidance and advice on all manner of things, like warning them of what to steer clear of. We advise on all things from key areas like diet to teaching them to be punctual. I am always telling the kids it’s better to be half an hour early than one minute late. This is all done in order to help them advance their careers.”
What’s your view on the debate which is raging about the value for money academies are providing? Do you think they are working or not?
“I certainly think the Arsenal Academy is working. Every club has their own way of running their academies, but I am satisfied it’s a success here. We’ve shown through the years that we produce players who are equipped for the first team. We haven’t hit the jackpot though, and by that I mean we haven’t had enough English players in the team.
I’m hoping that over the next two or three years that situation will have been addressed because we have a fine crop of young players coming through. If you look at the Premier League and the Championship we must have a squad of players in each division that have come through the Arsenal youth system – and they are all doing very well. The jackpot we are always working towards is getting a player into the Arsenal first team though. If they do that, they are likely to be worth £5-10million pounds and that is a great justification for the work we do.”
Arsenal’s Academy is filled with youngsters from all around the world. What do you feel about this?
“Signing foreign youngsters at a young age is essential for Arsenal. If we think that there is a special player we can get hold of, like Cesc Fabregas for example, we work tirelessly to make it happen. I believe that with the facilities and structure we have in place, we can attract these players.”
Which player has been the biggest success story to come through the Arsenal Academy?
“Ashley Cole. It was very satisfying for myself and my colleagues because when we signed him initially he wasn’t one of the more highly rated boys. At 14 or 15 we never thought that Ashley was going to be a superstar and play for England. What he did possess was a real passion to play the game and real dedication for it. He also had the speed and aggression needed and that enabled him to take off once he got into the first team.”
How do you see the future of the Arsenal youth academy?
“As long as the board and the first team manager gives us the support we deserve to continue with our work I can only see it going from strength to strength. If you lose that support it can be a problem. At Chelsea when Ken Bates was in charge they lost it. He wasn’t interested in youth football and he wasn’t interested in young players, so when Roman Abramovich took over he didn’t have a good youngster there. That example goes to show that if you don’t have the support from up above, things will suffer.”
Is Arsene Wenger’s faith in young players a key factor in attracting the best kids?
“I certainly believe that, yes. They know they will get a chance if they are good enough, withArsene Wenger in charge. We will keep on doing what we are doing and see what kind of talent comes through. The most important thing for a professional club like Arsenal is to get the best players. It’s as simple as that. This is why our scouts play such a key role in the club’s success.”
Is it harder than it’s ever been for a young player to make it in the mega-rich Premiership?
“No, I don’t really believe that. The standard of the Premiership is not out of reach for good young players coming through the academies. If a youngster has sound technical ability and the athleticism to go with it, they can make it in the top flight.”
Once more thanks to ‘Soccer Lens‘ for this interesting and insightful interview. Everybody at Young Guns would like to wish Liam the very best in his 12th campaign as Development Officer.
Article By – J.Sanderson
Interesting article Jay always good to hear from those behind the scenes making it all happen.Im sure Liam will continue to be a success with the youngsters. I hope Berkamp and Henry come back someday also to play a roll.
nice interview. i think now the training facilities are about as great as they can be, and especially with kids who will start to want to emulate the likes of wilshere (whereas in the past there hasen’t really been an academy idol, cole permitting) we could start to see huge dividends never seen before in England. Sure, Utd had *that* side, but I’m talking Cruyff’s legacy at Barca, at least a star player every batch. Brady is a legend, shame I wasn’t alive to see him play – his reputation precedes him – but his legacy with the potential careers of the likes of Wilshere and Afobe could outweigh being Platini before Platini was.
Tony: Henry won’t stay in the game. Bergkamp, Adams, Keown, Bould, possibly Vieira, Toure I think are the current legends who could (and in some cases, already have) come back to the team in a coaching capacity. I also suspect that Clichy could be a great manager in 20 or 30 years time.
arsenal arsenal arsenal!!!!!!
youngguns youngguns youngguns!!!!
nasri nasri nasri!!!!!!!
all i can think of for today!!!;) bless man.
i think henry will come back man. havent you seen him say, “you always go back to where you belong, i dont know how but i will” maybe not the exact quote but explains what he said, could mean summin.
