Former Rangers star Arthur Numan on working with a system that Mark Warburton declined

DAVIE WEIR is already a Rangers legend while Mark Warburton is fast catching him up.

So it’s ironic that another favourite of the Light Blue legions is currently working with a system that the Ibrox management team declined to the benefit of their current employers. Arthur Numan, who won 10 domestic honours is Scotland to go with his 45 caps for Holland, is now European scout for AZ Alkmaar. They have taken on Billy Beane as a consultant. His system of using statistics as the basis for signing players was successful in baseball and spawned the movie, Moneyball, where he was played by Brad Pitt. Numan believes there is a role for stats analysis in football. But the role of a scout’s naked eye and judgment, as well as background checks on a player’s mentality and character, can never be ignored. The Dutchman told the Sunday Post: “We have five full-time scouts at AZ, and we cover games every week all over the world. There are occasions you will spot a gem and hope that no other club is aware of the player in question. “But, to be honest, very few players go under the radar these days. “For example, I covered an international Under-20 tournament in Uruguay earlier this year, and I was one of around 150 scouts taking in the games. “From Barcelona to Chelsea to Liverpool to Bayern Munich to Porto and Inter Milan, just about every club from Europe had a representative and scouts from Brazilian and Argentinian clubs were also there. “I reckoned we would not be able to compete to get the very best players, so I focused on the layer underneath. But it is just so competitive. Every scout is looking for the same thing. “We all want to find a player for 500,000 Euros, and hope to develop and sell him on for 5m Euros three or four years later. But it is not easy. “At AZ, we have also introduced a different tactic in the past few months. We have taken on Billy Beane and the club hierarchy is keen to use his methods and expertise. “I think there is a place for that but you can’t only go on stats. You have to also rely on scouting reports because what has been a successful system in baseball might not be the right way forward for football. “For me, it is difficult to compare both sports so there has to be a balance.” Indeed, Warburton and Weir left Brentford last season because the club’s owner, Matthew Benham, wanted to go down the route of signing players based on stats. Benham a professional gambler and former Oxford graduate is also majority shareholder at Danish side FC Midtjylland and they won the Danish League last season using the system. But the title-winning coach, Glen Riddersholm, quit a few weeks ago for the same reasons as Warburton. But Numan is sure Warburton’s departure has worked well for Rangers. He said: “I still keep an eye on Rangers, for sure. I had five successful years there and I still keep in touch with many people at the club and still enjoy a good relationship with the fans. “The club has had a good start to the season, and the focus is on winning the title and getting back into the Premiership. “The early signs are that Warburton is very clear in what he wants and it’s also vital to have someone such as Davie Weir beside him. Davie loves Rangers and knows what the club is all about. “I think it seems pretty clear that, with the signings Mark has made, that he is in control of all transfer matters. That’s the way it should be. “He has signed players he knows and has used his judgment and knowledge. Most managers will stand or fall by the decisions they make in the transfer market and that’s why a lot of them are not in favour of the stats analysis system. “Mark and Davie, though, will also know the importance of having a proper structure in place and they will no doubt address that as soon as they’ve had time to draw breath. “But scouting is so important, it can’t be underestimated. “The end game is all about being ready to challenge Celtic as quickly as possible because Scottish football needs both clubs to be strong and going at it.”