One of the biggest debating points between football fans in England is whether the wealth of riches now available to Premier League clubs and the introduction of foreign players into the English game has affected the English national side and the development of young English talent.
Greg Dyke, the FA Chairman, has announced new work permit rules meaning that the ability of clubs to import non-EU talent will become significantly harder from May 2015. In the past, the work permit review panel was considered too soft and was accused of accepting scouting reports and video montages of the player, prepared by the club, as evidence of their talent.
Now the percentage of international fixtures in which the player has featured—alongside the quality of the league he is currently playing in—will have greater emphasis placed upon it. A sliding scale of appearances made for his national team versus his country’s FIFA ranking will also be applied. This means a Brazilian having played in 20% of his country’s fixtures over the past two years, and playing in Italy’s Serie A, is more likely to get a permit ahead of a player from Mali having featured in 40% of his countries matches currently playing in the South African domestic league. This new approach means that roughly 30% of all work permits issued between 2009-2015 would have been rejected.
Greg Dyke’s example of promoting English talent is Tottenham Hotspur’s Harry Kane. He stated: “He was touch-and-go to get a game in the first team and is suddenly the top scorer in English football. It’s great news. But how many more Harry Kanes are there out there who just can’t get a game?”
He makes a good point and Kane has proved a revelation, but it is worth examining the history of English football to see whether the influx of foreign talent has been detrimental to the England team’s style of play, achievements, or the development of home-grown players.
As original codifiers of the game in 19th Century, the English saw themselves as the leaders in world football. Rather ironically by today’s standards, the early English player prided himself on a dribbling game. He saw defending as unmanly, passing as futile and rejected the thought of taking his time to score goals. The art of attack and scoring goals was led by the forwards in a 2-3-5 formation. This formation remarkably remained the norm until the 1940’s.
By the time the Hungarians visited Wembley in 1953, England had only ever lost one home international. The Hungarians were the Olympic Champions and the world’s top ranked side. England started with the tried and tested WM formation, with two backs, three in midfield and five forwards. The Hungarians played a 2-3-3-2. This was never before seen by the English. The Hungarians ran riot winning, 6-3.
The impact of this defeat was huge. The FA after years of complacency was jolted into gear. As originators of the game they believed that England would always be technically superior to their rivals from the continent. Existing coaching techniques and practices were now out of date. The humiliation at Wembley made the FA wake up to this fact and they soon realised they needed to start learning from their European opponents.
England’s record in World Cup competitions since its inception in 1930 has been largely indifferent. They did not take part in the 1930, 1934 or 1938 tournaments. 1950-1962 saw a best placed quarter final finish, until a home World Cup in 1966 saw glory for Sir Alf Ramsey’s team.
Since then there have been 12 World Cup tournaments. England failed to qualify for three of those; made four quarter final appearances and the agonising shoot-out defeat to Germany in 1990.
The European Championships have also not proven to be a successful hunting ground for England. Getting to the semi -finals in 1996 is the best result achieved (also a home tournament to pair with the single Word Cup win). In 13 staging’s, England have failed to qualify five times, four of these prior to the Premier League forming in 1992.
The dominant Liverpool side of the 80’s featured many players from the ‘home nations’ and Ireland. Even pre-Premier League, clubs were looking to supplement their first team playing staff from other countries. Bruce Grobbelaar, Alan Hansen, Mark Lawrenson, Kenny Dalglish, Graham Souness, Steve Nicol, Ronnie Whelan and Ian Rush were all non-English players dominating the domestic scene in England’s top division. This influx of talent from outside England –albeit the foreign players in this instance were from the other UK countries and Ireland – led to a thriving English presence in European competition. As Liverpool’s fans will rejoice in telling you, they’ve won it five times.
This is no different to the way the Premier League is now. Generally speaking lists compiled of the best ever players to have played in the Premier League feature names such as; Eric Cantona, Gianfranco Zola, Thierry Henry and Dennis Bergkamp. In more recent history it’s Didier Drogba, Eden Hazard, Luis Suarez and Sergio Aguero. The English players to make the list would be Alan Shearer, Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard and Paul Scholes.
