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+--- Thread: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning (/showthread.php?tid=1893)
RE: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning - Salvatore Matrecano - 21-09-2026
(21-09-2026, 03:44 PM)Sniffer Dog (Admin) Wrote: When EM took over we were a second rate Championship club and one breath from death.
We are now into our 5th consecutive season in the PL and been in a League Cup semi final, a FA Cup semi final and a Europa League semi final.
I think we are doing just fine as we are thank you very much.
More of the same please.
Just a minor point but it’s often repeated and I don’t agree with it. The “one breath from extinction thing”.
That was Randall and like many things he says it was nonsense.
We were in a very bad state thanks to our previous owner and absolutely a second rate Championship club. Indeed had we not found another owner we could have faced administration as a worst case.
However almost certainly we would have found another owner and we wouldn’t have ceased to exist.
RE: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning - Paplane - 21-09-2026
IMO Edu was undeniably solely responsible for our disaster of a league campaign last season. He went out and recruited players who were either 1) what the coach didn't want, 2) Were new to the country and so needed to acclimatise to the uk, and 3) were young players who were still in a development phase of their careers.
Nuno needed (and probably asked for) tried and tested prem players who could slot in and out of the prem & europa league sides as needs required. Edu simply didn't deliver these and thought he knew better than the coach (who had very nearly delivered a top 4 finish just months before). The result was the disaffected coach leaving in a messy way, at a very inopportune time and then a series of replacement coaches who struggled to get a tune out of any player that was brought in that summer.
RE: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning - Paplane - 21-09-2026
It makes me laugh when fans think the development of a recruitment policy/approach is something that can be simply imposed by design. If it were that simple then then there'd be no 'Brighton model' to try and copy, every club would have it. I'm sure Brighton just have a few good individuals who are able to spot talent. That's probably the difference. And a sound recruitment policy is about selling at the right time and for the right money as well as buying. We're getting pretty good at that too by the look of things. No one leaves the club unless EM wants them to and for what he wants he considers to be the right money.
EM's doing fine in my book. How many clubs have 25 odd years out of the prem, eventually get promoted and then mange to stay up for 4 years and not yoyo a few times?
RE: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning - Sniffer Dog (Admin) - 21-09-2026
(21-09-2026, 04:59 PM)Salvatore Matrecano Wrote:(21-09-2026, 03:44 PM)Sniffer Dog (Admin) Wrote: When EM took over we were a second rate Championship club and one breath from death.
We are now into our 5th consecutive season in the PL and been in a League Cup semi final, a FA Cup semi final and a Europa League semi final.
I think we are doing just fine as we are thank you very much.
More of the same please.
Just a minor point but it’s often repeated and I don’t agree with it. The “one breath from extinction thing”.
That was Randall and like many things he says it was nonsense.
We were in a very bad state thanks to our previous owner and absolutely a second rate Championship club. Indeed had we not found another owner we could have faced administration as a worst case.
However almost certainly we would have found another owner and we wouldn’t have ceased to exist.
Okay.
We were on life support.
RE: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning - Widdow - 22-09-2026
(21-09-2026, 05:47 PM)Paplane Wrote: It makes me laugh when fans think the development of a recruitment policy/approach is something that can be simply imposed by design. If it were that simple then then there'd be no 'Brighton model' to try and copy, every club would have it. I'm sure Brighton just have a few good individuals who are able to spot talent. That's probably the difference. And a sound recruitment policy is about selling at the right time and for the right money as well as buying. We're getting pretty good at that too by the look of things. No one leaves the club unless EM wants them to and for what he wants he considers to be the right money.
EM's doing fine in my book. How many clubs have 25 odd years out of the prem, eventually get promoted and then mange to stay up for 4 years and not yoyo a few times?
You’re missing the core point. Nobody is saying you can just press a button and magically become Brighton overnight—it’s about having a coherent structure and philosophy instead of relying on individual guesswork and agent relationships.
A few points on why it isn't just "a few good individuals who spot talent
1. Systems vs. Individuals: Brighton, Brentford, and Bournemouth don't just rely on "a few good scouts." When Brighton lost Paul Winstanley and Sam Jewell to Chelsea, their recruitment didn't collapse—because it's driven by proprietary data algorithms and an overarching strategy that transcends any single person. Relying on individual talent spotters means when those scouts leave (like the scout who brought us Murillo and then left for Newcastle), your entire pipe instantly dries up. That is precisely why you build a process.
2. The Multi-Club Asset Missed: Pointing out Brighton taking Kostoulas from Olympiacos isn't about copying Brighton—it's about asking why our own network isn't working for Forest. Marinakis owns Olympiacos and Rio Ave. That is a massive operational advantage 90% of clubs in world football don't have. Using Rio Ave as a developmental pathway for young talent isn't a complex mystery; it's basic multi-club integration that we are currently underutilising and in players from Oly not taking advantage of, its more like we are propping them up.
