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Academy news

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Avmenon

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Liverpool Football Club today announced a number of changes in the staffing structure of their Academy, designed to build further on the success of the Kirkby-based facility.

Academy Director Frank McParland becomes Director of Academy and Player Development, with the additional responsibility of overseeing all reserve team matters.

Pep Segura has signed a new contract as Technical Director, with his duties also including technical development of the reserve team player squad.

Rodolfo Borrell, who was previously Under-18 Coach, has agreed a new deal to become Reserve Team Coach.

In addition, Mike Marsh has moved from Under-16 Coach to Under-18 Coach, while Steve Cooper becomes Under-16 Coach and is also promoted to Academy Manager.

Stuart Webber, previously Senior National Scout, has now been promoted to Director of Recruitment.

Director of Football Damien Comolli commented: "Real progress has been made this season and this has been reflected in the recognition given to our young Academy players - both at senior level within the club and also on the international football stage.

"But we have put a considerable amount of time and effort into thinking about what we need going forward and these changes reflect our desire to constantly improve the way we work. Stability is a key part of this process and the quality of the people already working at the Academy has been reflected in the number of internal promotions we have made.

"We've considered both the technical development of the boys at Kirkby and the way our scouting of youngsters in the first place fits into the club's overall recruitment policy."

Frank McParland added: "It's part of the club ethos to actively develop the people we already have in place and I'm delighted we have been able to promote so many different individuals from within the Academy.

"We've looked at the best way of integrating these different functions within the club as part of our overall vision on how we should operate and also how we identify the right type of players to bring through to the first team."
 
The reserves will be a very youthfull team next year then. Good, this is very good regarding producing players who are ready for the first team.
 
[quote author=SaintGeorge67 link=topic=45488.msg1338549#msg1338549 date=1306266988]
Is that the same Mike Marsh that used to play for us?
[/quote]
The very same.
 
I like Rodolfo, the way he plays the game, the way he get players to conduct themselves on and off the pitch.....

Do we think he could take over from the King in a few years?
 
Dunno about that, but he's certainly the man to continue the development of this golden crop. I expect a few more to make the step up under Rodolfo's watch this season.
 
[quote author=Dahuge link=topic=45488.msg1338761#msg1338761 date=1306310972]
I like Rodolfo, the way he plays the game, the way he get players to conduct themselves on and off the pitch.....

Do we think he could take over from the King in a few years?
[/quote]

Yes, I thought there was a legitimate argument to him being Rafa's replacement.
 
Rodolfo Borrell has revealed his great pride at following in the footsteps of some of Liverpool's greatest ever names after he was confirmed as the new reserve team coach earlier this week.

The Spaniard was promoted from his role as U18 coach in an end of season revamp at the club's Academy and admits he was humbled when he learned that some of the Reds' finest managers had cut their teeth in the dugout while with the second-string.

The former Barcelona man also spoke about his plans for pre-season, his hopes for the newly-formed U19 Champions League as well as his relationship with Kenny Dalglish.

Here he gives Liverpoolfc.tv his first interview as the newly-installed reserve team coach.


Rodolfo, this week you've been confirmed as Liverpool's new reserve team coach, congratulations, you must be delighted...

It's a great honour for me to be the reserve team manager. The club have shown they have great confidence in my ability and I am happy. It is a job that means my name will sit forever alongside the likes of Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan, Roy Evans, Phil Thompson and Sammy Lee. They are big names in Liverpool's history and it is also an important role because it is the final step in the Academy. The players need to be ready if they are to make the move into the first-team set-up and I am going to fight for that.


The fans have given the news a big thumbs up, how important is that to you personally?

I always say the same about the fans. Without them Liverpool wouldn't be the club it is. The fans are everything to me and they are very special, backing everyone at the club in good and bad moments. If they have received this news as positive then that is massive for me. I am thankful that they respect me as a person, my ability in my job and especially for the way they have come to Kirkby to watch the U18 games. I will work hard to make them come to more games in the future.


You'll be working even more closely with Frank McParland now - just how important has he been in the Academy's improvement over the past two years?

Frank McParland is my director and we are constantly talking about players, the squad and different situations that arise throughout the season. He is a great support to me and I am certain it will be the same again next season.

Have you spoken to Kenny Dalglish about your new role and do you expect to have more input from him now?