The impact of the overseas player on English football over the last 20 years is almost beyond measure. Since the start of the Premier League in 1992 the amount of foreign players entering the league has risen dramatically year on year. In the beginning the professionalism, dedication to training and personal fitness was almost never before seen by English players.
Arsene Wenger’s arrival at Arsenal, bringing in continental coaching techniques and imparting his passing philosophy had a major impact on both the club and its English contingent. That his team became only the second ever Invincibles in 2004 is truly one of the greatest achievements in modern English football. This was built on a mix of a foreign coach, playing with a largely foreign playing staff, mixed with a blend of continental ideas on passing and possession and the traditional English fighting spirit. There is doubt that, without the arrival of Wenger, Arsenal would ever have gone on to achieve that feat. The team that started the most regularly that season featured just two Englishmen; Sol Campbell and Ashley Cole, at the time both England regulars.
They popular theory is the more Englishmen playing in the Premier League, the better the England team will be. Throughout the history of English football, there has never been a period of great achievement by an England team. The 1966 World Cup win obviously stands out, but in 85 years since the first World Cup was played, one solitary win is hardly something to shout about. The recent greater influx of foreign talent hasn’t somehow suddenly heralded a decline in the national team’s fortunes. If anything, you can argue it has raised the bar for young English talent coming through. The likes of Gerrard and Lampard have had to continue to progress and improve in the light of great foreign players joining their respective clubs. In recent years younger players at Chelsea have been able to look to Lampard, Cole and John Terry and see first-hand the levels they need to achieve day-in day-out to play at the top level. A quota system limiting foreign players in Premier League squads would reduce the competition to these young players and therefore not necessarily increase the quality of the English talent.
Given time, the Premier League’s Elite Player Performance Plan should bear fruit. The England youth teams are becoming more successful within their age groups and the football being taught in academies is progressive and built on a base of skilled possession football. Not by chance is this approach also favoured on the continent. The great Ajax and Holland teams were inspired by the coaching of Rinus Michels and his philosophy of Total Football. This in turn was mastered by Johan Cruyff’s vision of youth coaching at La Masia whilst at FC Barcelona and most recently Pep Guardiola, when in charge of the senior Barcelona side.
It is too simplistic to state that England should impart and impose the philosophy of La Masia onto every youth set up in England. Firstly it is not practical, and secondly it does not fit the make-up of the traditional English game. What should be encouraged is to allow this melting pot of ideas from around the globe to continually influence the English game.
The Premier League TV money that comes from having a thriving successful competition is due to the influx of foreign stars to England. The investment and progression made in training facilities, even in the last ten to fifteen years cannot be ignored. This is a direct consequence of TV money.
There is a direct link between the rise in wages paid to Premier League footballers and the increase in TV revenues, so it’s understandable when figures like Sir Alan Sugar, former Tottenham Hotspur FC Chairman, say that they fear all the money will just line the pockets of agents and players. Some of it will. Some of it will also go on developing youth players and some will undoubtedly go on buying the future cream of foreign talent.
However all this should be seen as a positive. The English players of tomorrow will be better from training and learning from the top players of today. These top players at present are foreign, but the England team is more likely to benefit from youth players being exposed to increased quality and competition at clubs.
The TV money has helped to support and grow the English Premier League. By default – and some design – TV cash has financed the development of football in this country. It should be welcomed by football fans and see how it can help progress the development of English players and the English Team.
History shows from that watershed game at Wembley in 1953 that burying heads in the sand, believing that English is best and not embracing the best practices is detrimental to England’s success. The benefit that comes from embracing different cultures and influences and seeing the positives it can have on the England team need to be realised. The appreciation of TV money and the influx of foreign talent must been seen as a good thing. Fans must ride the crest of the wave, enjoy the influx of the best players to the English shores and realise it bring’s the best league in the world.
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