Keegan, Lineker, Lambert, Platt and Waddle. Now you can add the name Jennings to that prestigious – albeit brief – list of British footballers that have broken away from home comforts and tried their luck abroad in European football. His move – unforeseen by many in English football circles – comes at a crucial stage in his development both as a player and a person and unlike his predecessors, Jennings’ journey from Prenton Park to the Allianz Arena has been nothing short of intriguing.
Jennings’ career has, up till now, been far from straightforward. Within the space of a mere three years, the Merseyside-born striker witnessed the inspiring surroundings of Anfield and Goodison Park as a teenager trainee, only to have to seek an alternative route to the highest echelon of English football via the Lower Leagues having been turned down by both clubs. Rejection came as a bitter blow however an opportunity to rekindle his career was afforded to him by Npower Football League One side Tranmere Rovers. During his three-year spell at Prenton Park, Jennings shot to prominence under the gaze of manager-come-physio Les Parry, breaking into the first-team set-up and in the process producing a number of eye-catching displays to alert top-flights clubs across Europe – chief amongst them FC Bayern Munich.
Rather surprisingly, Die Bayern have no dedicated scouting network in England to monitor the Barclays Premier League. Therefore, it is even more surprising that the club, who were originally casting an eye over the Everton left-back Leighton Baines, should be drawn towards the attention of a teenager in Npower Football League One. So what did former FC Bayern Munich midfielder now General Manager Christian Nerlinger, see in the relatively unknown Jennings? What Nerlinger would have gathered from watching the 2011 Npower Football League One Apprentice of the Year was both his versatility and very direct style of play. In his thirty appearances with The Super Whites, Jennings was capable of playing on the flanks or as a central striker. Moreover, his sharp turn of pace, fearlessness in taking on defenders with his trickery and his low centre of gravity made him difficult to defend against.
All these attributes made him an attractive proposition for a club renowned in European football for producing and developing promising young footballers. Indeed, one only has to look at the current crop of FC Bayern Munich players to see proof of this. Defenders Holger Badstuber and current club and national team captain Phillip Lahm, midfielder Toni Kroos and striker Thomas Müller are all products of the youth system at the club and a part of the German national team set-up under coach Joachim Löw. More significantly, this trend is being replicated by a host of others German clubs, namely Borussia Dortmund who’ve produced current German national team defenders Mats Hummels and Marcel Schmelzer as well as midfield sensation Mario Götze.
Both examples will serve to reassure those doubters who voiced their concern over the timing of Jennings’ move to the current Bundesliga leaders. Whilst it is their belief that a move of this proportion is too early in his career and that it would perhaps be better for the young striker to continue his development at Prenton Park, the reality is that that when a club of the stature of FC Bayern Munich come calling the opportunity cannot be knocked back. If anything, it will open up the young Merseysider to a new way of life, an alternative approach to football and perhaps more importantly, allow him to develop away from the pressure of the English media who unfortunately too often pride themselves on building up talented youngsters and then cruelly shooting them down. Nevertheless, the call of England will never be too far away.
Despite his surprising move to the German capital, Jennings will continue to be on the radar of the Football Association who see the youngster as a potential England international star of the future. The FA alongside England Under-21 manager Stuart Pearce will be liaising closely with representatives from the Bavarian club to monitor his progress. The same will undoubtedly be done for the current England Under-21 utility man and captain Michael Mancienne who followed in the footsteps of Jennings in moving to Germany this summer, joining Hamburg SV from Chelsea. The example of Owen Hargreaves, who began his career at Bayern and spent ten seasons at the club, will provide comfort for both players in knowing that playing abroad will not hinder eithers chances of playing for the national team.
Nerlinger has stated that Jennings will begin his career in Germany at FC Bayern Munich II and that his progression towards consideration for a place in the first-team squad will be dependent upon his progress at Kleine Bayern. He will undoubtedly look at the examples of Holger Badstuber, Toni Kroos and Thomas Müller who, in recent years, all trod a similar path, for inspiration. In the short-term, at least, Jennings will be aiming to help FC Bayern Munich’s second team seek a swift return to the more challenging 3rd Liga from the fourth tier of German football, the Regionalliga Süd.
Few could’ve predicted the remarkable set of events that have occurred in the life of Dale Jennings. Whilst his move abroad represents a risk, Jennings has made a bold decision to escape an acceptance of Lower League insularity and instead embark upon a European adventure. Perhaps more players should challenge themselves and take a similar leap of faith into the unknown.
Twitter: @aleksklosok
