About twenty years ago the economist Richard Auty coined the term ‘the Resource Curse’ to describe how research from the 1950s and 60s showed that countries that were rich in natural resources had seemed the least able to enjoy economic growth and civil progress.
This concept, sometimes referred to as the ‘Paradox of Plenty’ is all around. As well as being applicable to countries with natural advantages we’ve all come across attractive individuals who despite their good looks seem unable to demonstrate social skills. Advocates of the resource curse will argue it’s not in spite of these natural bestowments that their recipients struggle to make them count but because of them.
Now the argument is being applied to the world of football and in particular, English football.
And with this season’s further enrichment of clubs at the high end of the English game through the latest £5 billion TV deal it seems set to worsen.
The reasons for the resource curse have been debated for more than half a century but a simple yet persuasive suggestion is that when we have plenty, the drive to improve and develop is removed or at least reduced. For the better off faced with a problem, the temptation is to attack the symptoms and try to eradicate them with money rather than address the cause of the problem.
This argument can be leveled at Premier League football clubs where player recruitment is concerned. It’s understandable that faced with the pressure of retaining their status as part of the richest group of football clubs in history, Premier League clubs scour the world for the ready-made article rather than consider ways to develop and nurture talent yet to show its full potential.
The problem is at least twofold. First, the ever more expensive players brought to the EPL often fail to live up to their apparent value (is this the resource curse in action as the drive that got these players to the top is diminished by their rewards?) and second that all the time the income is flowing into the club this short-term approach to recruitment is sustainable but the league is dynamic and unless you belong to one the of the mega-rich half dozen, sooner or later it’s your turn for the drop.
Those travelling in the wrong direction on the football league pyramid in recent years like Leeds United, Manchester City and more recently Newcastle and Aston Villa will testify the ‘too big to go down’ tag does not apply.
So it seems a no-brainer really that when things are financially rosy and the cost of creating and maintaining a first-class recruitment department is relatively insignificant, it’s the perfect time to do so. This way, the club is protected against the damage inflicted by Championship income with Premier League expenses (even allowing for parachute payments).
We are in new economic times in English football and no doubt some will be destined to be the rich under-achievers while others might take Richard Auty to heart.