Scouted Says

Joe is joined by FootballInDenmark.com's Henry Nicholls to discuss ones to watch in 2022/23, Midtjylland's innovative scouting, Nordsjælland and the unique Right to Dream Academy, FK København's 2022 title win, 16-year-old Roony Bardghji and much, much more. Listen now. 00:00-04:59 – Getting into Danish football 05:00-10:16 – Brief overview of the Danish Superliga 10:17-16:15 – Right to Dream and FC Nordsjælland 16:16-22:15 – FC Midtjylland's innovative scouting 22:16-25:14 – Silkeborg IF, the surprise package 25:15-35:44 – FC København and Roony Bardghji 35:45-END – Ones to watch for the 2022/23 season

When Gary Speed took over as Wales manager in 2010, the country were ranked 112th in the world. Fast forward 12 years and the nation have qualified for three of the last four major tournaments including this year's FIFA World Cup. Speed is credited with changing the culture surrounding Welsh football and the catalyst for the current generation which has seen the likes of Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey take centre-stage. Scouted Football's resident Welshman Llew Davies talks us through Wales' journey to Qatar - their first World Cup Finals appearance since 1958.

France clinched only their third UEFA U-17 European Championships title earlier this month, propelled to victory by another crop of talented youngsters emerging on the world stage. Discover Scouted Football's Squad of Tournament which includes five Dutch players, four Frenchmen, four Portuguese, two Germans, three Serbians and two Spaniards.

Rome, Milan, Turin, Florence and Naples boast much larger populations and have typically dominated Italian football since its inception, but Bergamo is home to the country's finest academy setup. Whether you knew it or not, Atalanta have repeatedly been responsible for producing high-level professional players embarking on careers in Italy and further afield. Author of The Working Hands of a Goddess, Tom Underhill details La Dea's reputation as a youth footballing hub, as well as their scouting of Africa, Scandinavia and names to keep an eye on in 2022. Featuring Scalvini, Sidibé and Cissé...

Norway's Eliteserien and Sweden's Allsvenskan are back underway for the 2022 season which runs from April through November. Joe is joined by the Nordic Football Podcast's Jonathan Fadugba who provides expert insight on the Scandinavian top flights, reviews the 2021 campaign as well as previewing which players to keep an eye on during 2022. Contains player analysis on Williot Swedberg, Osame Sahraoui, Patrik Wålemark and Akinkunmi Amoo among others. Listen now.

A rare three-pronged attack on the Scouted Football Podcast this week as regular host Joe is joined by Scouted stalwarts Stephen and Llew to discuss the UEFA Youth League. New names, club-issue swimming caps, Fernando Torres' semi-finalists, U19s attracting crowds of 20,000, miniature Diego Armando Maradona and heaps upon heaps of player analysis you won't get anywhere else. Listen now.

Italy have failed to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. It is the second finals in-a-row Gli Azzurri will play no part in, giving rise to all manner of reactionary takes about the state of Italian football, youth development and the conveyor belt of young talent. Enter Scouted's Stephen Ganavas, who provides much-needed insight, as well as some new names to be familiar with on the Italian youth international scene. All is not lost, and their European Championships defence in 2024 is expected to be a fierce one. Forza.

Stade Rennais boast one of European football's most illustrious youth setups. It has developed the likes of Ousmane Dembélé, Sylvain Wiltord, Eduardo Camavinga, Yoann Gourcuff and several others throughout the club's history. Currently, the Ligue 1 side are pushing for automatic qualification to next season's Champions League, spurred on by a youthful core, smart recruitment and a steady stream of teenagers chomping at the bit for more first-team involvement.  Joe is joined by Rich Allen (@rich_allen85) - a Rennes expert - to discuss the side gunning for European and domestic glory in 2021/22. Listen now.

In this latest episode, Joe is joined by Ali Maxwell (@AliMaxwell_) of the Not The Top 20 Podcast (@NTT20Pod) to discuss the lads' latest venture - their own show, showcasing the EFL's brightest homegrown talents: 21 Under-21. Fábio Carvalho, Djed Spence, Jack Rudoni, Tyreece Simpson and several other names from this season's EFL Championship, League One and League Two campaigns discussed. Check it out. For more information on EFL 21 Under-21, please use the links provided. Watch on demand

Joe is joined by Peter Coates - editor of @golazoargentino - to discuss four Argentine players, including a deadline day transfer to Manchester City, shades of Sergio Agüero, exit routes to MLS, cats and dogs in central defence and insatiable dribblers. Includes: Manchester City's newest face Julián Álvarez, Huracán's César Ibańez, Defensa y Justicia's on-loan defender Nazareno Colombo and soon-to-be FC Dallas attacker Alan Velasco.

AFCON 2021 is here...in January 2022. We've had two rounds of Group Stage matches already, heaps of late drama, new names, familiar faces and plenty of surprise results - and we're only getting started. Give the tournament the respect it deserves, listen to the Scouted Football Podcast with 'Made in Africa' co-host, author and African football expert: the Guardian's Ed Aarons. Topics include - but are not limited to:  - Mali and Guinea's young squads - Saïdou Sow and Anis Ben Slimane player focus - 17-year-old duo Abdul Fatawu Issahaku and Karim Konaté - Gambia and Serie A - Tournament predictions 

AS Monaco are the club of Thierry Henry, Glenn Hoddle, Emmanuel Petit, Lilian Thuram, Arsène Wenger and most recently Kylian Mbappé - their place in Gallic footballing folklore is sacrosanct.  The Scouted Football Podcast takes a deep dive into the Monégasque club in modern day: including Niko Kovač's sacking and immediate replacement as well as up-and-coming, coming-of-agers Aurélien Tchouaméni and Sofiane Diop. Listen now. Guest: @EdwardStratmann of the Monaco Tribune

