European agents, scouts hunt for talent at AYC
Agents, scouts hunt for talent at AYC
Posted: 2011-05-02 18:33
Hundreds of player agents and club scouts from the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A and the Bundesliga among other leagues are in South Africa following the ongoing African Youth Championship in view of fishing out young talent, the South African Football Association (SAFA) said.
The African Under-20 and Under-17 championships have produced players who went on to sustain outstanding professional careers in Europe.
Chelsea's Michael Essien (Ghana), Sunderland's Sully Muntari (Ghana), Inter Milan's Samuel Eto'o (Cameroon) and Nigeria's Joseph Yobo are some of the products of these continental youth events.
CAF's two-time African Footballer of the Year, Nigerian-born Kanu Nwankwo, was also discovered during one of these youth championships.
However, Cairo-based soccer analyst Ahmed Issa told Goal.com that only a few players eventually succeed from the youth level to professional football, contrary to what many expect when they see them play as promising young stars.
"The problem is that these young talents lose focus from the game while in quest of big money and contracts. These agents and scouts rush in with enticing propositions, when the players are yet to really complete their fledgling circle, and once they get to Europe many fall into oblivion, because they can't cope with the pace and standard there," Issa said.
Nigeria and Cameroon will face-off in the final of the 2011 African Youth Championship on Sunday.
Cameroon were 2009 finalists while Nigeria finished third in that edition.
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