Premier League 25 man squad ruling

This season the Premier League has introduced two new rulings for the 2010/2011 season. The first being the 25 man squad rule and the second one regarding the 25 man squad consisting of a minimum of 8 “home grown” players.


I have used quotations marks round the term “home grown” not because I’m one of those tw*ts who think it is somehow cool or ironic but because it needs an explanation. A “home grown player is defined as ....

“one who, irrespective of his nationality or age, has been registered with any club affiliated to the Football Association or the Welsh Football Association for a period, continuous or not, of three entire seasons or 36 months prior to his 21st birthday (or the end of the season during which he turns 21).”

This means the likes of Cesc Fabreags would be classed as “home grown” as they have spent 3 years in England on Arsenals books when he was under 21. You will notice that the rule includes Welsh players but not Scottish or Irish, these will be classed as “foreign”.

The 25 man squad has to be submitted to the Premier League by 5pm on 1st September and this pool of 25 players registered are the only ones that will be eligible to play in the Premier League. This ruling does not apply to European competitions or the FA and League Cup. Therefore expect a lot of changes from the top teams for their Carling Cup campaign this season. There is an overview of the rules at the bottom of this post and you can access more info at the official Premier League site

If you do visit this site be sure to set yourself up a fantasy football team and join our football on the TV League for, league code is 360221-91944. It is totally free and we will be announcing some great prizes shortly.

Anywho, I digress. The ruling is aimed at encouraging the Premier League clubs to help in the development of young “home grown” talent with a view of helping the national side. The squad size is also aimed at preventing the larger clubs of having stock piles of players in 40-50 man squads available, levelling the playing field somewhat. All the clubs agreed with the new rulings and generally there has been wide spread support for the new rulings and personally I believe it will be good for the Premier League and the young players.

The clubs now have little over a month to finalise their squads (they can choose from any registered player up to 1st September 2010). This means there is a lot of wheeling and dealing to be done before the transfer deadline as many of the top clubs in the Premier League are currently not in a position to name 25 players that include 8 “home grown” players with the likes of Chelsea, Liverpool, and City all currently unable to register a full 25 man squad. There will also be a lot of unwanted players at clubs, especially Man City who currently have a huge squad of foreign players and are still very active in the market.

Expect a lot of late loan signings in the Premier League and a flurry of activity right up until the last minute, which is going to make Sky Sports froth at the mouth with excitement and hyperbole.

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25 Man squad rules
 
The 25-man squads must be submitted to the Premier League by 5pm on the day following the close of each transfer window. For the 2010/11 season the first window will close at 6pm on 31st August and final squads must be registered by 5pm on 1st September. Before then Clubs will not be required to name their squads and may select their teams from any registered players.
 
While the transfer windows are open, clubs may change their squads as many times as they want. However they will only be able to make alterations outside the windows if there are exceptional circumstances and the changes are approved by the Premier League board.

For example, if a club has two out of three goalkeepers injured they may be permitted to bring in a replacement under the guidelines drawn up by a specially formed working party.

Players in the 25-man squads who go out on loan to Football League clubs may not be replaced. However they may reclaim their place on their return.

Clubs do not have to name a full squad of 25 if they do not have that many contracted players and in this instance they may add free agents outside the transfer window. However if they have 25 eligible contracted players, they must be named.

Similarly, clubs do not have to name eight home grown players if they do not have that many but that would mean operating with a reduced squad.

The system will be simple enough to administer. Clubs will register their players via an online form which automatically flags up if they have named too many players who do not qualify as Home-Grown.

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Root and Branch reform at the FA is what England need

Well it has been almost 5 days now since England’s dismal display against the Germans and I have had time to reflect, calm down and digest some of the stories that have surfaced since the game last Sunday.


The biggest disappointment for me was not just the Germany game but the whole tournament, we were, what are the words, absolutely shit, throughout the tournament. I know we have a tendency to over hype our players and chances but we were tipped as one of the favourites and a team to fear by many of the top nations before the tournament kicked off, now Wales, Montenegro, Switzerland and Bulgaria will be looking forward to taking 3 points off England in the Euro2012 qualifiers.

Stories surfaced today about a rift between Gerrard and John Terry. This does not surprise me as it was clear that there was no harmony in the camp and the players were not playing for each other. Lots of interviews from the players after games mentioning the word “individual” surprised me and none of the media seemed to pick up on it. Football is a team game first and foremost, yes individuals make the difference but only if the team is behind them.

There are some vicious rumours going around that the split is to do with an extra marital shenanigans that Gerrard got up to pre World Cup. The England players allegedly know about it but the press currently have a gagging order on them imposed by the courts. Terry apparently felt it unjust that he was stripped of the captaincy for something similar (although he did rattle a team mates missus, Gerrard isn’t alleged to have done that, but it would be funny if he had shagged John Terrys bird) Whatever it was there was clear disharmony in the group and where smaller nations and even the South Americans seem to play with pride and play for their country the England players seem to be more concerned about their club and winning the Premier League and Champions League.

Adding to the speculation I have also heard, off an unreliable source I might add, is that one of England’s main strikers and stars was struggling due to him having a go on a lady of the night. Again unsubstantiated rumours but still no excuse for being shit!

As a result of our piss poor performance and the expectation we have as a country I have decided now to expect nothing from any major tournament England are involved in and think as a country we should celebrate every goal like it is our last!!! If we beat mighty Switzerland in qualifying for Euro 2012 we should have street parties to celebrate.

There have been many theories put forward about why we were so bad and how we can rectify this consistent underperformance but for me the buck stops with the FA. The FA needs root and branch reform and since 1990 they have failed us. The problem with the FA has always been the fact the majority are not football people, they are just men in suits. I wonder what qualifies somebody for a role within the FA? Yes it is a large complex body and needs leadership and a commercial nous but there needs to be a balance. The FA should be ran by football people, people who have played the game and studied it not some slick twat in a suit with money and a position of power.

Trevor Brooking, a much loved figure in the game, is the man essentially responsible for the development of the English game from grass roots to professional coaching an area where we have failed miserably to develop any coherent direction. The building of the FA’s centre for excellence is currently under construction but only after it had been shelved years earlier. This is one example, Wembley being another, of a lack of a proper direction within the FA and the inability to create an ethos or environment for developing players and coaches. This is what has cost England and led us to have to seek the best management from abroad, who couldn’t get a bunch of talented players to beat Algeria. Rifts aside I would have thought my girlfriend could have put out team to play better than they did.

A framework needs to be put in place and it needs to keep kids playing pass and move football until around the age of 12 or 13. Even then they should be encouraged to play football and try to keep the ball. When young players are 12 or 13 they can make mistakes and learn from them. A philosophy needs to be instilled at school level and amateur club level and the clubs have a responsibility in their academies to ensure young English players are given a chance and allowed to develop and play.

There is an issue of average foreign players in the game, where clubs seem to feel more secure in buying in cheap, in football terms, foreign players who have experience and games under their belts in their native countries or elsewhere. Having seen a dvd or two of them play they feel more secure in investing in them rather than young players from the academy or players from the lower leagues. Don’t get me wrong, the foreign influence on our game has made it better, more professional and we have had some great players grace the Premier League but very few English players grace the European leagues.

It is maybe a cultural thing and to do with our lazy attitude to languages but it would be nice to see some young British players moving to clubs on the continent, in Spain, Holland, Germany and even Italy and France. Maybe they could unearth the nest Fabregas?

That is the beauty of the World Cup, it is truly a World Wide competition, and a chance to take a step back from the hype of our own league and the marketing of the players and have a look at what the other successful European nations are doing or have done years ago.

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