Craig Mulholland reveals words of encouragement from Real Madrid towards his Rangers kids

[Ace 3,556]

CRAIG MULHOLLAND needs Light Blues rather than Galacticos.

And the Rangers Head of Academy reckons the words of encouragement from his Real Madrid counterpart prove he has the right plan in place.

Last season, Mulholland saw his kids go head-to-head, and beat, some of the biggest names in England and Europe as part of Rangers’ Games Programme at Under-20s level.

Earlier this term, the Gers’ Under-17s beat Roma in the final of the Al Kass Cup to lift the silverware.

Now the challenge is to help those young talents progress into Steven Gerrard’s first team squad.

That is not an exact science, but Rangers hope the results will follow from their new methods.

“There are 33 top leagues in Europe and 24 play with B teams,” Mulholland, a firm advocate of Colt teams being introduced into the SPFL structure, said. “The Ajax team that played the other night has eight that have played in B teams.

https://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/17611636.craig-mulholland-reveals-words-of-encouragement-from-real-madrid-towards-his-Rangers-kids/

[Ace 3,556]

Quote

One of our key values at the Academy is to stay humble.

“We have had them round picking up litter at Ibrox after 50,000 fans come on a match day, we have had them out putting up the Christmas decorations, we are doing a week work experience with them.

“The young boys that were in the first team squad at the weekend must go and help Jimmy Bell with the kit. That is not done by chance, that is done by design because what we are not having at Rangers is boys who fit that stereotype of a young footballer.

“They need to be hungry, they need to be humble.

“If they get that bit right, that will help them as footballers as well.”

From the end of the article which I find quite interesting that they still do all the stuff the older pro's did but we keep getting told (by ITK folk !!) they didn't do that anymore & they are cossetted by the club.

[Blueteeth 2,185]

33 minutes ago, Ace said:

Quote

One of our key values at the Academy is to stay humble.

“We have had them round picking up litter at Ibrox after 50,000 fans come on a match day, we have had them out putting up the Christmas decorations, we are doing a week work experience with them.

“The young boys that were in the first team squad at the weekend must go and help Jimmy Bell with the kit. That is not done by chance, that is done by design because what we are not having at Rangers is boys who fit that stereotype of a young footballer.

“They need to be hungry, they need to be humble.

“If they get that bit right, that will help them as footballers as well.”

From the end of the article which I find quite interesting that they still do all the stuff the older pro's did but we keep getting told (by ITK folk !!) they didn't do that anymore & they are cossetted by the club.

 

[Essandoh 21,207]

So who from Real Madrid offered the encouragement?

[KingKirk 25,631]

The coach says on the full article if u click the link

[Courtyard Bear 41,357]

Fuck getting sent to help misery guts, that would be enough to make you quit football. 

As for the B teams it’s the sensible way forward and works all over Europe, so it has no chance of being implemented in Scottish Football. 

[TopCat 4,511]

I know we've struggled in the past to produce top class players for the first team - but I sense we are on the right track at the moment and our academy can and will produce some real stars in the not too distant future.

 

Good article op.... thanks for sharing.

[Laudrupsleftfoot 10,868]

Might be being naive here but would one of the problems with a B/colt team here be the type of 'football' being played in the lower leagues in comparison to Holland/Spain where I'm assuming there is still a big focus on technical football even going down the leagues?

[Del 667]

4 minutes ago, Laudrupsleftfoot said:

Might be being naive here but would one of the problems with a B/colt team here be the type of 'football' being played in the lower leagues in comparison to Holland/Spain where I'm assuming there is still a big focus on technical football even going down the leagues?

The focus on playing football is driven by the club not the opposition.

If we have a B team in the lower leagues and they come up against hammer throwers trying to kick them, then that will prepare them well for playing against Aberdeen and Motherwell!

[Laudrupsleftfoot 10,868]

Just now, Del said:

The focus on playing football is driven by the club not the opposition.

If we have a B team in the lower leagues and they come up against hammer throwers trying to kick them, then that will prepare them well for playing against Aberdeen and Motherwell!

Yeah to an extent, just saying I think it might work better in the European leagues because there's a smaller likelihood of some clogger ruining a kid's career before it's started with a shocking tackle.