I cannot complain about the input of Kenny. One of the big things about him is that he hasn't changed since he became first-team manager. He was at the Academy 18 months before he took charge and he still comes to see us regularly now. It's impossible for him to be here every day like he was when he was based here but he still comes here every week. His input on matters is continual and I go to Melwood more regularly than I used to. We talk about all kinds of things, even the first-team. He sometimes asks my opinion and I will comment. I have to be very thankful to him because without his support it would have been very difficult for me to get the job as reserve team boss. I am very pleased to be working with him and I will make sure I work even harder to help him so that the players can make this last step and be ready for the first-team.

You've coached throughout most age groups at youth team level. Do you feel that gives you the perfect grounding to take on your new role?

I have always believed I should coach all of the age groups and go step by step. This has been important as it has helped me to get a big knowledge about the whole process of developing players. At Barcelona I started out with the under eights and moved through all of the age groups. I think I am a lot more ready to make a step forward because of this knowledge and have a very clear idea in my mind about what to do to push the players through to the first-team - or at least get a chance to show what they can do.

Former Reds player Mike Marsh takes over from you as U18 coach - how impressed have you been by him and will you be passing on any advice to him?

He has done a great job with the U16s. Everyone can see he deserves to go through to the U18s. He also has experience playing professionally. I do not need to give him any advice. We talk regularly and I think it is a good move to move him up. He has a great attitude during the training sessions. He has knowledge, experience and I think he will do well.

You had great success at U18 level. Do you expect to take a large part of that group of players up to the reserves with you?

We will have to talk about this. Obviously some players that were U18s are now going to be U19s. We have to discuss whether we will make new signings and who will remain that was already in the reserves' squad. Someone who was U17 could also come through to it. I have only just returned from a tour of the Caribbean and it has only just been confirmed that I am the reserve team manager, so we will talk about all of this in the near future.

There's also the added challenge of the Next Generation Tournament (U19 Champions League) next season - how exciting is that for you as a coach?

It is a great opportunity for me as a coach and for the lads as players. Obviously it is a great competition and it is going to be really tough. There are some massive clubs involved including Sporting Lisbon. They have the best youth system in Portugal and one of the best in the world. The likes of Luis Figo, Cristiano Ronaldo and Quaresma have all come from there. They are a great example as an Academy. There are other teams like Manchester City, Barcelona, Wolfsburg, Milan etc etc. We will play home and away in front of big crowds and that can only be positive for the lads.

Is a tournament like that crucial in helping young players narrow the huge step towards first-team level?
The league that the reserves play in is what it is. I don't think it is bad in terms of the level but the regularity of the games isn't so great. You don't play every week and I think that is something that someone has to look to improve. I think the quality of the games is quite good. I think the U19 Champions League will help this a lot too. If we don't get enough games then we must look for some tough friendlies. My focus is to set up some interesting games for the pre-season. We must look to get the lads ready to put in massive effort and massive performances in order to create competition and win matches playing the right football. This is what I am looking for but it is just one of the factors amongst many that we need in order to develop players in the best way possible.

This season has only just finished but it sounds like you have already begun making your plans for pre-season?

Two days ago the news broke. Obviously I had a clue of what was happening before that so I made some plans in my head. Now I am just trying to put that into practice. For example I had Birmingham City and Norwich City in mind to come and play friendly matches with their reserves at the Academy. They are two Academies that are quite good and had strong U18s this season which means they will be good reserves next season. I called them yesterday and have arranged these matches but still need to make some calls and arrange what else I have had in mind.

Just finally, we can't let you go without asking you about the U18s' end of season tour to the Caribbean - how pleased were you with the overall trip?
We had a great time. You can see by the colour in my face! My colour is usually brown because I am Spanish but not like this! For a lot of the lads it was their first time in the Caribbean. They loved it. We also had a good game against St Vincent U20s. We played well in the second half and won the game 4-1. We had a great time. There were lots of visits, snorkelling with turtles etc. It was a nice trip and great to help bring the lads even more together.
 
[quote author=Ossi link=topic=45488.msg1339105#msg1339105 date=1306395057]
How many (league and cup) games does the reserves, u-18 and u-16 play?


[/quote]

Reserves: 19 league games
U18s: 28 league games

Not sure abt the U16s though.
 
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