Thanks for writing my post for me, drw! All I would add is when I watched Liverpool in the sixties and seventies, they were packed with local lads and just as successful as today. Lawrence, Lawler, Byrne, Smith, Thompson P, Callaghan, Hunt, Melia et al - all internationals. Later on, Fowler, Carragher and Gerrard were exceptions to the rule.
EPL clubs can now afford the cream of world talent, leaving no room for local lads to develop unless they are exceptional and prodigious like TAA. The success rate of EPL development programmes is appalling and has gone backwards in my lifetime.
At the other end of the scale, Rovers used to have a steady stream of home-grown youngsters including McFarland, Coppell, Tynan, Irons, Mahon, Nolan, Thomas and Hill, who all moved on to the top division. The last three to come through our youth scheme to play more than a handful of games were Power, Stockton and Kirby. Since then, recruitment has largely been free transfers from other clubs.
So the big clubs and the top players have got a lot richer, while further down the pyramid players often face an annual battle to stay in a job and many clubs struggle to survive.