[Fatman10 148]

For me a colt or a development team in the lower leagues HAS to happen, they will gain great experience and it will help them transition from the 2nd team to the first easier. and as for the hammer throwers as stated before, it will teach them how to play against the same in the first team, for teams like Jong Ajax and Jong PSV  it's not about winning but about learning the club philosophy etc. Furthermore, guys coming back from injuries can play in a competitive environment along with the younger players that can win meaningful competitions up to the championship.

The positives outweigh the negatives for me, it's just a case of how many teams get a colt team and how many can sustain them

 

hope that makes sense..kinda tired

 

[BridgeIsBlue 66,606]

7 hours ago, Courtyard Bear said:

Fuck getting sent to help misery guts, that would be enough to make you quit football. 

As for the B teams it’s the sensible way forward and works all over Europe, so it has no chance of being implemented in Scottish Football. 

Jimmy Bell is the pillar of Rangers as a club. 

[Courtyard Bear 41,357]

1 minute ago, BridgeIsBlue said:

Jimmy Bell is the pillar of Rangers as a club. 

Aye miserable bloody pillar. 

[pcbear 10,913]

9 hours ago, Ace said:

Quote

One of our key values at the Academy is to stay humble.

“We have had them round picking up litter at Ibrox after 50,000 fans come on a match day, we have had them out putting up the Christmas decorations, we are doing a week work experience with them.

“The young boys that were in the first team squad at the weekend must go and help Jimmy Bell with the kit. That is not done by chance, that is done by design because what we are not having at Rangers is boys who fit that stereotype of a young footballer.

“They need to be hungry, they need to be humble.

“If they get that bit right, that will help them as footballers as well.”

From the end of the article which I find quite interesting that they still do all the stuff the older pro's did but we keep getting told (by ITK folk !!) they didn't do that anymore & they are cossetted by the club.

Refreshing, learning the values from a young age, old school and glad to hear it.

[TMB 14,167]

5 hours ago, Laudrupsleftfoot said:

Might be being naive here but would one of the problems with a B/colt team here be the type of 'football' being played in the lower leagues in comparison to Holland/Spain where I'm assuming there is still a big focus on technical football even going down the leagues?

Those sides, and the players in those sides, are focused on development rather than results.  They can't get promoted to the top divisions anyway so it's not a 'win at all costs' mentality.  I'm certain focusing on a certain brand of football is one of the primary concerns.

[Leeds_Bear 8,110]

Mulholland is one our club’s most valuable assets. Rated highly amongst his peers and has rejuvenated our youth system. Hope we can hang onto him for a few more years. 

[j1mgg 3,766]

We need to do something better, and I would say introduce colt teams, and cut our leagues down to two, with far more teams in each league, possibly a 16 and 18

[Johnsey 1,540]

7 hours ago, j1mgg said:

We need to do something better, and I would say introduce colt teams, and cut our leagues down to two, with far more teams in each league, possibly a 16 and 18

It would be nice, but the other teams will never agree to it as they want the Old Firm through the gates 4x a season.

[SeparateEntityMyArse 53,715]

7 hours ago, j1mgg said:

We need to do something better, and I would say introduce colt teams, and cut our leagues down to two, with far more teams in each league, possibly a 16 and 18

The rest of the country, bar the scum and one ir two others, is knocking back the proposal. That's the problem.

[Drunk and disorderly. 14,418]

Good read that. We should have started the youth revolution years earlier though. 

[Malvern 11,329]

23 hours ago, Laudrupsleftfoot said:

Might be being naive here but would one of the problems with a B/colt team here be the type of 'football' being played in the lower leagues in comparison to Holland/Spain where I'm assuming there is still a big focus on technical football even going down the leagues?

Might as well ge used to getting kicked up and down the park at an early age, you recover faster.

[pcbear 10,913]

Craig Mulholland impresses me every time I listen to him being interviewed or I read something about him, I think we are lucky to have him heading up the academy, his work and dedication will not go unnoticed elsewhere and hope that he is at his "dream job" already and he is commited to carrying on the excellent academy work.

[SeparateEntityMyArse 53,715]

@Ivybank

@Sket

@sassaaaa

I know sometimes in your thirst for negativity you sometimes miss seeing or commenting on the positive stories. So this is just a wee head up guys 👍