Protecting youth holds key to prosperous working relationship between the leagues

JUST a few weeks ago, a high-ranking politician sidled up to Football League chairman Greg Glarke for a chat.

It was made clear the discussion was off-the-record, hence why Clarke declines to name the politician when relaying the story to the Yorkshire Post.

But there was little doubt what was on this high-ranking public servant’s mind: the Premier League, and more specifically the calls for reform – something that has been a hot topic in the corridors of power down Westminster way ever since the Parliamentary inquiry into football governance got under way earlier this year.

The politician wanted to hear the thoughts of Clarke, who as the head of the Football League could be expected by some to have a beef with a competition whose 20 member clubs have, in the past, been accused of riding roughshod over their one-time brethren. He may, though, have been surprised by Clarke’s response.

“It was about four or five weeks ago,” explains the 53-year-old while sitting in his office at the League headquarters in central London.

“This very senior politician asked me off-the-record and one-to-one – which is why I won’t name him – about what I thought about the Premier League.

“I replied that we don’t have many global brands so it is vital that when thinking of reforms we don’t undermine one of the most successful businesses this country has built in the last 20 years.

“The Premier League is one of the few success stories this country has, one I liken to Tesco, Rolls- Royce and Sky. They are all huge success stories for this country that have been heard of wherever you go.

“That is why care should be taken when talking of big reforms.”

Sitting in the central London offices that also house the Premier League, Clarke expands on the relationship between the two competitions and their respective staffs.

He said: “I get on well with (Premier League chief executive) Richard Scudamore. It doesn’t stop us having metaphorical brawls now and again, of course. There are certain things we do argue about, with different viewpoints on commercial issues.

“But the Premier League are, largely, a pretty paternalistic bunch. They are not predatory.

“What they do is say, ‘We have a global business to run but we will help the Football League where we can’.

“And they do. Trust me, if they wanted to cut up rough then they could do.

“In many ways, we are similar. Every business is capable of continuous improvement. We certainly get up every day at the Football League asking how we can improve, and I know Richard and the staff at the Premier League do the same.

“But they are not evil people. They are not the spawn of Satan.

“We use the same canteen and have a laugh about the same things. We may fall out from time to time but then we get on with life.

“We have had beers together and even play football against each other.

“Well, the younger guys do at least. I sit that one out.”

Clarke may be reluctant to do battle on a five-a-side football pitch with the Premier League but that is not the case when it comes to protecting the interests of his member clubs.

One such area is youth development and a plan drawn up by the top-flight clubs to overhaul the Academy system in an attempt to bring through more home-grown English players.

Scrapping the existing limits on recruiting kids aged 14 to 16 from within 90 minutes travelling time-limits of a club is one of many proposals put forward as a way of bringing youth development in this country more in line with Germany, Spain, France and Holland. Another is the categorising of Academies, which broadly speaking would see the Premier League clubs achieving ‘category one’ status and the majority of Football League clubs falling into ‘category three’.

The upshot would be the top clubs, who can afford the estimated £2.5m per year investment, being able to sign youngsters from nine and the ‘category three’ clubs from 12.

As controversial as this proposal is, however, it is the suggestion that English football be brought into line with FIFA’s international tariff for transfer fees paid to buy young players that has proved most unpalatable.

Critics claim this system would make it easier – and cheaper – for top-flight clubs to sign a promising youngster who is contracted to a Football League club’s youth set-up.

“I do worry about this a lot,” admits Clarke when asked about the proposals for youth football.

“It is very clear to me that there are two issues. No 1 is, ‘do we believe revolutionising the quality of youth development through the Elite Player Performance Plan is a good thing?’

“I believe it is, as do the Football League board and the clubs. But what we do not want is to lose our young talented players cheaply because of it.

“I have been very clear in my discussions with the Premier League on that point. We are not trying to slow down the Category One and Two clubs, which are largely in the Premier League and Championship, from getting on with it. It is important that is does get under way.

“But what I don’t want to see is a really talented lad being lost by a Football League club really cheaply. One of the main sources of income for a number of League clubs is developing talent and selling on to bigger clubs.”

Here in Yorkshire, clubs have sold promising youngsters to Premier League teams in the past with Leeds United banking £5m in 2007 from Chelsea following the transfers of Tom Taiwo and Martin Woods.

Bradford City are another club who have found selling youth talent to be a lucrative market, as witnessed by the seven-figure sum they have banked as part of Fabian Delph’s £8m move from Leeds to Aston Villa due to the midfidelder having started out at Valley Parade.

Tom Cleverley is another ex-City youngster whose emergence as a Premier League player over the past 12 months has helped in swelling the club’s coffers.

Clarke said: “You mention Bradford City and they are a good example. That income is a big deal and that is what I want to protect.

“To be fair to the Premier League, they have heard our concerns and are trying to come up with a fair balance.

“Obviously, there are many variables when drawing up an appraisal. How many games will these kids play? How good can they become? It is impossible to say.

“We have reached the 60-40 part of the argument now. We are arguing about the mean rather than the poles. We are getting towards a sensible outcome but the acid test will be five years from now.

“I have no doubt the EPPP will deliver better talent because it is all about getting young lads the best coaching advice.

“The question is, though, is that if we have lost 10 or 20 or 30 or 40 youth set-ups in the Football League then that means we have failed because it is not in the best interest of the game.”

When the Premier League was set up in 1992 by a breakaway of 22 clubs, there was understandable concern among those left behind as to what the future may hold. In the intervening 20 seasons, there have, of course, been problems with no less than 54 Football League clubs having gone into insolvency/administration.

Critics of the commercially dominant Premier League say such a statistic could have been avoided if the wealth that has flooded into the top-flight since 1992 had been more fairly distributed.

Clarke, however, is not one to bemoan the ifs and buts, instead choosing to focus on the positives – not least the manner in which the Football League has carved out its own identity.

He said: “I am immensely proud of the Football League. I love it. I was at AFC Wimbledon v Port Vale recently and it was wonderful.

“It is a club that is owned by the fans and they won 3-2 with a cracking 25-yard shot. I, like everyone else in the ground, was on my feet at the end and, to me, it underlined how great football can be. This is what it is all about.

“I was at Leeds v Manchester United and Manchester City v Birmingham in the Carling Cup the other week, which was great as I was watching the best players in the world. But you can’t beat being in a packed, little ground with committed and fervent fans.”

That feeling, encapsulated a few years ago by the slogan ‘Real Football, Real Fans’, is what motivates Clarke and his staff at the Football League. And it is why their focus will always remain close to home.

Clarke said: “We have reasonable overseas television deals but we are English football and this is what we are all about. We are not going to change it to make us more attractive in Australia, China or wherever. We are what we are and if people like our product then that is great. It is why we don’t sit there in a strategy meeting, asking each other, ‘How can we make ourselves more popular in Brazil?’

“It is about our fans and our communities.”