Sam Jewell was appointed our head of recruitment on a permanent basis in February, having originally joined us in 2016.
Your dad, Paul, was a Premier League manager, so was football a big part of your life growing up?
He was managing in the top flight when I was eight, so I grew up inside the game – it was all I ever knew. I was part of that environment, experiencing at very close quarters his highs and lows, and that has stood me in good stead for where I am today. Although I’m only 33, I’ve experienced more in the game than many people much older than me.
Is he someone to lean on for advice?
I’ve got a close relationship with him – we speak most days. It’s good for me to have that sounding board and he now kicks every ball for Brighton, so the roles have been reversed! He’s been to watch us play at Stoke, Leeds, Middlesbrough and Everton this season and is invested in the Albion – we’re his team now.
Did you get close to becoming a pro yourself?
I was with Leeds and Bradford’s academies, but, unfortunately, I inherited my old man’s pace – which wasn’t a lot! I was a much better golfer, competing in national tournaments alongside Rory McIlroy and Danny Willett, and I won a number of caps for Yorkshire alongside Danny and Daniel Gavins. However, when I realised that I wasn’t at the same level as them, I decided to focus on a career in football, which has always been my number-one passion. I always felt I had a good football brain, with decent knowledge of the game, and decided to utilise that.
So what happened next?
I started working part-time for Newport County, studying the opposition and filing reports. It was a really good starting point, given the size of the club and the limited resources at your disposal. From there, I went to Swindon Town for 18 months, as chief scout, and this was another fantastic learning curve for me, where the finances were similarly restrictive. I wouldn’t have swapped my time at both clubs for anything; it has really made me appreciate what I have now.
In the role of chief scout, you must have started working closely with the first-team manager…
I did, but that was easy for me, given my background. From my personal experiences growing up, I appreciate what managers go through, I understand their frustrations. I know when to approach them and when to leave them alone, and that can take years to understand for someone not previously exposed to that. At Swindon, I had a really good working relationship with Luke Williams, who always spoke so highly of his time at Brighton [as development coach], and I’m pleased to see him doing so well at Notts County.
What was it like trying to recruit players when every penny mattered?
It makes the loan market really important at that level, so you’ve got to have extensive knowledge of U21 players in the top divisions. There is plenty of competition for such players, but we had a certain style of play which meant clubs wanted to send us their players, and we flourished as a result. We maybe played a bit too much football at times for that level, but it was a really important period in my development, working with Luke and also, for a short spell, with Martin Ling.
You joined the Albion in May 2016 as U21 recruitment manager – so now you’re scouring much further afield…
Working closely with Paul Winstanley, John Morling and Simon Rusk, it was a really exciting and interesting role. The initial couple of years were very different as we had no Brexit restrictions, while players were more open to playing U23s football. As a result, we were able to source and sign some really talented players, like Leo Ostigard, who’s now at Napoli, and Viktor Gyokeres, who is flying at Coventry. The role gave me extensive exposure to the European market for the first time and that has stood me in good stead moving forward.
You then became the club’s emerging talent scouting manager in late 2018 – a key role given the club’s investment in youth…
Tony Bloom wanted the squad age to come down, he wanted to invest in young players, and when Graham Potter was appointed the following year, the pathway to the first team really began to open up. Ultimately, the only way you’re going to attract the top young talent is if they can see a route into the first team, given you’re competing against some of the biggest clubs in the world, with the biggest financial packages. That’s what happened with Alexis, Moises, Facundo and Julio – we could sell them a pathway to the first team relatively quickly – and if you look at the average age of our bench against Crystal Palace, Tariq was the oldest outfield player at 22! What can’t speak can’t lie, so it’s a really good selling point in a market that’s getting more competitive window by window.
How important is it to be bilingual when you’re utilising the South American market?
I learnt Spanish during lockdown and it has helped me communicate with players when I’ve been out there and in selling the project to the players’ families. Remember, no English is spoken out there, so I’d like to think that being able to speak Spanish has played a small part in helping the guys join us.
You’re not scouring the Andes, just looking for players in remote villages though, are you?
[laughs] We have a system in place where we source and filter players before we watch anyone. Gone are the days when you just find someone playing in a field with his mates – those tales are few and far between. Ever since I’ve been at Brighton, we’ve had a really good system in place, whereby we are very efficient and smart with our work. What has surprised me, however, has been just how average the quality of games has been at times, even if some of the individuals have been a joy to watch. I love my trips to South America though; the passion for football is on another level and some of the experiences I’ve had have been invaluable. So far, we have had decent success utilising that particular market and, touch wood, that continues – but not just in South America, all over the world.
You’d been working closely with Dan Ashworth and Paul Winstanley, but then they leave. How did you cope with that?
We’re very lucky at Brighton because our succession planning means there is very little upheaval when people do move on. Departures are part and parcel of football, and while it was sad to see two really good people leave us, it has opened doors to others, including me. Following Paul’s departure, I took on the head of recruitment role on an interim basis and it was very much business as usual.
It's such a key role at the club – so did it scare you in any way?
There’s nothing in the job that I hadn’t done before, to be honest. I was lucky in the fact that Paul Winstanley trusted me a lot with many elements of the role, so I just got on with what I needed to do. There’s also been a change in head coach, with Roberto coming in, and he operates in a different way to Graham, so that needed a period of adjustment. Saying that, we built up an immediate rapport, and, in my opinion, we’ve got a world-class manager who I’m looking forward to working with for a sustained period of time.
You were appointed permanently in late February. That must have been a proud moment…
I was very pleased, but as soon as I accepted, it wasn’t a case of, “Wow, this is unbelievable” – my first thought was making sure we’re well prepared for the summer window and focused on bringing in the right players. There was no time to reflect as I knew I had to get going straight away. Remember, your summer business doesn’t start in June, it starts long before that.
David Weir has also been appointed technical director, replacing Dan, so how is that relationship working?
We’ve been at the club for a similar period of time and have always had a good relationship. He’s one of the nicest guys you’ll meet, very trustworthy, and he lets you get on with the job – which is all you can ask for. I know I can speak to him about anything, and as we enjoy working together, it’s made for a smooth transition.
You mention succession planning – that’s key when looking at players, right?
Moises was a classic example of that, as it was looking like at some point that we’d need a central midfielder with similar characteristics to Yves Bissouma. It’s also the reason why we signed Julio, Facundo, Ayari and Sarmiento. We know these guys may not be ready to play week in, week out in the Premier League right now, but we believe they will be ready eventually, so we plan two or three windows in advance and that’s a real strength of ours: planning and having a really clear vision.
We’ve earned plenty of plaudits for the players we’ve brought in, so will that be harder with clubs now looking to copy the way we operate?
It’s very difficult to copy us because we’ve got a very unique way of working, so I think the key for us is to not get complacent or let our guard down. We’ve got a world-class manager and we're going to be playing in Europe, we are a big draw for players now. We’re never going to have the financial power of other clubs, but we feel we have a unique culture, a unique philosophy – and we’ve already seen players turning down bigger money elsewhere to come on this journey, which I’m sure they won’t regret.
There is a real buzz around the training ground at the moment, isn’t there?
To be in and around that excitement day in, day out, you can really feel it. You can feel that something special is happening, and that culture is driven by Tony Bloom, by Paul Barber, and it goes right through the club. To feel that every day is special. I also think we’re very lucky to have Roberto as our head coach. We have one of the key relationships at the club, so speak every day, and it soon became clear to me that he is a football obsessive with a blueprint for playing unlike anything I’ve seen before. These are going to be really exciting times to be watching Brighton under him. I’m just delighted to be able to play my part and see where the journey takes us.