From 2016, the Football Association will be looking to introduce stricter regulations on English clubs with regard to their home-grown quota of players.
One such regulation proposed will be the reducing of non-English talents from 17 to 13, as well as the reform that irrespective of nationality, a player must be at the club from the age of 15 to be home-grown. However, are these rules starting to defeat their own purpose?
When the rule was initially introduced in 2010, a club had to have eight home-grown names within their 25-man squad. The purpose of this rule was believed to be to improve the opportunities, and therefore quality, of English players. Over the next few years, the rules became stricter with the purpose of not only giving opportunities to English players, but also to close the financial gap between the clubs. As well as that, as a result of UEFA’s FFP regulations, bigger sides were safer from financial punishment via using academy graduates.
Unfortunately, it can be argued that the home-grown rule is having somewhat of a negative effect. For starters, the price to sign English players has risen massively. The reason behind is that, as a result of the quota, English players are in higher demand. The prime example of this side-effect is the situation regarding Harry Kane and Raheem Sterling. Tottenham Hotspur striker Kane, who had a phenomenal campaign last season during which he scored over 30 goals in all competitions, has been valued at a staggering £40 million by Spurs. The Manchester United target has become a sought after prospect as a result of his breakout campaign, despite only being 21-years-old. Not only does this valuation lessen the chances of one of the competition’s bigger clubs singing him, but it also adds pressure on a young man still finding his way in the Premier League.
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Next up, and possibly the best example of the two, is Raheem Sterling. The controversial 20-year-old has recently joined Manchester City for a massive £49 million. Sterling, who has been the subject of this summers longest transfer saga, has been tipped as one of the top young talents in Europe after a sensational 2013-14 season during which Liverpool mounted a late title challenge only to lose out to his new employers. Unfortunately for Sterling, his mega-money move to City brings a massive amount of pressure on his as-yet unproven shoulders, with many people claiming that he will find himself on the bench for Manchester City more often than not.
Which position will be Raheem Sterling’s best next season? pic.twitter.com/sP5T7bXgJI
— GeniusFootball (@GeniusFootball) July 15, 2015
The fee, as well as that of Harry Kane, has been criticised across the football world, with people, including Rio Ferdinand, comparing them to the prices of Alexis Sanchez and Sergio Aguero.
English players are soooo overpriced right now it’s a joke! Kane & sterling have huge potential but 40m & 50m…aguero 38m & sanchez 32m!!!
— Rio Ferdinand (@rioferdy5) June 20, 2015
A lot of the blame for the over-pricing of English stars is down the home-grown rule. As a result of the requirement to have a certain number of home-grown players, teams are forced to pay through the nose for the standout youngsters of the division, but who are by no means worth the price-tag
The reasoning behind the home-grown rule is understandable when it comes to improving the opportunities for English players. However, what does not seem to be understood by the FA is that, if they are good enough, they will be given the opportunities that they deserve. As a result, rather than being responsible for the mass inflation of prices and, therefore lessening the opportunities that they will be afforded, the FA should focus on reforming the much criticised grass-roots system at schoolboy level in England.
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