How to establish a football dynasty? For decades, the orthodox, long-range formula was to establish excellence within the youth team, recruit complementary talent, and facilitate those with club values within their veins to set standards, to help run the dressing room for a manager.
European football’s greatest teams have almost always laid their foundations on youth systems – Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona, Arrigo Sacchi’s Milan bedrocked by Milanello-hewn defenders, Johan Cruyff and his fellow Ajax graduates, the Bayern Munich team led by Franz Beckenbauer – all followed the template.
