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@mentorauk

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𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐝𝐨.
Workshops | Mentoring | Development
Individuals, Clubs, Schools & Organisations

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FOOTBALL WILL MOVE ON WITHOUT YOU.

You can give years of your life to this game.

Miss birthdays. Sacrifice weekends. Spend money you can barely afford. Drive hundreds of miles. Play through injuries. Build your entire identity around being part of football.

And still find yourself in a position where a club decides you’re no longer part of its plans.

Football carries on. The fixtures happen. The next player comes through. The club moves on.

But you’re left wondering where you fit in a game you’ve given so much to.

And it isn’t just players.

Managers lose their jobs. Scouts lose their positions. Coaches, sporting directors and senior professionals can give decades to football, only to find themselves wondering where their next opportunity will come from.

We celebrate the signings, the debuts, the promotions and the trophies.

But who thinks about the people when it doesn’t work out?

The player sitting in his car after being released. The coach trying to explain to his family what happens next. The person who still loves football but is beginning to wonder if there’s a place for them in it.

One club’s decision should never define a person’s worth.

Their contribution doesn’t disappear because football has decided to move on.

Sometimes people don’t need promises or someone pretending to have all the answers. They need honesty, someone willing to listen, and a chance to be considered again.

That’s why we’re building CLB.

Not for followers or recognition. But because people in football deserve genuine support, honest conversations and opportunities where there’s a real fit.

We can’t help everyone. We can’t guarantee outcomes.

But we can do our best to make sure people aren’t simply forgotten when one chapter ends.

Because football will always move on.

That doesn’t mean we should leave the people behind.

PLAYERS FIRST. PEOPLE FIRST. ALWAYS.

CLB. 🤝

Visibility. Access. Opportunity.

#CLB #clbpathway #reality #released #football

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JUST BECAUSE ONE CLUB DECIDES YOU’RE NOT RIGHT FOR THEM, SHOULDN’T MEAN THE REST OF FOOTBALL NEVER GETS THE CHANCE TO DECIDE FOR ITSELF.

This is more than a statement. It’s a belief at the heart of CLB.

Football is full of people whose journeys don’t go the way they planned.

Players who dedicate years of their lives to a club, only to be released. Coaches, scouts and senior professionals who find themselves looking for their next opportunity when one chapter comes to an end.

Their journeys may change direction. Their next opportunity may take time to arrive.

But their value doesn’t disappear.

One club’s decision shouldn’t define an entire career. One closed door shouldn’t mean every other door stays closed.

At CLB, we believe in people. We believe in genuine opportunities, honest support and the importance of giving people the chance to be seen, considered and heard.

Through CLB Pathway, CLB | NXT and CLB Staff, we’re working to put that belief into practice.

No fees for players. No fees for clubs. No fees for accepted CLB Staff members. No promises we can’t keep.

Just a commitment to doing things the right way, building genuine relationships and helping people find their next opportunity.

Because football will always involve decisions. But people deserve more than to be defined by just one.

PLAYERS FIRST. PEOPLE FIRST. ALWAYS.

CLB. 🤝

Visibility. Access. Opportunity.

#CLB #CLBPathway #CLBNXT #CLBStaff #playersfirst

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@raphaelsofoluke 🤝 @ukbbshow

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The Game Behind The Game | Episode Ten

Ten episodes in, I wanted this one to be a little different.

Throughout my journey in football, there are people who have helped shape the way I think about the game, recruitment and most importantly, supporting players.

Some have opened doors, challenged my work, given me opportunities and shared advice that I still carry with me today.

Scott McLachlan was particularly influential in helping me find my direction in recruitment, but each person featured has contributed to my journey in their own way.

From recruitment and scouting to player transition, mental resilience and life beyond football, each brings something important to the game.

They’re people I trust, respect and believe are doing things for the right reasons.

This episode is about recognising that, and giving them their flowers.

Thank you for the opportunities, the advice and the lessons along the way. 🤝

Ten episodes. Ten people. A lot of lessons.

THE GAME BEHIND THE GAME.

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THE STANDARD MATTERS.

As CLB continues to grow, we’re becoming increasingly deliberate about how we assess players, understand markets and build relationships with clubs.

We don’t believe good recruitment is about volume.

It isn’t about how many players you can put in front of how many clubs.

It’s about judgement.

Knowing the player. Knowing the level. Understanding the market. Knowing the clubs and the people within them. And knowing when an opportunity genuinely makes sense.

Because an introduction is easy.

The right introduction isn’t.

At CLB, we’re building a recruitment approach around that principle.

Every relationship matters. Every introduction carries our name. And every player we support deserves more than simply being passed from one contact to another.

