Everton lead first-team scout Jamie Hoyland has opened up on how there is much more to recruitment than just identifying good players.
The former Manchester City, Bury and Sheffield United midfielder has also detailed the travelling of the world he does in a bid to secure the next stars of the future for the Blues.
Hoyland joined Everton in 2016. focusing on under-23 recruitment with David Unsworth. but was appointed lead first-team scout by Marcel Brands in the summer of 2019. The promotion was part of a restructure of the club’s recruitment teams conducted by the Dutchman.
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“I love what I do now, I love it, yeah. I think it was probably the right thing for me to do,” he told the Under The Cosh podcast.
Hoyland then continued: “I think it helps being a Yorkshireman and having an opinion when you are scouting because it is you. I do love it. I’ve been lucky, I’ve travelled the world doing it. I’ve been to Brazil a couple of times, Chile, and Peru. All of Europe looking at players, and brilliant it is.”
Hoyland, who has also held positions at the Football Association and Preston North End in the past, then explained how recruitment is all about finding players who fit the club. The 56-year-old also revealed how the world of football is a small place and most scouts know in advance who the good players are."
“That can be through agents and stuff like that. If there are tournaments on. Like when I went to Peru it was the South American under-17 tournament,” he replied when asked how he knows about players in advance.
“So you are just going there to see and there are some you know about, but you are just having a look like that really. You are just doing reports. Massive reports all the time. Every player you do a bit on and then follow as they are coming through.
“Or certainly monitoring and seeing how they go. There have been a few from South America that have come through at different clubs and stuff.
“But people go on about scouting and this is another thing now. Oh I found him, oh I did that, you don’t because really the world is a small place now and everyone knows who the good players are.
“It is fitting them for your club. Somebody who might be right for Man City might not be right for Everton or Liverpool or whatever. It is just fitting them then getting them done really.”
Before Hoyland concluded: “To be honest it can be a lonely place. I picked up on your guys the other week and I had been in Germany. I finished up doing 1,200 kilometres driving because I had been right up there and right down there.”
