Brady: Mindset must change

Liam Brady believes that the culture of domestic club football continues to make ultimate success on the international stage an unlikely prospect for England.

“I don’t think our football produces technical players, so that’s really the challenge for the FA,” Brady said. “The facilities won’t change our players, but the way we play football will. The majority of games in England are battles. Now, people might say that’s English football, but it’s not going to win you World Cups or European Championships. It’s the FA and Premier League’s duty to ensure that the academies are doing things right, which is why we have the new Elite Player Performance Plan. It’s important because everybody’s standards are being raised but, if you want to play like Germans or the Spanish, then you need to change the culture of English football.”

The former Ireland international and former assistant to Giovanni Trapattoni has been in charge of youth development at Arsenal for 16 years, a position which allows him to speak with authority on other challenges facing the game in England — and which have obvious knock-on effects for Ireland’s international prospects.