END OF YEAR SPECIAL We look back on some of our favourite clips from the Scouted Football Podcast throughout 2021, including... @LGAmbrose on Stuttgart and Silas Katompa Mvumpa @ZoryaLondonsk on Ukraine and Everton-bound Vitalyi Mykolenko @benjack94 on Belgium and Albert Sambi Lokonga @FMAnalysis on Second Tier Scouting and Mohamed Bayo @Orland1nho on Chelsea and Conor Gallagher @AFHStewart on Sochaux and Alain Virginius @OtherBundesliga on Austria and Karim Adeyemi @JFfutbol on PL2 and Villa + Leeds @Tim_Vickery on South America and Ecuador @Jon_Mackenzie on SC Freiburg and Nico Schlotterbeck

Rayo Vallecano are sitting pretty in LaLiga, currently occupying a spot in the European places. They've never finished higher than 8th in the club's history. Coached by Andoni Iraola, a former student of Marcelo Bielsa, Ernesto Valverde and José Luis Mendilibar, Rayo are defying the odds and currently boast the best home record across Europe's top five leagues having picked up 25/27 points in their first nine games at Vallecas this season. Oh, and they were promoted via the Segunda División play-offs last year. Ruairidh Barlow (@RuriBarlow) provides the insight on Rayo, their coach, an interesting U23 left-back as well as three more standout youngsters (Vinicíus Jr, Nico Williams and Oihan Sancet) in LaLiga.

Joe (@JoeDonnohue) and Alex Collings (@alexfrco) discuss all things OL as the Ligue 1 club assist in navigating yet another exciting crop of teenagers through the travails of top flight and European football, whilst also touching on the historic relationship between the club and North African migration. Caution: may contain Cherki. 2:23: Les Gones - A Background on the academy, Jean-Michel Aulas and past generations 5:12: OL's youth scouting structure 8:42: Head Coach Peter Bosz 13:42: The current crop: Vogel, Gusto, Lukeba, Caqueret, Cherki, Aouar and co 17:45: Maxence Caqueret 22:13: Rayan Cherki 30:00: Houssem Aouar 32:24: Mohamed El Arouch and the North African connection at OL 38:29: Partnering with Ligue 2 sides and investment in the academy

Mohamed Salah, Xherdan Shaqiri and Granit Xhaka began their European careers in the Swiss Super League - and it has continued to produce young players for the continent's best divisions over the past decade. Football Manager researcher and professional football scout Oliver Zesiger (@aulit_z) joins Joe on this week's episode to discuss his area of expertise: Switzerland's top flight and which under-23 players to keep tabs on. 2:06: Scouting the Swiss Super League for Football Manager 5:29: The Swiss Super League - a summary 7:33: FC Basel - Arthur Cabral, Joelson Fernandes, Sebastiano Esposito, Mamadou Kaly Sène and the loan system 21:26: Grasshoppers' affiliation with Wolves 24:36: Bećir Omeragić and FC Zürich 29:05: Fabian Rieder, Young Boys and the UEFA Champions League 31:47: Kastriot Imeri and Servette  37:12: Swiss Super League honourable mentions - Leonidas Stergiou, Filip Ugrinić

Portugal missed out on automatic qualification for the 2022 FIFA World Cup with defeat against Serbia earlier this month. Cristiano Ronaldo, Pepe and João Moutinho are among the most-capped players in the country's history, while Fernando Santos is approaching 100 games in charge - the most of any permanent Portugal manager. They are all still very much part of the furniture. With promising U21 cycles coming through, Joe asks @ProximaJornada1's Aaron Barton what is next for the Portuguese national team; whether there will be a period of transition, a seismic changing of the guard, or more of the same? 5:25: Portugal, Fernando Santos, Cristiano Ronaldo and the state of play? 20:31: Nuno Mendes, Rafael Leão, João Félix - the next generation 26:01: Portugal U21 cycles - Diogos Quéiros, Leite, Dalot, Costa, Gonçalo Inacio, Gonçalo Ramos, Vitinha, Fábio Vieira and co 44:10: Is U21 manager Rui Jorge next in line?

Tucked away in the south-west corner of Germany lies Bundesliga club SC Freiburg, who are currently third in the top flight. With a history of producing top-level goalkeepers and central defenders, they are once again developing a reputation as a player development hub. Next cab off the rank: Nico Schlotterbeck. Listen now. 3:43: Club background and manager Christian Streich 7:15: Freiburg in 2021/22 10:50: Nico Schlotterbeck - data, Bayern and Ben White 28:14: Freiburg's under-23 alumni 34:37: Freiburg's geography and youth recruitment

It is four years since England lifted the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup in India. Sancho, Foden, Smith Rowe, Hudson-Odoi, Brewster, Gallagher, Guéhi and plenty more household names took part in that tournament and have gone onto become top level players. But what about those who impressed at U-17 level and didn't quite make the grade at club level - where are they now? Scouted Football explores. 2:19: The Final Relived - England 5-2 Spain 12:30: Things you might've missed - 2017 U17 World Cup 21:17: What is the value of youth international tournaments for players, scouts, agents?

Arsenal. Hale End. Youth. Adams. Rocastle. Thomas. Merson. Cole. Wilshere. Saka. Smith Rowe. To celebrate the release of the Scouted Football Handbook Vol. XII, Joe speaks to Lewis Ambrose, author of eight-page feature on the Gunners' academy in our latest publication. 1:52: The History of Arsenal's Hale End Academy 7:16: Emile Smith Rowe 17:37: Aaron Ramsdale 27:50: What next for Flo Balogun? 36:50: Salah-Eddine Oulad M'Hand, Mika Biereth, Kido Taylor-Hart, Charlie Patino and the next generation