A lot of fans seem to think we need a bit more youth in the side for next season but do we really need any shift in average age?
Arsene Wenger obviously has his theories about players over 30 but there seem to be as many of them in the top division as ever and careers appear to be going on as long as before if not longer.
Jose Mourinho said yesterday that "I like players towards the end of their careers, guys who are 33 or 34. They have no re-sale value but they can give you a couple of good seasons."
I'm not quite sure why he says that given the money he always has at his disposal but its obviously a philosophy that works for him.
At Fulham Roy has built a team whose best players are all around 30 or higher and I don't honestly see him changing that approach any time soon. You might bring them in at 25 or 26 when they have gained a reasonable level of experience of the game but I don't see is buying that many first team squad players between 20 and 25.
Can a club prosper in the modern game with a team with no-one under 26 and the need to retire old legs every couple of years?
I think you just answered your own question mate. It's all well and good having a lot of players who are 30+, but with limited seasons ahead of them and little resale value it means that we would constantly have to shift styles to suit new players.
The idea of getting players who are 25-26 is that they could be with you for several years and you can build a really solid foundation. We had a great year this year, but if the likes of Murph, Duff and Davies move on, we'd have to get some new players bedded in pretty damned quickly. The foundations that Roy has built into the side are based on working around a core set of principals that are drilled into the players during training. If these players where the training is most instilled move along, this process needs to be reset from the beginning.
If you work the same principals with a younger side, you can strengthen the team exponentially over a longer period of time. Of course, even young players move on, but it's better to sell someone at 28 than at 33 and reap the benefits of a handsome transfer kitty.
The aim surely is to have a mix of players at the beginning, middle and end of their careers.
Our present squad would be fine next year and maybe the year after but time would catch up with them and you don't want to have to change the whole team at the same time.
I think we badly need 3 or 4 young players in the squad capable of pushing for a first team place in the hope that they gradually replace their elders.
A team has to play with the players it has. Simple it may be but if we had a few young fast forwards we would play in a different manner. If you have a tall bloke who is slow you don't stick by the same tactics you had when you had quicker players. The same with age.
If you are good enough you are old enough. Yes we need a few younger players, but old or young, they can still move on. The team tactics and replacing players are down to whats available. If you play eleven over thirty players against eleven 20 or younger players than it all depends on what team plays best with the players available, not age. Murphy was average at best playing with Bullard. In a different role without Bullard Murphy was a revelation. Now we need to look for better replacements.
Age is a state of mind.
Quote from: TonyGilroy on May 28, 2010, 09:12:44 AM
Quote from: Lighthouse on May 28, 2010, 08:49:41 AM
Age is a state of mind.
Only old people say that.
...not only old....sorry, what was the...where am I.. :49:
Well you know what they say about age?
No I've forgotten as well.
Bring back Reg Stratton, I say. I'm sure our esteemed Corked Hat will agree. :005:
..bloody 'ell it's like a bad episode of last of the summer wine here!
White Noise I really like you're 'riddle me this' type threads, please keep coming up with good un's. Although unfortunately the real answer to this one is pretty boring. A Mix of ages in a squad is probably the ultimate goal.
Young teams often don't have the experience of metal that some of the more seasoned pro's but a team full of pensioners can't keep up with the pace of the modern game for 90 mins.
I reckon our balence is pretty good, but it's edged over so slightly in the direction of oldies. Not really a bad thing at all, but replacements in some positions will need to be lined up, regardless of the targets age.
Quote from: simplyfulham on May 28, 2010, 10:23:06 AM
..bloody 'ell it's like a bad episode of last of the summer wine here!
Brilliant. :011:
Football is now a business not a sport any more, all clubs have to buy players in at a good price and get the best out of them and then sell at a profit, that is the way of the world, Tigana told me that at a Fulham do, that is why clubs don't want players who are at the end of their career unless it is on a pay per play .
There is not much in the way of a mix of youth and experience at present, its pretty much all experience. The ages below are as at the start of next season. The average age for the first eleven is 30.63 and that of the bench is 28.85.
Schwarzer - 38
Pantsil -29
Hangeland - 29
Hughes - 30
Konchesky - 29
Davies - 30
Etuhu - 28
Murphy - 33
Duff - 31
Gera - 31
Zamora - 29
Bench
Zuberbuhler - 39
Baird - 28
Kelly - 27 (almost!)
Dikcagoi -25
Riise - 27
Dempsey - 27
AJ - 29
Quote from: simplyfulham on May 28, 2010, 10:23:06 AM
..bloody 'ell it's like a bad episode of last of the summer wine here!
I've always seen Compo as a style guru
