Leeds United in need of a Scouting System

Article by Leeds Correspondent Connor Law

Leeds United and Brian McDermott are currently in the process of setting up an effective Scouting System after Gywn Williams and Shaun Harvey departed the club. No Scouts were in place over the Summer for Brian McDermott which meant he had to Scout his targets individually. Doesn't sound very ideal does it? It has been previously reported that Former Portsmouth and Blackburn Rovers head of Recruitment Luke Dowling is in line to become United's new Chief Scout. However it seems he is yet to finalise a settlement with Rovers, once all is agreed Brian McDermott will be allowed to bring his main target into the back room team.

Here is a couple of reasons as to why Player Scouts are very effective at a Football Club. Firstly, they actually provide plenty of help for a Football Manager because they'll do all the travelling which means they'll attend particular games to monitor a target who will be on the bosses list. Secondly, the Manager and Scout need to have a close working relationship. Without trust between them what would be the point in having the Scout under employment? You need to be able to trust the Scout in order to make sure he'll find the player you're looking for or bring you back some well needed information. They're very effective because they evaluate the Footballers talent which could lead to the player signing a permanent contract with your football club. Usually Football fans expect Scouts to discover promising, young players but that not all they do, they monitor a potential signings progress and give the manager the go ahead as to whether he's the right player to sign for the Football Club.

A large Football Club like Leeds United should have an International Scouting Network in place which enables the Player/Talent Scouts to find players from abroad and then report back to the manager whereas smaller Football Clubs don't have the funds for Scouts to travel around the globe. Rodolph Austin wasn't Scouted by Leeds United; during his time at QPR Neil Warnock's Scouts had identified Rodolph in Norway but a deal couldn't be concluded at QPR.

Not all Scouts are Player Scouts, Tactical Scouts are also employed by a Football Club to assess matches of upcoming opponents and identify the oppositions strengths and weaknesses. These Scouts are usually full time employers as their work is vital to a Football Clubs progress.

This is why Leeds United are in need of a Scouting System. Although it's satisfying to see homegrown talent come through the youth ranks at Leeds United such as Sam Byram, Tom Lees and Alex Mowatt us fans more or less accept the fact they'll move on in the near future because the team aren't progressing from mid-table in the second tier of English Football. It's a risk to play younger players in the first team but some thrive off the opportunity which alerts the big clubs from the Premier League. I agree however that the Youth System is at the heart of a Football Club. Having a Player Scout would possibly allow us to do the same to clubs abroad, we know how highly thought of Leeds United are to players across the Globe and players jump at the chance to wear the famous white shirt. I'm positive this would be a lot more effective to what's in place at the moment; Six players have been brought into the club since Brian McDermott's arrival and I've been pretty pleased by those signings apart from the odd few who seem to be under-performing.

Do Leeds United have a Tactical Scout in place? It'd be very helpful if we did, it may be the reason as to why we're so inconsistent. I'd like to label Leeds United as a work in progress club. We're in the process of entering a new era and that takes time no matter how stressful it is for everyone connected with the Club. Anyway, by having these particular Scouts would lift a big weight off Brian McDermott's shoulders and allow us to be a lot more effective in the transfer market and on the pitch.

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