What it takes to be an academy player
What does it take to cut the mustard at a pro level talent factory? MK Dons' director of youth, Mike Dove, fills FFT in...
The MK Dons Academy has produced some exceptional graduates over recent years, including the likes of Dele Alli and Brendan Galloway.
Here, Director of Youth Mike Dove explains to anyone hoping to make it as a footballer what qualities he believes are required to make it.
As he says, there’s no single route to the top for a player – it’s all about finding your own formula – but working hard, making sacrifices, and getting marginal gains from the right kind of behaviour are all absolutely key.
If you’re resilient and ready to express yourself, then you can thrive in what is one of the most competitive job markets in the world…
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Nick Moore is a freelance journalist based on the Isle of Skye, Scotland. He wrote his first FourFourTwo feature in 2001 about Gerard Houllier's cup-treble-winning Liverpool side, and has continued to ink his witty words for the mag ever since. Nick has produced FFT's 'Ask A Silly Question' interview for 16 years, once getting Peter Crouch to confess that he dreams about being a dwarf.