Clubs with the best scouting in your league?

Which clubs in your league have the best scouting? Which clubs consistently manage to sign unknown players for cheap, who become very good ones with time, or spot promising young talents?

For the Bundesliga, I'd say

Leverkusen
Hoffenheim
Werder Bremen

Although I have to admit that our scouting in Bremen used to be better in the not so distant past.

historically it's Arsenal, in recent seasons Wigan have found some real bargains, Bullard, Valencia, Palacios, Chimbonda, Figueroa, Kirkland mmm yummy.

Wigan & Everton

In La Liga, Sevilla did pretty well recently thanks to their sporting director Monchi. But the general consensus now seems to be that he's good at finding players for the "UEFA cup spots" level they were at, but not so much at players that are good enough to maintain themselves as a CL team.

SC Heerenveen, FC Groningen, AZ & FC Twente


The worst scouting in the world has to be either Feyenoord or Real Madrid

Sevilla's scouting was more to do with Monchi rather than the actual scouts. ATM Villarreal has the best scouting network, they're signing youngsters for the youth teams from all over Spain.

In Italy I'd say Udinese.

Axeslammer wrote:SC Heerenveen, FC Groningen, AZ & FC Twente


The worst scouting in the world has to be either Feyenoord or Real Madrid

Real Madrid actually have decent players in their youth system. They just hardly are given a chance in the first team.

Nationally VIF is in their own league. They attract a lot of young talent, mostly because they appeal to more than one group of people over a big geographical area. Historly RBK had the best scouts for international football, but as differences in money and skills ahve been washed out Molde probably has taken over. The big thing is to make deals with African school and get the kids over here. What Molde does that not very many other clubs does, is to bring the whole community onto it. I.e that black guy just getting sold to Man utd didn't start at the club - he wasn't good enough so they sent him to an outdoor school for a year. That way keeping him occupied from other clubs good scouts and a good programme

Udinese.

Thread/

Arsene is still pretty decent at unearthing a few hidden gems.

Palermo too...

Ray Parlour wrote:Arsene is still pretty decent at unearthing a few hidden gems.

Par exemple

Virtually our whole squad were unknowns before coming.

Most recently you could say Sagna.

Villarreal
Sevilla
Barca(excellent youth system, is because of our great scoting)

Ray Parlour wrote:Virtually our whole squad were unknowns before coming.

Most recently you could say Sagna.

Sagna? One of the highest rated defenders in France? We were after him aswell.

Messiah wrote:Villarreal
Sevilla
Barca(excellent youth system, is because of our great scoting)

And your HUGE catchment area.

COTR #1 wrote:

Ray Parlour wrote:Arsene is still pretty decent at unearthing a few hidden gems.

Par exemple

Fox in the box

Kimbo wrote:

Ray Parlour wrote:Virtually our whole squad were unknowns before coming.

Most recently you could say Sagna.

Sagna? One of the highest rated defenders in France? We were after him aswell.

Had never heard of him.....Anyway we've had Clichy as well.

You got Sagna for 7 m, so he must have been quite well known, comparing to what you pay for French players is quite a decent amount of money.

Arsenal (not that they really produce their own talent)
Man City
Spurs
West Ham

Calidad wrote:Arsenal (not that they really produce their own talent)
Man City
Spurs
West Ham

Explain yourself.

Kimbo wrote:

Calidad wrote:Arsenal (not that they really produce their own talent)
Man City
Spurs
West Ham

Explain yourself.

Yea, fair point. I thought they had produced a fair few, but then realised most of them come from West Ham or other clubs.

Replace Spurs with Boro.

Spurs just have a scattergun technique with young English players. Don't think it necessarily counts as great scouting.

Arsenal have to be seen as one of the best as most of team was signed before having made it anywhere else.

Ham and City have good youth systems, but wouldn't see either as particularly good at picking up unknowns from outside England (similar with Villa. in fact, we have atrocious record for picking up good foreign players, so must have some of the worst scouts!)

Wigan and Everton have both managed to pick up a few gems in recent years. Pool do pretty well with people like Agger, Skrtel, Aurelio.

So by scouting, we mean clubs who have picked up players and turned them into successes (before they had established themselves anywhere else)? As opposed to scouting players and bringing them through their academy?

Arsenal are obviously more synonymous with the first, but even then players like Sagna, Vela, Fabregas (former of which was considered one of the best FB's in Ligue 1, and the other 2 who had starred at international youth tournaments could hardly be considered 'unknowns' at the times of their signings).

Rafael, Fabio, Rossi, Macheda, maybe Pique he was somewhat known maybe some others. In short i don't think you'll get much better than that.

Calidad wrote:So by scouting, we mean clubs who have picked up players and turned them into successes (before they had established themselves anywhere else)? As opposed to scouting players and bringing them through their academy?

Arsenal are obviously more synonymous with the first, but even then players like Sagna, Vela, Fabregas (former of which was considered one of the best FB's in Ligue 1, and the other 2 who had starred at international youth tournaments could hardly be considered 'unknowns' at the times of their signings).

I'm not wholly sure but the first post said "Which clubs in your league have the best scouting? Which clubs consistently manage to sign unknown players for cheap, who become very good ones with time, or spot promising young talents?"

which seemed to me more about signing unknowns from other teams than scouting for academies, but could mean both.

I meant both, since both is actually scouting - scouting of unknown (foreign) players, not necessarily young ones, who turn out to be quality AND scouting of young players for your academy. England is a special case as far as scouting youngsters for your academy is concerned though, due to the "territorial restrictions" for the clubs.

Wigan I think are the best currently..but I dont know if it was Wigans choice of staff or Bruce's. So maybe Sunderland will have the better scouts now.

borocooper wrote:Wigan I think are the best currently..but I dont know if it was Wigans choice of staff or Bruce's. So maybe Sunderland will have the better scouts now.

Are Wigan really that fantastic? Palacios was a Wenger reccomendation and Valencia was at Villarreal and had just 'starred' in a World Cup. Figeroa perhaps, but he came from the same club as Palacios.

Calidad wrote:

borocooper wrote:Wigan I think are the best currently..but I dont know if it was Wigans choice of staff or Bruce's. So maybe Sunderland will have the better scouts now.

Are Wigan really that fantastic? Palacios was a Wenger reccomendation and Valencia was at Villarreal and had just 'starred' in a World Cup. Figeroa perhaps, but he came from the same club as Palacios.

No one else went for them though, buying them is the actual risky part.