“Kids of today!”
“This younger generation”
We’ve all heard these comments at some stage in our lives and I for one have certainly started to use them more and more. The younger me swore I’d never say, “When
I was your age”, but yes, that’s come out of my mouth on far too many occasions.
For many, social media, mobile phones and AI represent great strides forward in learning and connectivity, but there are also many negative outcomes. Stick with me — there’s a football-related point to all of this!
Last month, I took an Aston Villa-supporting neighbour up to the match — and it’s relevant to mention that he’s in his late thirties. By his own admission, he reckons his generation is the first to rely heavily on ‘modern technology’ and it was on our way back down the M1 to the Midlands that he commented, “Do you know what’s really blown my mind? It’s that you’ve driven all this way and back and never once had to use your sat nav”.
He admitted several times that his geography leaves a lot to be desired, but if he’s sticking his sat nav on for every trip he ever makes, no wonder he isn’t observing his wider surroundings and locations!
It got me thinking about how some people are relying more on advice and recommendations from others, influencers or AI. Maybe there’s a danger of some people being brought up and not being able to think for themselves or make decisions in given situations.
“Siri, what shall I wear tonight?”
“Alexa, what shall I have for dinner?”
“Gemini, what formation should I use for Saturday’s game?”
What got me onto this train of thought was after Nottingham Forest’s Europa League game against the Danish club FC Midtjylland, and a very interesting exchange of views between pitchside analysts Martin O’Neill and Michail Antonio.
They were discussing the various merits of being a defensive team, relying on a quick transition (as Forest did last season under Nuno Espirito Santo) and how Ange Postecoglou has tried to slowly transform them into a more expansive, attacking unit. The conversation went a little like this…
MA: When you’re so used to playing counter attacking football, it’s quite difficult to then get into the motions and knowing where to be under a different system.
MON: You’ve got Morgan Gibbs-White, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Elliott Anderson and all of these players, you think they want to be defending for a lot of the game? Total nonsense! They want to be on the ball.
MA: They don’t want to be defending all the time, but when they are expected to play more expansive football, they need to be told what to do.
MON: Told what to do!? They like to attack, they’re footballers!
It was at this point that they were interrupted by the presenter and told to continue their discussion off air!
Being only slightly younger than O’Neill, you can guess which camp I’m in, and it’s a sad truth that many younger footballers need to be told what to do. I don’t mean in the general positional play, and what the manager expects their role to be, but being very much over-coached, with all individual flair and creativity bashed out of them.
A recent example of this was Jack Grealish, who seemed to lose all of his enjoyment and creativity under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.
David Moyes was asked “What have you said to Jack Grealish to give him his creative spark back?” Moyes responded, ”Listen, I didn’t have to say anything to Jack. I just told him to go out and enjoy his football”.
Does this sound familiar?
Under Tony Mowbray, we played some delightful, entertaining, attacking football, and his mantra was to almost allow his creative players to go out and “do what they do”. I’m not saying this is the way it should be for every game, as players need some instructions and direction, but not to the extent that drills and philosophies become extreme and suffocating.
Certainly, footballers should be allowed to think for themselves more, instead of being frightened to try something different. The team ethic has to take priority, but there should be more of a place for innovation, adaptability, flexibility and thinking on your feet.
There certainly seems a reliance in football to require instruction from the sidelines, as opposed to sports like cricket and rugby, where the captains can make a lot of tweaks and changes ‘on the fly’, as it were. That said, I read an article recently which suggested that Manchester United’s players were ignoring some of Ruben Amorim’s directions because they didn’t agree — although a Manchester United friend of mine said that there is a lot of rubbish written about United!
One thing that’s comforting is that in Granit Xhaka, we have an experienced captain who can encourage and adapt to situations on the pitch.
He’a constantly pulling strings, giving commands or advice. On more than one occasion, it’s been noticeable that during breaks in play, some players go to Régis Le Bris whereas others go to Xhaka for words of wisdom.
As in most things, variety is the spice of life.
There isn’t one correct path but I’d be very fearful for any sportsperson or youngster in general if they grew up unable to think for themselves, to not be able to spread their wings and show the world what they’re capable of.
