A key figure who unearthed Liverpool winger Kaide Gordon has just returned to Derby County in a new role.
Derby County’s academy holds category-one status and is one of the best outside of the Premier League at producing young talent.
Enabled by their position of financial peril a few years ago when they were forced into using young talent in the first team, Derby have seen several youngsters reach incredible heights at Pride Park, including Max Bird, Eiran Cashin and Louie Sibley.
Players rising through the underage groups know there is a clear pathway to first-team football, perhaps a major reason behind highly-rated Cruz Allen signing a new contract at Derby despite interest from Manchester United and Chelsea.
With an impressive roster of youngsters coming through, including the likes of Dajaune Brown and Jake Rooney, it’s an attractive proposition for any coach to continue their development in Derbyshire.
This is demonstrated by Adam Thorley’s return to the Rams after leaving for Chelsea a few years ago.
Who is Adam Thorley
Adam Thorley has been coaching for over 16 years within the Category 1 Academies of Chelsea, Derby County and Wolverhampton Wanderers, experiencing the development phases at all age groups.
He spent over a decade at Derby from 2010 to 2021 as an under-18s coach and during his time at Pride Park, the club cultivated several players to come through the academy including the likes of Kaide Gordon (Liverpool) and Liam Delap (Manchester City).
According to the Derby Telegraph, Thorley has returned to the club as a head of technical development for under-nines to under-16s after spending nearly three years at Stamford Bridge as a lead under-15s coach.
Described as “highly rated” by the report, Derby’s academy has been strengthened by his return and is in good stead for the future.
Adam Thorley helped develop Kaide Gordon
In February 2021, Liverpool captured winger Kaide Gordon from Derby for around £1 million, with fees rising to £3 million in the future.
Gordon joined the club at under-nine level and became one of Derby’s youngest players ever, making his debut at the age of 16 in a 4-0 win over Birmingham City.
Although shortly after appearing from the bench, he was courted by the top clubs and Liverpool won the race for his signature.
Thorley, who was Derby’s under-18s coach at the time, was responsible for Gordon’s development.
Having joined the Reds over three years ago, the 19-year-old has been hailed as “special” by manager Jurgen Klopp while featuring just seven times for the first team, scoring once.
Although Gordon is playing for one of the biggest clubs in the world, he’s currently stuck in the academy and needs to play regular minutes in a senior team.
Nonetheless, Thorley was responsible for his seamless transition into the Derby first-team initially and it’s a massive boost to have him back at the club.
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