Scouting is a key element in the football ecosystem and players progressing through various age ranks constantly fight the difficult battle of being scouted. They need to understand what scouts look for in a player and the SportsKPI Football Analytics Platform can help them improve on their weakness and add upon their strengths to get scouted in the future.

1.Technical Attributes

The first and foremost aspect looked at, is if the player being scouted has the necessary basic attributes of his playing position.

This is regardless of the psychological pressure that takes place, as the focus is on whether the player has the technical qualities required to compete at a certain level.

Different scouts have different scouting reports, but the technical report of a player is a constant and is a fundamental factor.

2.Tactical – Can you see the picture ?

Information collection in an efficient manner is a vital requirement to play football at a high level. How quickly can a player collect information, how fast can he/she process the information collected, and finally how quickly can they make the right decision based on the current situation?

A coach’s job is not necessarily to help the player develop technically but also to make sure the player is able to understand the picture that is in front of him and act accordingly. This is where the tactical and intellectual side of the game is looked into by the scout.

3 . Do you shy away under pressure ?

• Are you able to take the lead in a game while your team is losing?

• Are you able to keep cool and remain calm though your team currently doesn’t have the momentum?

• Do you shy away during the big games?

  Professional scouts are able to assess your psychological imprint in the game. It’s important to understand that the pressures of a season, training regime and matches are intense in the life of a footballer, and a scout looks to assess if the player has the mental capacity to go the distance.

4.Physical Qualities 

This area of scouting causes a lot of debate but the reality is players themselves misunderstand it. What scouts look for when it comes to physical qualities, it’s not just regarding height, weight, and muscle ratio, but also speed, agility, endurance, and also the ability to maintain high-intensity level actions. When scouts look at the physical nature of the player they want to know if they have the physical qualities to perform certain technical football actions (shooting, jumping, sprinting, defending, dribbling, etc.) and how well can they be maintained during a match where the psychological and physical factors come into play as well.

5.Problem Solving

• Are you a risk-taker?

• Are you creative enough to take risks and also find solutions during difficult circumstances?

Football like any sport or any mathematical query is all about problem-solving.

In that particular moment, what is the best course of action that both, an individual and a team needs to undertake to solve the problem in front of them?

Players need to understand that creativity isn’t necessarily just the attribute of a striker or maybe a player that loves to dribble but that it can be shown with a pass as well.

All players are creative players, the question to answer is ARE YOU CREATIVE ENOUGH?

Pic Credit: PFSA