It is these players who drop out of academy football that I am concerned about, because I don't think the current system does enough to inform them about their chances, or look after them when they are discarded. It needs an overhaul and when I retired from management in 2020, I compiled my own report into the academy system, including proposals for how it could be improved, then spent almost a year filming a documentary series for Sky Sports about it, called 'Chasing the Dream'. It investigated the pathway into the men's game, where our research showed that 91% of young players at academies never play a professional game. While I was working on the series, I travelled the country talking to people at all levels of the football pyramid about their experiences within the academy system - good and bad. The facilities I saw when I visited different academies were incredible, but I still don't feel like the balance with education is right.

Source: BBC March 20, 2026 15:53 UTC