Damocles said:
With that said, my zealotry aside still doesn't excuse our local record. It means more to me than others because it comes back to the very core of why I personally am a City fan but this over enthusiasm doesn't diminish the point that our conveyor belt has stopped and there are little to no indications that we're willing to gamble on the Academy to help make the numbers for the first team when injuries hit - a thing that the Academy is designed to do.
I think the real reason we haven't brought many through of late, is just that we had a period 4 or 5 years ago where we weren't developing them, a good youth cup side rarely translates into a good senior squad. What the club decided to do (in my opinion) was right off a period of time to get it right for the future, we've let plenty go, and while other clubs come here and play with more of our academy than we do, you have to look at the level they are now playing at, with the greatest respect to Burnley, and Sheff Wednesday, these players are at their level, Guidetti is another, none of them were good enough. The only one that really stands out from the last few years is Sturridge, others are making a career, but they weren't for the very top, and even Sturridge ultimately didn't make it at Chelsea.
I think the club just after the takeover, identified a need to improve what we were producing, and that is now coming to fruition, Lopes has played, and he's away getting good experience now, and I'm sure will come back, and be like a new signing next season, others may do the same, Rekik, Denayer etc.
The current group of 18 year olds are more talented, and a step up from what we've had for the last few years, which is why they are beating teams who are more experienced and/or older. If we fail to integrate some of these over the next 12-24 months it will be disappointing, I'm sure some will go out on loan still, but that's not bad, so long as they head to teams where they will be used, and at a level better than say Barnsley (or Celtic). Chelsea were loaning players out within the PL a number of years ago, and few if any have made it at Chelsea, I don't think we ever have loaned out to a PL side (correct me if I'm wrong), which I think tells you whether they were good enough or not. I suspect there will be more interest for this current group.
I understand the frustration over it, but I do think we've had a period, those now in the 20-23 age group at the club, who just weren't up to the top level, and developing those below that took priority, and hopefully that policy will bare fruits in the very near future, and hopefully the new facilities, will encourage everyone to develop better, if it doesn't they will soon be found out, and shipped out.