3. Selling vs. Succession: Selling players for good money is only half the equation. The key to sustainable top-flight football is having the replacement already in the building or identified six months before the sale happens. Selling well without succession planning just leaves you scrambling in the last 48 hours of a transfer window overpaying for short-term fixes.
Nobody is dismissing what EM has achieved—keeping us up for four consecutive seasons after 23 years away is an incredible feat that every fan appreciates, i mean it took him over 5 years to get us out of the championship.
But staying up isn't the finish line; it's the baseline. Reviewing our scouting network and data infrastructure isn't "complaining," it's asking how we take the next step from survival to stability.
RE: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning - Widdow - 22-09-2026
(21-09-2026, 01:43 PM)Sniffer Dog (Admin) Wrote: Nothing will change so you need to get used to it.
For EM it's all about the present and the here and now.
That is the way he does things and the way he will always do things.
I agree, it is always about the "moment" with EM. I wonder how he is feeling about the start to the season. Can't score, out of the most winnable cup and have just lost to Coventry, who were not even in the Championship when we went up!
RE: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning - JollyLollyAussie - 22-09-2026
Thats the one big issue with Forest Sniffer, "EM all about the here and now" this results (and the last few years have proved this point) kneejerk sackings/appointments/irelevant or pointless transfers. Yes we must all "get used to it" as you say but looking at the points Widdow is making in his posts there are alternatives which have proved sucessful with other clubs of a similar size to Forest.
RE: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning - oh no - 22-09-2026
(21-09-2026, 04:31 PM)JollyLollyAussie Wrote: I would imagine we are outside the top 50.
There is no chance we're outside the top 50. Being in the Prem puts you in the top 50, we're better than multiple teams in this league. You cant be suggestion we're worse thatn Le Mans, Alaves, Venezia or Elfersburg type teams? Because that's the level of team that is around that ranking. Good teams in the other top flights, but no where near a midtable Prem side.
Opta actually do this ranking - https://theanalyst.com/articles/who-are-the-best-football-team-in-the-world-opta-power-rankings we're 27th. When Cooper took over we were 186th.
RE: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning - Salvatore Matrecano - 22-09-2026
(22-09-2026, 09:29 AM)Widdow Wrote:(21-09-2026, 05:47 PM)Paplane Wrote: It makes me laugh when fans think the development of a recruitment policy/approach is something that can be simply imposed by design. If it were that simple then then there'd be no 'Brighton model' to try and copy, every club would have it. I'm sure Brighton just have a few good individuals who are able to spot talent. That's probably the difference. And a sound recruitment policy is about selling at the right time and for the right money as well as buying. We're getting pretty good at that too by the look of things. No one leaves the club unless EM wants them to and for what he wants he considers to be the right money.
EM's doing fine in my book. How many clubs have 25 odd years out of the prem, eventually get promoted and then mange to stay up for 4 years and not yoyo a few times?
You’re missing the core point. Nobody is saying you can just press a button and magically become Brighton overnight—it’s about having a coherent structure and philosophy instead of relying on individual guesswork and agent relationships.
A few points on why it isn't just "a few good individuals who spot talent
1. Systems vs. Individuals: Brighton, Brentford, and Bournemouth don't just rely on "a few good scouts." When Brighton lost Paul Winstanley and Sam Jewell to Chelsea, their recruitment didn't collapse—because it's driven by proprietary data algorithms and an overarching strategy that transcends any single person. Relying on individual talent spotters means when those scouts leave (like the scout who brought us Murillo and then left for Newcastle), your entire pipe instantly dries up. That is precisely why you build a process.
2. The Multi-Club Asset Missed: Pointing out Brighton taking Kostoulas from Olympiacos isn't about copying Brighton—it's about asking why our own network isn't working for Forest. Marinakis owns Olympiacos and Rio Ave. That is a massive operational advantage 90% of clubs in world football don't have. Using Rio Ave as a developmental pathway for young talent isn't a complex mystery; it's basic multi-club integration that we are currently underutilising and in players from Oly not taking advantage of, its more like we are propping them up.
3. Selling vs. Succession: Selling players for good money is only half the equation. The key to sustainable top-flight football is having the replacement already in the building or identified six months before the sale happens. Selling well without succession planning just leaves you scrambling in the last 48 hours of a transfer window overpaying for short-term fixes.
Nobody is dismissing what EM has achieved—keeping us up for four consecutive seasons after 23 years away is an incredible feat that every fan appreciates, i mean it took him over 5 years to get us out of the championship.
But staying up isn't the finish line; it's the baseline. Reviewing our scouting network and data infrastructure isn't "complaining," it's asking how we take the next step from survival to stability.
Agree with points 1 and 2 although would like to think we are making some progress.
Point 3 again I genuinely think they are trying. Elliot Anderson was a perfect example, he actually developed far more quickly than we expected.
This summer e we were on the cusp of signing Armstrong until it was pulled which again is exactly what you are asking for. I believe McAtee was signed with a longterm eye on MGW leaving.
