Became The Premier League’S Youngest Manager [EN]: Chapter 16

16. Reorganization

Jonathan Landris was a pleasant-looking man with short, curly hair and a neatly trimmed beard, appearing slightly stout.

He had driven all the way from Liverpool to Banfield, explaining that he preferred to meet in person since he was in the vicinity. He greeted his former superiors, Mike Garrick and John Banaskiewicz, warmly before settling into a seat.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Helena Cartwright, the current chairwoman and CEO of ISA Hee.”

“Jonathan Landris, pleasure to meet you.”

Having joined Liverpool in 2013, Jonathan, a key member of the analysis team that the owner, FSG Group, had painstakingly assembled, frankly explained his reasons for wanting to move.

“Liverpool has a lot of really smart people. I enjoy analyzing players, but I want to be more involved in decision-making processes, like acquisition decisions and transfer negotiations, rather than just making recommendations.”

“Is this because of Michael Edwards?”

Jonathan Landris shook his head at the mention of the young, brilliant football director credited with a significant portion of Liverpool’s strong squad construction.

“Oh, I can’t compare myself to a genius like Michael. And even if Michael leaves, there’s Julian Ward, the assistant sporting director, so it would take a long time for me to get that kind of opportunity.”

“Then?”

“I think I can gain a lot of valuable experience if I get an opportunity at Burnley. Burnley’s squad is aging, and whether they avoid relegation this season or not, they’re facing a complete overhaul. It’s a really interesting challenge for someone in charge of player acquisitions and sales.”

“So, what do you think Burnley should do?”

At Helena’s question, Jonathan Landris paused, gathering his thoughts.

“Well… the caliber of players will vary slightly depending on whether they avoid relegation this season, but the overall strategy remains the same. Considering the financial situation, I believe the club’s operating structure will inevitably shift towards bringing in promising players and then selling them for profit.”

Jonathan Landris gestured towards the training ground outside the window as he continued his explanation.

“Actually, Liverpool is watching Burnley’s ‘showcase’ policy [a strategy of developing and displaying young talent for profit] with great interest. Liverpool’s first team is so strong and constantly reinforced with external acquisitions that it’s difficult for youth players to break into the starting lineup unless they’re a prodigy like Trent Alexander-Arnold. If you can prove that young players can perform at the Premier League level, everyone will be lining up to loan you players.”

The directors listening nodded in agreement.

“I also have experience in selecting youth players, as I previously worked as a youth development analyst at Everton. I think we can address the squad’s deficiencies with showcase loans, and if we continue to acquire promising players and develop them internally, we can maintain stable performance in the long term while ensuring a consistent supply of players.”

And there’s this too, Jonathan Landris added.

“Now, if you have Liverpool’s status, financial power, and the opportunity to play under [manager Jürgen] Klopp, you can bring in almost any player. It’s great for building a strong squad, but… it’s a bit predictable, shall we say?”

*Of course, it might sound a bit strange,* Jonathan Landris concluded his detailed answer with a self-deprecating smile.

“Anything else?”

At Helena’s question, Jonathan Landris glanced at her, then shrugged and replied.

“Working under an American owner isn’t necessarily a bad thing. FSG [Fenway Sports Group, Liverpool’s ownership group] was a decent owner. I asked my American friends at FSG in Liverpool, and their assessment of Cartwright Fund wasn’t negative. Strict but fair, and they take care of their people. I thought that was good enough.”

Helena checked the expressions of the other two directors and smiled brightly at Jonathan Landris.

“You’re hired!”

“Oh, really?! Just like that?”

Jonathan Landris exclaimed, a mix of surprise, joy, and bewilderment in his voice.

“You have enough experience, ability, and motivation. Above all, you’ve understood the direction we’re heading in from an external perspective, so we don’t have to explain anything. You also know Burnley well since you’ve worked here before.”

“Wow! Thank you!”

“So, when can you start?”

As Jonathan Landris shook hands with Mike Garrick and John Banaskiewicz, who were congratulating and welcoming him, Helena posed the question.

“Well, I need to wrap up my work at Liverpool and take a break with my wife.”

“Ah, I see. Then… how about starting next week?”

“…Pardon me?!”

“Then we’ll take that as a yes… John, make sure he signs the contract before Mark leaves the building.”

“I’ll take care of it for sure.”

John Banaskiewicz replied with a sinister smile that seemed out of character for his friendly face.

*Getting paid on time is different from being properly exploited.*

“…Uh, just a moment…”

Jonathan Landris, still not fully grasping the situation, stammered as he looked around at the three directors.

John Banaskiewicz, firmly holding the arm of the good-natured technical director to prevent him from escaping the clutches of exploitation, led Jonathan Landris out of the conference room to draw up the contract.

Helena and Mike Garrick, having secured a key executive colleague (written as colleague, read as prisoner number 4) to share the heavy workload, watched the new victim being led away with a mixture of pity and elation.

***

Jonathan Landris, having signed the contract in a daze and politely declining John Banaskiewicz’s kind but somewhat unsettling offer to arrange accommodation nearby, returned to Liverpool.