I would love to see Bergkamp come back in some form. The man is a god
However, Jackett did rule out any immediate movement of Arsenal’s teenage hitman Jay Simpson, who impressed during his loan spell at the Den last year.
“Jay’s time with us has been mutually beneficial and I will keep my eyes open for any movement but it is not looking likely in the coming month. He is now in a period that he can get under his managers nose after good season with us and try to get in Arsene’s [Wenger] plans.
Jackett joked: “But he did come to see us last week – he kindly returned the DVDs that I borrowed off him a while ago. Jay is a smashing lad with huge potential.”
Seems like Simpson Is Staying ,
Great read. I can´t wait for the reserve and youth seasons to start. Finally the EPL is here and it starts well, we win and the Spuds lose yet again (and flush their hopes down because of their overrated team). I hope to see Wilshere soon, the second leg against Twente sounds like a good place. I am also surprised that Vela hasn´t played at all. At least he is not so fucking awful like his fella Dos Santos was today.
Liam Brady = legend.
Obviously a very committed professional, this guy lives and breathes Arsenal 24/7. Doing a cracking job Brady, keep it up.
Danny Hayes was on the bench for Ipswich today! Came on for Lisbie in 77th. Huh?
I was lucky enought to see ‘Chippy’ play.A genius.I saw his reserve team debut , first team debut and his last game for us. Good article again. Theo, as I have said several times here now ,will not make it at Arsenal. Er hum, any takers for the opposite view? I was there today and Theo was awful. And that was not a one-off.Please, Jack keep working, keep producing!!!!
i agree with you lloyd…theo, will not make it…
he is still making the wrong decisions…and loosing the ball way to much…
id rather have aaron lennon to be honest….least he uses his speed well im sorry
i like theo but if he wasnt english he would have been gone a long time ago.id still rather have theo than aaron lennon
Jay Simpson or Barazite can do a better job than Walcott Acutally They deserve a chance
gunna4lyf – he might come back this season. On loan. As a player not a coach.
I noticed that always charles that Danny was on the bench seems something might happen it could be a transfer
I noticed that aswell charles that Danny was on the bench seems something might happen it could be a transfer
theo deserves more then one game before you decide to criticise him.i hope for the fc twente game that vela and wilshere get a chance
As I said it is NOT based only on today. Theo has shown maybe three exceptional glimpses of talent in all the time he has been here. I saw him several times at Barnet. He wasn’t even in the top 5 Arsenal players. At times half the opposition were better. I hope I am wrong,believe me but all common sense and good judgement indicate otherwise.
Lloyd;
I wouldn’t want to write off Theo just yet, but I agree he is not as productive as one would like.
Anyway, just read a report that Adebayor was booed after missing several goal scoring chances, is it true?
Its True You cant be a player in a top 4 club and you have one moment of magic once every 8 games , come on , ade scored 30 goals and the booing was harsh but he still done the business , walcott does not do the business as much as he should ,The kid excuse has gone out the window time for jay simpson , or nacer
What happened was that there was general frustration with the team within the ground. That was in the main directed at Theo. But given recent events re Ade and his contract he took some flack and one real booing session when he shot instead of passed the ball. But I only heard that ONCE all game.
i agree with a lot of the posts. the amount of abuse eboue gets yet he produces more than theo. a lot of english bias!
If we had the linesman in the Everton game today, Theo would have 2 assists in 2 games. What more you can ask for the lad I don’t know. He’s still a work in process but bar Toure, Gallas and Sagna I don’t think we have a finished product in our side. Hell, it’s still even the fifth year in Arsene’s mystical transition. I think he will become a very good player, it’s just that expectations say that if he becomes anything less than world class – and quickly – then he is a failure, which is so very much the wrong way to judge anyone. Unless Rosicky has had a robocop surgery, Theo is our 2nd best winger.
And also, what’s all this ‘Theo doesn’t get any stick cos he’s English’ – fuck that, his game gets scrutinised more so than any other Arsenal player in recent history. Hell, I can’t think of another player in English football who’s had such intense and detailed criticism because of the fact that he hasn’t had the same career as Rooney.
another player in English football *in the past 10 years*
The problem with Theo Walcott is the hype and the burden of expectation. Everybody can see he is nice lad with pace to burn and technical ability and everybody want him to be successful, however everybody can see that an ingredient is not there: vision.
