Diary of a Scout: World Cup edition, part I

Due to studying a Masters Degree in Performance Analysis in Football, my diary entries have had to go on the back burner for a while. During my current module I’ve thought a lot about scouting. The subject is about leadership in sport and how I can apply certain leadership traits to recruitment in football.

It got me thinking about various things within the game and Talent ID. I actually attended a trial match just before the World Cup started, but this will be documented in a normal entry. With the biggest tournament in football currently being played, I decided it would be rude NOT to do a World Cup edition! 

Absence makes the heart grow fonder 

I’ve been lucky enough to attend three World Cups. I went to Germany in 2006, Brazil in 2014 and Russia in 2018. They were all amazing experiences in their own right. Having been an England travel club member for many years, I wanted to attend the current FIFA showpiece, but there were a few reasons I couldn’t. 

Having two small children, working and studying are big factors, but the pricing of tickets and the overall cost of the trip was far to much. Many fans have been priced out of going to this World Cup, which is probably another article to write.

Not being able to soak up the atmosphere in the flesh has been hard to take, but this hasn’t diminished my excitement for the tournament. From a scouting perspective it definitely doesn’t matter, as we all know video analysis can be done from anywhere in the world.

Searching for the future international stars

Talking about the big names has been a key aspect over the last couple of weeks and rightly so. They’ve all delivered and scored goals. However, we all know that scouting is about finding the next Lionel Messi or Harry Kane (being an England fan I have to mention our captain!)

Now that the knockout rounds are in the quarter-final stage and fairytale stories from places like Cape Verde have been set in stone, I felt like it was a good time to look back on the group stages and try to pick out some star potential.

Players like Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are generational stars. It’s almost impossible to predict a player reaching such amazing heights ever again. True football fans will feel blessed to have watched such iconic figures in their prime. Now they’re coming to the end of their careers, with international retirement imminent, there’s even more reason to pluck out the new ballers on the pitch. 

Top two to monitor 

Potential qualities of a player were the main focus during this exercise. Their performances in the matches were not as important. The age range was one of the main factors I considered at first. I had a shortlist of five players, two of these will feature in the second part of this article, after the tournament has finished. 

For this reason Germany’s Felix Nmecha didn’t make the cut. At 25 years-old I feel he should be coming into the prime of his career and I didn’t really want to consider anyone over the age of 21.

That being said, he was a bright spark in a very disappointing World Cup for the DFB Team. Most people concentrate on Jamal Musiala or Florian Wirtz, but these players have the space and time to do what they do because of Nmecha. The Borussia Dortmund midfielder only has 12 caps, however, he could be a very important asset for Germany going forward.

Ayyoub Bouaddi (Morocco)

Bouaddi made his World Cup debut against Brazil in the group stages and he certainly didn’t let it phase him. He had Casemiro chasing shadows for most of the match. His passing accuracy was 91% and had more touches than any other Moroccan player on the pitch.

Impressive stats for the youngster, who became the first African teenager to make five World Cup appearances in the quarter-final against France. He was 18 years and 280 days old.

Ironically, it was France he played for at youth level, all the way up to Under-21’s, before switching allegiances. He was a key player in the Lille team last season and many of Europe’s top clubs will be sniffing around him after these impressive performances. 

Yan Diomande (Côte d’Ivoire)

Most wingers tend to have one skill that they excel in, whether it be their crossing, dribbling, shooting, etc. Diomande has the potential to be the complete winger.

He can beat a man, which is a massive attacking asset as a wide player. He can drive into dangerous areas, put high quality crosses into the box and create chances. His first season in the Bundesliga was a successful one, making 33 appearances and scoring 12 goals for Leipzig. I wouldn’t be surprised if we see him in the Premier League or La Liga very soon.