For many football coaches, working inside a professional academy is seen as the end goal — the destination after years of graft on cold evenings and unpaid sessions. For Temisan Williams, it turned out to be the starting point for something else entirely.
Having coached at Arsenal, Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur, and worked with more than 700 academy players, Williams has experienced elite player development from the inside. He understands the standards, the pressures and the pathways better than most. But instead of continuing up the traditional academy ladder, he made a different choice — stepping away from it to help other coaches find their own way into the professional game.
Today, as founder of the Coach Accelerator Masterclass Community, Williams uses that experience to support coaches around the world. His focus isn’t just on how to coach, but on how to navigate an industry that can often feel difficult to access from the outside.
For Williams, success has never been measured purely by how many players make it professionally.
“Sometimes the most satisfying thing is seeing the relationships that come from coaching,” he told Fen Regis Trophies. “You might have coached the same player as someone else, and years later, you’re recommending each other or sharing ideas. Watching coaches grow and build their own journeys is just as rewarding as seeing players reach the professional game.”
Learning Through Different Environments
Williams’ coaching journey began away from the spotlight, starting at Cambridge’s Centre of Excellence in the girls’ game. Competing against strong academy sides early on gave him a clear understanding of the level required to progress.
“It gave me my first real insight into the standards,” he says. “The players were excellent, and it showed me what was needed to move forward.”
A spell at AFC Wimbledon followed, where the learning extended beyond the pitch. Managing relationships with parents, conducting player reviews and understanding the wider responsibilities of academy football all played a part in shaping his approach.
Southend United marked another important stage in his development, offering an environment where collective effort and shared ambition mattered just as much as individual quality.
“In a Category Three academy, you really have to push yourselves,” Williams says. “There was a real camaraderie there, and it pushed you beyond what you initially thought you were capable of.”
His time at Tottenham Hotspur exposed him to a coaching culture operating at the highest level, working alongside coaches who have since progressed into senior professional football.
“It gave me a real understanding of the level required — not just from the players, but from the coaches around you as well.”
At Fulham, the emphasis shifted again, this time towards developing individuals within team structures — something Williams describes as one of the most challenging learning environments of his career.
“It was probably the most cognitively demanding place I’ve coached. The focus was on developing individual technical detail within game-based scenarios.”
His academy journey eventually led to Arsenal, where he worked with what he considers the strongest collective group of players he coached, several of whom have since progressed through the age groups and into senior football.
Asked to name the best player he worked with, Williams is understandably hesitant to single anyone out.
“It’s always difficult because I’m proud of so many of them, even the ones who didn’t make it professionally. But Marcus Edwards was exceptional, and Max Salmon looked a real talent.”
Choosing a Different Direction
Despite working in environments many coaches aspire to reach, Williams began to recognise a gap — particularly for grassroots coaches trying to break into academy football.
“At the end of the 2024 season, I put something out offering to help coaches understand the steps into academies,” he explains. “It wasn’t about tactics or session plans. It was about understanding how the industry actually works.”
The response was immediate. Within 48 hours, more than 100 coaches had signed up.
“That’s when I realised there was a real need. Coaches didn’t lack ability — they lacked clarity around the pathway.”
Leaving Arsenal to focus on the project full-time was a significant decision, but Williams approached it with the same mindset that had guided his own coaching journey.
“When I first started coaching, I had a ten-year plan. I just focused on moving forward every day. This is the same approach. I’m only 18 months into it, and it’s already been a phenomenal journey.”
Since then, the Coach Accelerator community has grown to more than 600 coaches worldwide, with members progressing into academy roles at clubs including Portsmouth, Port Vale and Salford City.
Managing Expectations
A large part of Williams’ work centres on helping coaches understand the realities of the profession. The pathway into academy football, he says, requires patience, sacrifice and realistic expectations.
“The first thing I tell coaches is that you need to be able to travel. Access to opportunities makes a huge difference early on. I was travelling long distances to sessions myself.”
Just as important is understanding that the early stages often involve volunteering or balancing coaching alongside other employment.
“You usually have to fund your own journey at first. Volunteering gets you into the environment, but it needs to be part of a clear plan.”
Education and continued professional development also play a key role. Williams encourages coaches to go beyond minimum requirements, combining online learning with face-to-face experiences wherever possible.
“In-person CPD is where the real learning happens. You can see the detail and have conversations that really move your development forward.”
Within his community, that structured approach has led to strong success rates for coaches progressing onto UEFA B Licence courses, bringing them closer to academy opportunities.
More Than Qualifications
One of the defining elements of Williams’ programme is giving coaches exposure to real academy environments. Visits across different academy categories allow coaches to observe sessions, understand pathways and begin building relationships within the game.
“It’s important for coaches to see what the journey actually looks like,” he says. “Some realise they want to specialise in the foundation phase or youth development rather than first-team football.”
Networking, he believes, remains one of the most overlooked parts of coaching progression.
“Your qualifications are your door code,” Williams says. “But your network is your ticket.”
Thinking Long Term
While the project has grown quickly, Williams’ ambitions remain firmly long-term. His aim is not simply to place coaches into academies, but to create lasting impact across the global game.
“The goal is to impact a million coaches worldwide,” he says. “I’ve worked with coaches in different countries now, and seeing the same principles help them on their journeys is incredibly rewarding.”
For Williams, development has never been about quick wins or counting the number of football trophies and medals he has. Whether working with players or coaches, the process remains the same — patience, clarity and long-term thinking.
In an industry often driven by outcomes and short-term results, his focus remains where it has always been: on people.
By Aaron Gratton
