CHANGES may have been widespread at the Liverpool Academy this summer.
But one thing will stay the same as the new Premier Academy League season begins on Saturday. Developing players with the ability and mentality to progress through the ranks is the aim.
Rodolfo Borrell will take charge of his first competitive match as under-18s coach this weekend when Liverpool travel down to Fulham for the season’s opener.
The Spaniard worked for 13 years at Barcelona helping develop some of European football’s leading lights including Lionel Messi, Cesc Fabregas, Andreas Iniesta and Gerard Pique.
In the last two months since he has begun working with his new squad, he has been impressed. Liverpool have won two pre-season tournaments beating hosts Tenerife 3-0 in one final. Then in the Villarreal tournament they beat Celtic on penalties after drawing 1-1 in the final.
Now though, the season proper starts and Borrell said: "Pre-season was good for us because we started to build a team just a month and a half ago. Winning always helps to build a team and for what we want to do. But now we start the reality. That reality is the Premier (Academy) League. t is absolutely different. We can not believe too much about the tournaments we won in the past. We should work hard to start the season as well as possible.
"I think they are ready. The first match of the league is always difficult for all the teams. I think we will be better when we pass two or three months. But that is the same for all the teams. But we have to find the best competition level to start against Fulham."
Borrell has joined the Academy team along with new technical director Jose Segura, whom he also worked with at Barcelona. While he brings his own ideas and a Spanish feel to the Kirkby Academy, he is keen to stress English-born players are always the focus.
At Barcelona he thinks the European Champions’ success is built on Catalans like Xavi, Pique and Iniesta coming through the ranks. It is similar at Liverpool and he is determined to find the next Jamie Carragher or Steven Gerrard.
Borrell said of coming to Liverpool: "It is very different in a lot of things. But I think it is the best football in the world. It is also important for me to come here to improve as a coach. I was in Barcelona for 13 years with the youth teams and also for half a season in the Greek Premier League. They have very different styles and very different things. But it is about adapting to England and Liverpool life as quickly as possible. I like it here a lot. I feel comfortable and everybody is helping me a lot.
"It is another football and another style and maybe here they are more ready for physical things. But it is difficult to say it is better or worse because it is not a case of being better or worse. Here the matches are different to the rest of Europe. But the kids are improving every day. We are working hard in all the ways – tactical, technical, physical and also psychological. And I think they will improve in all ways throughout the season.
"I am a part of the Liverpool chain. I want to make players arrive at the top level in the first team. We will be working hard to get as many of them at the end of the season to get them to the next step which is the reserves and the reserves are working hard to make that next step into the first team. We are all working in the same line, the same objective and I think this is a good way for Liverpool.
"I come from Barcelona, from a great club and I have come to another great club. And I believe a lot in the players who are born, in this case, in Liverpool and England are the best players. I think we have to work hard with them to help them arrive in the first team. The feelings of the players who are born in the place are not the same as the foreigners. I was working hard for Barcelona football club with players who are born in Barcelona or in Spain. That is the best way and in this case we have to fight for the English players to arrive in the first team here.
