Ex-director of Neftchi PFC Academy Mick Bennett answered club website’s questions.

- How do you assess your 2-year activity in "Neftchi" Football Academy?

- The ‘Academy’ was none existent, to be honest it was in a mess, no leadership, no direction, no policy, coaches were not monitored or co-ordinated, training facilities were awful, players contracts were not kept up to date. (just a few of the problems) So with all the problems when I started, I can say, the Club is now in a far better condition and can consider itself closer to an ‘Academy’ status. I introduced many new strategies, the training and playing style is much improved, the communication between players, coaches and parents is a million times better and the overall standard on and off the pitch is far more professional. However, it is an ongoing process and it needs to be continued and standards maintained if the Academy is to succeed. There is a lot more hard work to do.

- What changes did you manage to make in the academy during this period?

- I created a Technical program for every age group, based on my 10 years’ experience at Bolton Wanderers followed by my 10 years at the famous Manchester United Academy. I Introduced match analysis, match reports. Coach reviews. Session planning, Code of conduct. Discipline procedures, monthly staff meetings, updated all players contracts in an easy to manage system, attempted to get teams on tours, tried to improve training facilities and organisation of training. Generally, I wanted the coaches to take more responsibility, to work harder, to want to learn and be open minded, and have a better relationship with ALL the players and parents. I set high standards and I expected everyone to aim to be the best they can be.

- What can you say about the future of Neftchi Football Academy?

- The Club will be moving to Turkish Airways soon, that will make a massive difference, I cannot stress enough how important this move will be. I have implemented a basic structure and foundation Neftchi Academy can follow (if they want to) it will help them to progress and develop players and coaches. The ultimate goal for any Football Academy is to produce players good enough for the first team

- Are there any young players in our academy who can bring success to Azerbaijani football, "Neftchi"?

The Club has players who can become professionals and play for the National team, but the emphasis must be on individual player development and not winning leagues. The coaches need to continue their own personal education to improve their coaching methods and help develop players for the future. I see too much recognition and expectations put on young players, a lot can happen between the ages of 10 years and 16 years old, there are no guarantees in football, youngsters have to deal with distractions and pressures, on and off the pitch. Serious consideration regarding a professional contract and player expectations should be around 16 years old, this is when you can get a more realistic picture of the player, everything before is just potential, of course it is still about potential but if the player has been coached and nurtured in the right way, has a good attitude and good technical and physical attributes, you can give a more accurate assessment. As an example, at Manchester United, nobody in the public, outside of the Club had heard about the likes of Paul Pogba or Marcus Rashford until they played in the first team. The youth players are protected from any outside distractions and are allowed to grow and flourish with little pressure or big expectations. They focus is on a good education on and off the pitch, and constant positive encouragement from all the coaching staff.