We want the clubs we work with to know that when a player comes through CLB, there is a reason we’re putting that player in front of them.

And we want our players to know that we’re not looking for the quickest opportunity.

We’re looking for the right one.

As we continue to develop CLB, we’re putting greater structure behind our player assessment, recruitment process, market knowledge and club relationships.

The ambition is simple.

To build something players trust.

Something clubs respect.

And something that stands for a level of professionalism that reflects the people and relationships behind it.

Quality over quantity.
Relationships over reach.
The player over everything else.

This is CLB.

Player First. Always.

Visibility. Access. Opportunity.

#football #clbpathway #playerpathway #trust #playerfirstalways

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Who am I without my sport?

One of the hardest questions an athlete can face when injury takes away the thing that has shaped so much of their identity.

I’m really excited to be joined by @mentorauk for an honest conversation about the athlete behind the sport - the person, identity, interests and life that can sometimes get lost when everything becomes centred around performance.

We’ll talk about what happens when you can’t be the athlete you’ve always been, and why understanding who you are beyond your sport matters so much.

Another conversation I’m really looking forward to, and I’d love for you to join us. ❤️

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The Game Behind The Game | Episode Nine

YOUR PASSPORT CAN CHANGE THE MOVE.

One thing I’ve learned working around player recruitment is that sometimes the biggest factor in a potential move isn’t actually football.

It’s whether the move can work.

Since Brexit, UK players looking to play professionally in Europe can face different requirements because they’re generally treated as non-EU players.

The Netherlands is a good example.

For a player aged 20+, the published 2025/26 salary criterion for this route is €629,740 per year.

That can completely change how a club looks at a potential signing.

The player can be good enough.

The club can like them.

The opportunity can make sense.

But if the wider situation doesn’t work, the move might not happen.

And there’s another thing players should think about.

If you have the ability to qualify for another nationality, particularly an EU/EEA or Swiss nationality, it’s worth looking into.

It can make a huge difference when looking at certain European markets.

This is the sort of information that isn’t always obvious when you’re looking from the outside.

Sometimes it’s not about whether you’re good enough.

It’s about understanding the market you’re trying to enter.

That’s the game behind the game.

CLB PATHWAY

Visibility. Access. Opportunity.

PLAYER FIRST. ALWAYS. 🤝

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Looking for a founding technical co-owner in the North East to build Athletiq with me. 🚀

I’m bringing my experience in professional football and sporting network to a platform designed to connect athletes, coaches and sports businesses. Now I’m looking for a technical partner to help shape the product, lead development and grow the business alongside me.

This is a co-founder and ownership opportunity, with equity, responsibilities and commitment to be discussed openly.

If you have experience building apps and want to be part of Athletiq’s journey, drop me a message.

Know someone who could be a great fit? A tag or share would be appreciated.

#Athletiq #TechnicalCoFounder #SportsTech #NorthEast #Startup

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Day 8 of 75 Hard‼️

Start of the week had a lot of free time so got a lot done. Done my shopping and my food prep which I was happy about and managed to finish everything I had to do in an early time. Today was a chill day as I had no shift but just prepared myself for the week.

On another note shoutout to my friend Dre down at @mentorauk @drebxnks . A business to help young people on the mental health side of football and the situation that i encountered at the park reminded me of that.

Any young person who is reading this don’t ever let anyone ruin your dreams hard wrk will always beat talent, no matter how much your failing you get up and keep going. No one should ever put you down specially the things that you love. And if they do use that as motivation to prove them wrong❤️

Day 8 - 3/10toughness #fyp #75hard #75hardchallenge #motivation #fyp

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The Game Behind The Game | Episode Eight

Football is a relationship business.

Talent gets you noticed.

Trust gets you listened to.

Knowledge tells you where to look.

And timing tells you when to make the call.

I’ve learned over the years that some of the most important moments in football happen away from the pitch.

The introduction nobody sees.

The conversation nobody hears.

The door that only opens because someone trusted you enough to knock.

That’s the game behind the game.

#clbpathway #football #recruitment #scouting #gamebehindthegame

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Football still runs on relationships, trust, knowledge and timing.

That’s something we’ve understood from day one at CLB.

The relationships have been built over years.

The experience has been earned through football.

The trust comes from putting our name behind the right players.

We’re speaking to clubs every day. We’re getting approached by players. We’re having conversations across different markets and different levels of the game.

The job isn’t to put every player everywhere.

It’s to understand the player, understand the opportunity and know when the two make sense.

Sometimes the answer is yes.

Sometimes it’s no.

Sometimes it’s simply the wrong time.

That’s recruitment.

Visibility. Access. Opportunity.

CLB

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