“When you play a match, it is statistically proven that players actually have the ball three to four minutes on average. The important thing is what you do during those 87 minutes without the ball. Football is the brain game, where to run, when to run, when to cover, when to press, when to move, how to move, it is decisions like these that come from the brain that determines whether you are a good player or not.” – Johan Cruyf
What is football intelligence? It is player’s ability to make good decisions in any game situation, especially when under pressure. Losing the ball is more often a result of a bad decision not poor skill. During the game, the players are responsible for making thousands of decisions. Therefore, from a decision-making point of view, football is a players’ sport.
Players must be taught how to think, building positive problem-solving habits on the training ground elevates players to perform to their full potential on match day. Football players develop better and quicker when having to deal with setbacks and the need to solve problems as this is exactly what happens during the game.
There are different styles of play (tiki-taka, vertical tiki-taka, direct counterattack,…) that require different set of skills or to put it in FM terms attributes.
When trying to establish a club DNA culture you need to predetermine what are your core attributes that a player needs to have in order for him to properly execute your game plan. In order for your club to be successful it needs to develop young players because its easier to teach them how to play your brand of football. But nevertheless not everyone will be able reach the first team.
My request would be to add a DNA score which would comprise of any number of attributes that a manager could choose from. For example Technical: First Touch, Passing, Technique; Mental: Anticipation, Composure, Concentration, Decisions, Determination, Flair, Teamwork, Vision, Work Rate; Physical: Natural Fitness, Stamina or what ever attributes one would deem worthy. And then sum those attributes up to get the DNA score.
Based on that DNA score you could then decide where your young players belong in regards to their development (pathway). For example when you look at your whole teams DNA scores you could then determine that any U18 players with a DNA score of 100 or less will be considered as a fringe player for the u18 team , then at 125 and less will be a U18 regular, then at 130 will be considerer for B team/u20 integration, then at 140 will be B team/u20 regular, at 150 you decide if you make him available for loan, at 155+ they are key players for your B team/u20 but not quite ready for the first team, at 165+ they are worth of first team integration, at 175+ first team regulars and at 185+ key players of your club.
All of this is based on their DNA score (sum of your preselected attributes). I have to admit that this is not my idea. I just played using the same logic and extrapolated this score from my excel sheets. But the way STEINKELSSONFM presented it in his post was truly eye opening FM24: The Ajax Way – Player Pathways - View From The Touchline.
So take a look at his post and help us out by adding the DNA score in whatever way you deem possible ( view, tab, or whatever ). Thank you.