He often make the wrong decision and make the decision too late.
He does not seem to see the pass early enough. He keep running into blind alley, when by releasing the ball ealy he would create an opportunity for a team mate or for himself via 1-2.
When you compare with the rest of the team in Arsenal, things do not look very bright for him. Jack Wilshere may not have his pace, but in term of awareness he miles better than him. Henry Lansbury range of passing is more varied.
Nasri is only 2 1/2 years, but at the same age had that vision. I am not talking about Fabregas, Denilson, Bentdner who at 19 were way better than Theo.
Today it was clear that most of our attack against West Bromwich Albion were going through the left side. It was also clear that often Theo was ignoring the run of Sagna and in the same forgetting to cover him when he was trying to bomb forward. That is exactly why he was replaced late on by Kolo Toure. On the other hand, Nasri who people were saying was going to need at 8 month to adapt took less than 4 minutes to score. He also track back with great effect, helping in blocking any threat from his side.
Yes.. I’m sure that Henry will come back home, but I tell you it will not happen during the rest of his carreer as a footballer. Look what he did in barca, very dissapointing seasson, and the last time he played in arsenal game, very declining performance.. But, hmmm…. may be he can join us back as a coach in our youth team :) Go Nasry…
This article has been posted on Soccerlens long ago, hasn’t it ? However, it’s still good to read. Liam Brady has joined Trapattoni in Ireland national team, I wonder how he can devote more to Arsenal youth system if he has to watch Irish pkayers rather than Arsenal youngsters.
Although, Liam is still legendary. I like him.
Theo’s game like a lot of players is about confidence. He is still only 19 and has the ability to become an absolute star. He has everything to his game, pace, two good feet, desire and a fantastic attitude. I do not think Lennon or any other player arround could have setup the goal he setup at Liverpool last season. I think it is a case of being patient and let a young player mature from being a talented youngster into a world star. Decision making will improve as he matures, the ability he has is already great.
Valentin said this on August 16, 2008 at 10:59 pm
I think his vision is improving though, and with the likes of RVP trying to teach him, he’s in very capable hands. If you compare the Theo of today to the Theo of the start of last season, you can see the giant improvement – so you know the guy is learning what it takes to be the footballer we want him to be. But he is obviously still learning. Like I said, if he does fuck all in most games except learning an assisting Ade tap it in the back of the net, I’m fine with that for the next six months. Also, remember that Cesc and Denilson were taught in the mystical lands of Barca and Brazil, of course they are going to have better technique, Southampton doesn’t strike many as being the land of teaching wingers the perfect through ball. His footballing education, in my eyes, started when we bought him at 16. He was just some incredibly fast person before that.
A said this on August 17, 2008 at 2:16 am
I think he’s kinda moved back as the unofficial head of development hasen’t he? So he’ll sign the checks and take the credit but Bould and Banfield seem to have more important, day-to-day jobs running the system. Still a legend.
all i can say is very well done Liam Brady, (thank you for nurturing Wilshere!!)
http://theworldsmostbeautifulgame.wordpress.com
good job brady!
on the subject of theo he does lose the ball too much but hes still very young and his best comes when hes running in behind and yesterday he had 3 perfect opportunities i can remember but the ball was over hit so he didnt have that chance
Theo clearly has a lot to learn and to prove but what really annoyed me about his performance yesterday was that he didn’t even try to use his pace. If he’s struggling to get into the game he should just try and dink the ball past the LB and chase after it and try to get a cross in. His understanding with his team mates is not very good but Almunia said that he’s one of the best players in the squad which probably means he does well in training, or it could just be compliments that don’t really mean much.
On the subject of players coming back possibly as managers, out of our current team I can see RVP, Clichy, Senderos, Almunia and Cesc becoming good managers. Oh and there’s Lehmann and Gilberto. Henry said he wouldn’t mind becoming a manager so maybe after 10 years time we could see him back at the club.
