Two of the most exceptional examples of this approach have been the £35million signing of Andy Carroll in January and the £16million of Jordan Henderson in the summer. Carroll (in regards to shots to goal conversion rate, and work rate) and Henderson (in regards to both chance creation stats and pass completion rate) have exceptional stats in important areas for such young players.
Both players have come under much criticism for failing to perform so far in a Liverpool shirt. Many fans feel the £51million could have been better spent elsewhere on more “proven players.” For Beane though, this is contradictory to good business practice and to building a “sustainable” business model. Paying for players because of their past success is not financially sensible and can lead to massive disappointment on the pitch (e.g £80million Chelsea spent on Andrei Shevchenko and Fernando Torres.)
“Sustainability” is the key phrase here. FSG are spending the money on these players because they feel they are paying for future performances, which could lead to a successful club both on the pitch in regards to trophies and off the pitch in regards to business. The emotion of wanting to buy a “proven player” is entirely lacking from these deals, in stark contrast to Roman Abramovich. Building a team for the future needs patience as success won’t come over night but the strategy is there for long term to ensure the sustainable growth of the team. This systematic approach may not be proven right in regards to these signings but we will have to wait and see. It is an approach which aims to be right more times that it is wrong; something a lot less risky than putting all your eggs in one basket; in the gut instinct of scouts, coaches and manager.
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This week it is former LFC WAG Amii Grove!!
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I guess the keyword here is faith and hope. we’ll just have to wait and see.