The traditional notion of discovering a 'hidden gem' in football is largely disappearing, as top clubs now have extensive coverage of emerging talent worldwide. Kristian Kjaer, technical director at Midtjylland, stated that while such discoveries still happen, they are rare.
This shift is attributed to a transformation in talent identification and recruitment, driven by increased data, footage, and artificial intelligence. Sam Turner, head of operations at scouting platform Eyeball, noted that clubs can now gather detailed information on players globally even before their senior debut.
Eyeball, founded five years ago, focuses on players aged 13 to 21 and is used by over 60% of clubs in Europe's top five leagues. It provides access to more than 400,000 young players across 42 global markets, from Europe to Africa and Latin America. This breadth of coverage has been highlighted by recent transfers, including Malick Yalcouye to Brighton and Bazoumana Toure to Newcastle, both tracked on the system.
The availability of data and footage has prompted a change in recruitment methodology, leading to benefits such as data-led recruitment, time savings, and cost reductions. While data is crucial, Kjaer emphasised that human insight into cultural and family backgrounds remains essential for ensuring players fit into a club.
Emerging markets for talent include Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, and Japan, with Latin America and Africa also remaining significant. Thomas Randolph, founder of Delphlyx, which works with Premier League clubs, believes thousands of talented African players may have missed out on big moves in the past due to a lack of visibility, a problem that recording games is now helping to address.