I agree with Valentin in that Theo’s come to us with a lower skill base. He only started football at 13, 14, right? So he’s not going to have that vision the rest of the kids have. Thing is, he’s never going to have the perfect vision of a Cesc, but he really doesn’t need it. He’s a finisher and a winger, and as long as soemone’s providing the through ball, or as long as he learns when and where to cross the ball, he’ll be fine. He’s fast, and that’s going to be his ace in the hole.
The 50 mile radius thing’s ridiculous, though. If it was scrapped, you’d get more talented kids into the most able academies, which would lead to a better standard of elite domestic footballers. It’s much, much better than any 6+5 quota rule.
A real interesting read.
And btw, Henry may have been a little disappointing in his first Barca season, but his stats remain pretty good, even though he played a lot of matches as a winger, and a lot as sub!
48 games 20 goals 11 assists.
Bad? hmm…
I think it is ridiculous that idiots on this site are saying Theo won`t make it at Arsenal.Hes only 19 ffs and is constantly being played out of position.Anytime (not often) thats he`s played threw the middle he has been a success.This going to be his first season starting in games look at the levels Adebayor , Pires and even Henry (who did`nt manage a goal in his 1st 12 games) where at in there 1`st season starting games.Us fans should be gettin behind Theo.He WILL make it!!!!
connollys agent it probabley would make for a better set of elite players but every good youth player would be straight off to a bigger club for free likely in the premier league so everyone in lower leagues would have lower quality academies and as many clubs eg. crewe have said in the past year its becoming increasingly less viable to afford and run an academy in a lower division and this would just make it worse. so probably in the long term it would mean less academys so a smaller base of english players
ken your argument doesn’t make much sense as Theo himself said that he’s more comfortable on the wing now and he has not been a success in the middle when he has rarely played there.
And PeteE, I’ve argued the same thing to some of my Barca friends. Henry was in his first season in La Liga, had personal problems, was played out of position and yet he was still Barca’s top scorer and had a bagful of assists as well. Although a lot of those goals were towards the end of the season when Barca weren’t in contention.
Theo may need another season, but the potential is there.
Elliot, it doesn’t mean that clubs like Crewe would lose players; they’ve got a good record of nurturing youngsters, and a lot of promising youth would still go to them. It does mean that Crewe would have to allocate more resources to scouting, though. Anyway, players can run off to join a premier league club once they turn 16. Bostock, Walcott, Bale and co. are all examples of PL clubs plucking budding young flowers.
And how many Premier League academies are that good, anyway? Aston Villa, West Ham, Boro and us seem to be the only ones that are producing senior players. Compare this with the players coming out of Crewe, Crystal Palace and Southampton. Just because a club’s got Premier League status, doesn’t mean it knows how to nurture youngsters. I’d rather the promising kids are steered towards clubs that have an interest in developing them, rather than the club near their birthplace.
WHY IS EVERYONE SAYING HE MAY NEED ANOTHER SEASON…THIS IS HIS CHANCE…HE WANTED A RUN IN THE FIRST TEAM….HE SHOULD DELIVER.
IVE SEEN AGBONLAHOR SCORE A HATRICK FOR VILLA AND HE DOSENT HAVE MUCH TECHNICAL ABILITY..
WRIGHT PHILLIPS HAS DONT GOOD FOR CHELSEA SUMTIMES 2…
THE PROBLEM WITH WALCOTT IS…WHEN TEAMS COME AGAINST US WITH 5 IN MIDFIELD HE WILL STRUGGLE BECASUE THERE WONT BE AS MUCH SPACE TO RUN INTO..THIS IS WHERE WERE WILL MISS HLEB
WEN WE PLAY A TEAM WITH 4-4-2 THEN WALCOTT WILL SHINE, IN MY EYES ANYWAY
Jeebus, 12 years of youth development and the biggest success story we can produced is that judas asswipe/dipshit,cashley cole ??!!
“fabregas dad” The point im trying to make is that when Theo started up front against Slavia Prague he scored twice , scored in the carling cup final and has scored a brace for Englans under 21`s twice playing through the middle.He is at his most dangerous when he through on goal i.e (he`s a striker).He is`nt gonna get one on one with the keeper anywhere near as often playing as a winger.