James Vaughan starts as Head of Academy Recruitment & Player Pathways at Everton
- The former Everton forward is now in charge of academy recruitment and player pathways at his boyhood club
- Vaughan — a Masters in Sports Directorship graduate — steps up from his previous role as Loans Pathway Manager at the club
Former Premier League forward James Vaughan has left his post as Loans Pathway Manager at Everton Football Club to take up a new role within the club – Head of Academy Recruitment & Player Pathways.
Vaughan had been Loans Pathway Manager at Goodison since September 2022, in charge of overseeing and managing first team loans away from the club. This included providing a duty of care for the players with regular check-ins, being involved in the negotiation processes and identifying which players are ready to make the step up to first team football at the Merseyside club.
His new role as Head of Academy Recruitment & Player Pathways makes Vaughan a crucial figure in the development of youth players at Finch Farm. Everton’s highly regarded academy has produced talents such as Wayne Rooney and Leon Osman, as well as current first-teamer and England international Jarrad Branthwaite.
Vaughan, now 35, is seen as a perfect fit for this role as he himself came up through Everton’s academy system. He made over 60 appearances for the Toffees and holds the record for their youngest-ever Premier League goal scorer – he was 16 years and 271 days old when he found the back of the net against Crystal Palace in 2005.
After a career spanning 17 years and over 400 professional appearances for teams such as Norwich City, Huddersfield Town and Sunderland, Vaughan is now committed to a career in non-playing roles. With a Masters in Sports Directorship from The University of Salford and nine months as a Sporting Director at Tranmere Rovers under his belt, as well as over 18 months at his boyhood club as they try to navigate Premier League survival, Vaughan is developing an increasing reputation in player identification and development.