There is progress I feel as long as we don’t go boom or bust for instant success.
Edu was brought in to develop a global football strategy across the 3 (and maybe more) clubs. The idea was good but I think he was totally unsuited and its a shame because I don’t know if anyone else is trying to do the same thing.
RE: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning - Sniffer Dog (Admin) - 22-09-2026
(22-09-2026, 10:17 AM)JollyLollyAussie Wrote: Thats the one big issue with Forest Sniffer, "EM all about the here and now" this results (and the last few years have proved this point) kneejerk sackings/appointments/irelevant or pointless transfers. Yes we must all "get used to it" as you say but looking at the points Widdow is making in his posts there are alternatives which have proved sucessful with other clubs of a similar size to Forest.
But it has worked.
Remember where we were and where we are now?
RE: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning - JollyLollyAussie - 22-09-2026
Don't disagree with your point Sniffer, I think what Widdow posted is his opinion on how we could improve in all these area of the club, do I think it will happed? No, with EM at the helm it will always remain a roller coaster ride as you have stated many times on this forum.
RE: Reviewing Recruitment, Scouting and Succession Planning - Paplane - 22-09-2026
(22-09-2026, 09:29 AM)Widdow Wrote:(21-09-2026, 05:47 PM)Paplane Wrote: It makes me laugh when fans think the development of a recruitment policy/approach is something that can be simply imposed by design. If it were that simple then then there'd be no 'Brighton model' to try and copy, every club would have it. I'm sure Brighton just have a few good individuals who are able to spot talent. That's probably the difference. And a sound recruitment policy is about selling at the right time and for the right money as well as buying. We're getting pretty good at that too by the look of things. No one leaves the club unless EM wants them to and for what he wants he considers to be the right money.
EM's doing fine in my book. How many clubs have 25 odd years out of the prem, eventually get promoted and then mange to stay up for 4 years and not yoyo a few times?
You’re missing the core point. Nobody is saying you can just press a button and magically become Brighton overnight—it’s about having a coherent structure and philosophy instead of relying on individual guesswork and agent relationships.
A few points on why it isn't just "a few good individuals who spot talent
1. Systems vs. Individuals: Brighton, Brentford, and Bournemouth don't just rely on "a few good scouts." When Brighton lost Paul Winstanley and Sam Jewell to Chelsea, their recruitment didn't collapse—because it's driven by proprietary data algorithms and an overarching strategy that transcends any single person. Relying on individual talent spotters means when those scouts leave (like the scout who brought us Murillo and then left for Newcastle), your entire pipe instantly dries up. That is precisely why you build a process.
2. The Multi-Club Asset Missed: Pointing out Brighton taking Kostoulas from Olympiacos isn't about copying Brighton—it's about asking why our own network isn't working for Forest. Marinakis owns Olympiacos and Rio Ave. That is a massive operational advantage 90% of clubs in world football don't have. Using Rio Ave as a developmental pathway for young talent isn't a complex mystery; it's basic multi-club integration that we are currently underutilising and in players from Oly not taking advantage of, its more like we are propping them up.
3. Selling vs. Succession: Selling players for good money is only half the equation. The key to sustainable top-flight football is having the replacement already in the building or identified six months before the sale happens. Selling well without succession planning just leaves you scrambling in the last 48 hours of a transfer window overpaying for short-term fixes.
Nobody is dismissing what EM has achieved—keeping us up for four consecutive seasons after 23 years away is an incredible feat that every fan appreciates, i mean it took him over 5 years to get us out of the championship.
But staying up isn't the finish line; it's the baseline. Reviewing our scouting network and data infrastructure isn't "complaining," it's asking how we take the next step from survival to stability.
I reckon a lot of the things you mention are already happening and a lot more besides. Maybe give the club some credit without constantly sniping about how they could be better? I think sometimes because it's our club, who we've grown up with and seen operate in some really poor ways, we assume we're still not as good as the competition somehow.
Re multi club, you're forgetting that the players have all the power now from a young age. They may not want to be farmed out to a lowly club like Rio Ave. And Oly is a big club in it's own right and probably EM's first priority. He/they are not going to want their side to be awash with our youngsters, or for that matter have their star players plucked and moved on to us. They have to perform on the pitch too. You mention the boy who went to Brighton, how do you know that our data suggested he wasn't going to cut it in the prem? You don't. You're just assuming that because Brighton bought him EM has f****d up in some way. I remind you that Brighton paid £10m for Cashin a year or two ago, so they're not above an expensive mistake. Aren't we signing youngsters now as academy prospects, rather than relying on local boys getting to the level (which they can't now)? That's the club pro-actively reacting to the current state of the game and attempting to secure the delivery of young talent who might be able to perform in the prem, rather than not making the grade and falling off to the EFL.
Re succession planning, Murillo arrived when we had decent-ish CB's already in the building. Same for Danilo (who incidentally was sold on for a massive profit). Cunha too. It might not fit your ideal, but they were young players who came in and were not reactionary signings following the loss of a first team player.