FA Releases Four Point Plan inc. B-Team league

[The only place to be 11,313]

The creation of a new tier within the Football League to accommodate Premier League B teams is at the heart of the Football Association commission's four-point plan to boost English football.

The review also calls for a ban on non-EU players outside of the top flight and a reduction in non-home-grown players in Premier League squads.

It also wants to develop "strategic loan partnerships" between clubs.

The suggestions come as a response to a lack of available English talent.

In the 2012-13 Premier League season, only 32% of starters qualified to play for England, compared to 69% 20 years ago. The figure was 28% among the top four clubs that season.

The exhaustive review by the commission, headed up by FA chairman Greg Dyke, aims to restore the amount of English players within the Premier League to 45% by 2022.

"I welcome the proposals," said national team manager Roy Hodgson. "Having worked at all levels of football, and across different countries and cultures, I have some reference points about what needs to be done in England.

"But I am just one voice of many who have contributed to this important study and I hope the debate that has been provoked can lead to some real developments in our game."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/27327502

[LDN Blue 7,903]

The review also calls for a ban on non-EU players outside of the top flight and a reduction in non-home-grown players in Premier League squads.

Struggling to see how they'll be able to implement this without breaking a few laws..

[Yeboii 1,844]

Don't they get that one of the reason the premier league is so awesome is because people from all around the world play there! All the top talent from around the world comes to England to play, if they let them go for English players the league might just become worse.

[Special Juan 27,425]

The FA just bore me, annoy me and on the gran scale of things I really couldn't care less....they do as they please anyway.

[Fernando 6,458]

The B team is interesting. But then what happens with the U-18, U-21 and such?

[Strike 7,217]

how are conference clubs going to compete against Premier League B teams?

[MHL 47 378]

45% of English players in the PL he says.

So in a multi-cultural country that welcomes (supposedly, so says most of the key political parties, save for UKIP) immigration and integration of all races, we're gonna get all protective about football.

Yawn, just the latest incumbent or maybe the latest incompetent, head of the FA trying to make a change (and tub-thumping) that he won't be able to be enforce or deliver. He'll then blame someone else, whilst dreaming up the next idea to 'revolutionise' the national game. What they fail to realise is that with their behaviours they marginalise and water down support for the national team. Just now, and I see no reason for me to change my view, I really couldn't care one jot for the English national side. The way our club is treated and particularly the way our very loyal (to England) players have been treated by the FA, numerous national team managers and by the so called 'England Fans' is a disgrace. World Cup, I'm more excited about Woking FC (my local non-league club) than England at the WC.

The 'B' league's interesting, might piss-off a good few Conference sides though. The FA doing their bit for non-league football - Not

[LAB 1,030]

35% English players seems a good amount already. In Greece this percentage is probably @ 10% lol

[boshman 1,073]

Make's me laugh this 'Foreign player's stunt the growth of young English talent' Errr... England won fuck all in the 70's, 80's and 90's when the league was made up of mainly English players. We are obviously just shit. It's just now they have an excuse.

Also, if an English player is good enough he will get a chance. Rooney, Wilshere, Shaw. Fantastic English talents who were given a chance beacuse they are good enough. But if they (young English player's) can't get past the foreigners they are obviously not good enough to take on foreign player's at international level.

It's all total bollocks if you ask me and just a poor excuse from the F.A.

[The only place to be 11,313]

45% of English players in the PL he says.

So in a multi-cultural country that welcomes (supposedly, so says most of the key political parties, save for UKIP) immigration and integration of all races, we're gonna get all protective about football.

This part of the plan is complete nonsense in my view. It's a symptom of a problem that will probably be eased if we focused on providing better pathways for young players to come through. That encompasses things like better coaching for kids at a younger age, focus on technical skills and the point that actually does make sense to me - the B teams.

The 'B' league's interesting, might piss-off a good few Conference sides though. The FA doing their bit for non-league football - Not

Call me selfish, but I could give a fuck about Conference football. I love the idea of B teams where players get to play in systems that closely mirror their parent club's philosophy, where they get to play meaningful football every week and where they learn what it is to be a professional footballer. Under-18 football is ok in this country but the under-21 league is fairly meaningless to be quite honest.

The idea of partnerships with lower league teams doesn't strike me as any better than what we have with Vitesse and possibly Middlesbrough next year.

Overall it's a couple of good ideas mixed in with pathetic parochialism.

[MHL 47 378]

This part of the plan is complete nonsense in my view. It's a symptom of a problem that will probably be eased if we focused on providing better pathways for young players to come through. That encompasses things like better coaching for kids at a younger age, focus on technical skills and the point that actually does make sense to me - the B teams.

Call me selfish, but I could give a fuck about Conference football. I love the idea of B teams where players get to play in systems that closely mirror their parent club's philosophy, where they get to play meaningful football every week and where they learn what it is to be a professional footballer. Under-18 football is ok in this country but the under-21 league is fairly meaningless to be quite honest.

The idea of partnerships with lower league teams doesn't strike me as any better than what we have with Vitesse and possibly Middlesbrough next year.

Overall it's a couple of good ideas mixed in with pathetic parochialism.

The part relating to 'partnerships' is formalising informal arrangements that probably exist right now. Jose probably trusts Karanka (spelling?) at Boro plus we've recent history of loans to them. I'm a bit sceptical this is revolutionary thinking and more so preventing any club being taken to task.

Where there are some facts to back up one of the ideas is getting more competitive games into young (u21) players. The benefits can be measured and seen in the German and Spanish national teams. Therefore having a B team playing in a full time competitive league with promotion and relegation pressures can, for me, only be a positive move.

I have an opposing view as to the Conference, it's part of the fabric of the pyramid, breeds the odd quality player and is just as important to some, as Chelsea is to me and probably you. We've had the odd player at Conference sides, who although don't make it with us, they learn and become solid pros. We've a partnership with one right now, our pitch is being dug up and given to Aldershot, where our u21's and youth team play some 'home' fixtures.

I played at the level immediately below the old Conference and also against sides in there, in cups (against Clive Walker, Tommy Langley and Jock Finneston). Some really good footballers in those leagues who deserve their platform and opportunity.