It’s unknown how he explained the situation to his family, who had expected him to take a proper vacation after the job change, but Jonathan, who suddenly started work the following Monday, began to demonstrate his abilities, contrary to his initial bewilderment.

The overall framework had already been explained to the directors during the interview process, and Hyungmin and Arthur welcomed it with open arms.

First, he began to rebuild the scouting team that had resigned with manager Sean Dyche, obtaining the approval of the directors (specifically Helena) to quickly hire one scout for Britain (England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland), one scout for South America, and divide Europe into four regions—Northern, Western, Eastern, and Southern—hiring one scout for each, forming a scouting team of six people in total.

“First, in Britain, we will scout mainly in the Championship [the second tier of English football] and the Scottish Premier League. Since many Premier League clubs are competing to bring in good players from here, it won’t be easy in terms of price, but it has the advantage of being able to observe them closely and adapt quickly.”

This was the reason why Jonathan was essentially covering the entire British region, where hundreds of football clubs are active, with just one scout.

“And for the remaining top 5 leagues—Spain, France, Italy, and Germany—it’s better to scout backups or youth players, while in South America, Eastern Europe, and Northern Europe, it’s best to scout promising players who debut in the first team and immediately make an impact.”

Jonathan explained as he divided the remaining areas that the scouts would be responsible for.

“Unfortunately, it’s statistically difficult to find good players in North America or Asia. Africa unearths many good players in their youth through Southern Europe or France, so we approach it by bringing in the raw gems that they have primarily refined.”

With the addition of one analyst to support scouting and one analyst to support the first team, a scouting and performance analysis team consisting of a total of 8 people under Jonathan’s command was formed.

Surprisingly, Helena did not object to this.

“Reducing costs, using fewer people, and not hiring anyone at all and then having things not work out are all different. Hire people when necessary. But do it as efficiently as possible.”

With Helena’s approval, the scouting team and performance analysis team were set up quickly, and the coaching staff to assist Hyungmin was also finalized.

First, as everyone expected, Arthur Brimlow reversed his retirement and officially took office as the first team’s head coach to assist Hyungmin.

In addition, it was decided to gradually expand the coaching staff rather than rapidly expanding it, depending on the club’s financial situation and Hyungmin’s own plans.

However, a fitness coach to handle physical training was essential to deploy Hyungmin’s pressing tactics.

Although there were some applicants through word of mouth, it was not easy to find a fitness coach who could lead the intense yet systematic physical training that Hyungmin wanted.

It was nearly impossible to cope with the Premier League’s tight match schedule, in addition to the strength, speed, and stamina required in modern football, with traditional physical training.

Hyungmin, who wanted to implement a customized program that matched the game cycle, individual physical cycle, and physical characteristics, eventually gave up on internal recruitment and sent an SOS to RB Salzburg’s Marc Lange.

The Red Bull Football Group strongly resisted having coaches poached in addition to players, but they did not refuse to recommend some coaches who were not part of the group but had caught their attention as promising talents to Hyungmin.

In the end, after a long review of resumes and several video interviews, Paulo Morais, a Portuguese fitness coach, was hired.

Paulo Morais, who had been working as a fitness coach at Vitoria in the Portuguese first division since 2011, moved to Benfica in the summer of 2015 with manager Rui Vitoria, who had been appointed in the same year, forming the top 4 in the Portuguese first division along with FC Porto, Sporting CP, and SC Braga.

Rui Vitoria, who won the league three times in four seasons at Benfica from the 2015/16 season to the 2018/19 season, was dismissed and joined Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia.

However, Rui Vitoria was dismissed from Al-Nassr, and the 40-year-old young fitness coach was currently on hiatus.

Although it was a different league, if he had overseen the fitness of a team that had won the league three times in four seasons in the notoriously competitive Portuguese league, he had a wealth of experience that even Hyungmin or Arthur did not have, regardless of age.

Thus, the coaching staff consisting of Hyungmin, Arthur, and Paulo Morais consisted of 3 people, including the manager.

Considering it was the Premier League, it was an absurdly simple composition, but Hyungmin shook his head at Helena, who had proposed additional reinforcements.

“We can grow the coaching staff more in the future, but for now, a small number of people who work well together is enough. The first team’s squad isn’t that big anyway, so we don’t need that many people.”

There wasn’t even a goalkeeper coach, but the fact that there was a youth coach with a lot of experience like Arthur had the advantage of being able to handle even the specialized position of goalkeeper coach to some extent.

After many twists and turns, Burnley Football Club finally succeeded in supplementing the club’s operating personnel and coaching staff who had left after ALK Capital and Sean Dyche.

Finally, with the appointment of a formal manager, the recruitment of personnel, and the reinforcement of the squad, albeit insufficient, Burnley began to take its first steps to escape the bleak situation after completing its reorganization.

As the busy A-match period [international break] for reorganization ended, the four first-team loanees who had newly joined the club arrived, coinciding with the return dates of players who had been called up to their national teams or had gone on vacation.