It may be easier to use the signing of a specific player to better understand Jonathan Spector’s role with Atlanta United as Head of International Recruitment and Player Development.
Take Brooks Lennon.
Atlanta United recently traded $300,000 in pots of Allocation Money to Real Salt Lake to acquire Lennon, a hard-working, versatile American who has a reputation of being a pro’s pro in the locker room, on the training pitch and on the field.
Spector was part of the Atlanta United lead team, led by Vice President and Technical Director Carlos Bocanegra, who executed the acquisition.
Spector said the goal for Lennon is the same as for everything he hopes to achieve in his new role.
“Just success on the field,” he said. “I want to see the club do well, the players do well --- not just those I signed. I think I can speak for everyone here, our jobs are fulfilled when we see success on the field for the city, the team and the franchise.”
Spector said it’s difficult to be specific about what qualities Atlanta United seeks when targeting players to try to sign. Lennon’s personality and skills are similar to many on the team who came before Spector’s hire. As is Lennon’s ethos.
“Players who want to be here and want to improve individually and the team as a whole,” Spector said.
Spector, 33, joined Atlanta United in late August after a 15-year professional playing career that included stops with Manchester United, Charlton Athletic, West Ham, Birmingham, Orlando in MLS, and Hibernian in Scotland. Like Lennon, Spector started as an attacking player before moving to defense. However, he played numerous positions for different clubs and the U.S. men’s national team, stepping in wherever he was needed.
Injuries affected Spector’s career. He wasn’t sure he was ready to retire in Scotland. He had offers from clubs in Europe, as well from some in MLS. Spector said he had given some thought to what he was going to do once he could no longer play but didn’t have a definite plan.
Bocanegra reached out to Spector to gauge his interest in the job. The more Spector thought about it, the more interested he became. He visited the training ground and Mercedes-Benz Stadium. He loved what he saw.
“This was something I got really excited about to work for a club like Atlanta United in this role where I feel very much part of the team on the field and a team off the field,” he said. “That was very important to me.”
Spector will rely on his experience to help him in the job. Because he has been a professional since he was a teen, he doesn’t have a college degree. He has attended seminars and hopes to take classes. He doesn’t speak Spanish, but said he is going to learn. That is important as MLS continues to heavily scout Central and South America for players.
If one were looking at a organizational tree of the technical side of Atlanta United, Spector works under Bocanegra and alongside others such as Lucy Rushton, head of technical recruitment and data analyses, and Sean Howe, video analyst. Spector said each has a different strength and opinion, which is beneficial when scouting. There is a combination of scouting reports, data analysis, video analysis and live scouting, which Spector said is extremely important, especially when Atlanta United is deciding if a player is worth pursuing.
“Being in charge of international recruiting is utilizing contacts I have throughout the world, mainly in Europe,” he said. “But soccer being global by nature you come across people from all over the world. Finding players is the main gist of the role.”
The ongoing negotiations between MLS and the MLS Players Association for a new collective bargaining agreement have slowed down signings because the club isn’t sure what the financial rules may be. Spector said once those negotiations are complete, the club has a plan for signings.
Once Atlanta United signs a player, Spector will help that player try to assimilate into the country, if it’s new to that player, the city, the league, the franchise and the team.
Though he grew up in the Chicago area, Spector said when he joined MLS in 2017 the travel and the heat were just two aspects that affected him. Imagine that difficulty for a player who didn’t grow up in the U.S.
Travel and temperature are just two challenges. Spector said he wants to help the players, particularly the younger players in the Academy and Atlanta United 2, learn how to be professional with their diets, nutrition, finances and thinking.
Spector said the club already does fantastic work in many of those areas. He said nothing is finalized, but he is part of a team researching if a sports psychologist would be a benefit.
It’s all part of trying to help the club increase every advantage in its pursuit of more trophies, he said.
“Lot of things that can be done with that to max potential for younger players and to improve performance to give players the best chance to be successful,” he said.
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