The film Moneyball was released in 2011, based on a book written by Michael Lewis in 2003, The Art of Winning an Unfair Game.
The book follows the Oakland Athletics baseball team, who assembled a competitive squad with limited funds using a sophisticated, objective, statistically measured approach to scouting and analysing players.
Fast forward to the modern day, and many football clubs have adopted similar models, most notably Brighton & Hove Albion and Brentford.
Paul Barber, Chief Executive at Brighton, revealed more in a recent podcast, Inside the Boardroom, hosted by Jack Sullivan and Mark McAdam:
“The data identifies a much smaller group of players, positional need, certain attributes, it looks at the players’ personality profiles, then we try and get the deal done. The human element is the coach identifying the need and then the personality profile.”
“The data doesn’t tell you if they are a good person or spend their nights in a nightclub or gambling—we have to get that information from contacts, networks, former coaches, former teammates, current coaches, current teammates.”
“It’s not a perfect science; human beings may react differently in different environments. The environment may not suit them; they may not settle. We do get things wrong, yet the longer we use the data, it becomes enriched by experience. However, it’s not infallible, as the last part does rely on human beings.”
Indeed, the last point is very difficult and one David Moyes said was a key focus when making decisions on transfers at West Ham.
However, Barber is being quite modest in his summary, given Brighton have made huge profits on player turnover since adopting the model in 2017. They have also been excellent at sourcing players from countries that aren’t heavily scouted, such as Ecuador or Paraguay.
At West Ham, Maximilian Hahn, Head of Technical Recruitment & Analysis—whom Claret and Hugh wrote about on Sunday regarding his growing influence—along with Dylan Curnell, First Team Recruitment Analyst, are reportedly involved in discussions with Amazon to use Amazon Web Services (AWS).
This service is already being used globally and is not limited to sports. Companies use it to lower costs, improve performance, and foster innovation.
AWS would access data from performance tools to identify players based on various metrics such as passing accuracy, stamina, and key passes in a game. It can even go further by analysing matches in real-time, focusing on both the club’s players and their opponents, allowing Graham Potter to make informed tactical changes. Outside of this, AWS can help with training by using data collected from heart rate monitors and performance metrics in training sessions. It can even calculate personalised training plans for each individual player to keep them in the best physical condition.
The use of such data can only be seen as a positive, yet there are downsides. The transfer target lists must be dynamic, as players’ stock rises and falls. Contract lengths also play a key role in bargaining leverage.
Another challenge is that with the widespread adoption of data usage in football, most clubs now know statistically a lot more about their players, making bargains harder to come by.
It’s encouraging that West Ham are investing in improving their data, especially with the headwinds of PSR. Having recently appointed Graham Potter, who is a big advocate of this approach, future transfer windows could become far more exciting for Hammers fans.
