The reality of professional sport, of course, dictates that it will be a small number of the players Nightingale oversees who go all the way and fulfil their greatest ambitions.
Which is why, with that benefit of personal experience, he – in keeping with the Academy’s overall ethos – seeks to hone his pupils for a multitude of possible eventualities in life.
“We try to squeeze as much out of every individual as we can,” he says. “And if ultimately that’s to become a player for Liverpool then fantastic.
“Equally, if we get the best version of themselves and they go and forge a career in the Championship or League 1 and 2, and they go and be the best version, I would still see that as a success.
“I wouldn’t really necessarily focus on the end goal as much for them, it would be more around the here and now and building habits they’re going to need for the future.
“So, every session they give everything they have got and they train as hard as they can. Every mistake, they can override really quickly and just focus on the next one. They’ve got a real passion for being competitive and having a really good mindset.
“Because if they decide they don’t want to play football and go and become a lawyer or work in finance, then they’ve still got the same kind of habits; I’m trying to be the best today, even if something doesn’t quite go right, I’m resilient to get through it, I’m independent in the fact that I can think for myself, I don’t get overawed if problems come my way, I can try to solve them to give myself the best chance.
“So, rather than probably seeing it as we’ve got an A and a B – there are players who are naturally better than others and have got higher ceilings than some, that’s the way the world is – we just try to squeeze as much out of each individual as we can, knowing that will look different for each player.
“That’s probably the main aim of it for me as a coach, trying to get the best out of each individual. It would please me if one of the players I worked with came in five years’ time and said, ‘Thank you, I’m playing in Liverpool’s first team.’
“But ultimately, if they were then a schoolteacher and came and said thank you, it has the same effect really.”
What lessons, then, has Nightingale the coach taken from Nightingale the player that he currently uses for the better of the next generation?
“I maybe at times thought I should be playing because I’m better than him, but ultimately if the manager or coach at the time didn’t think so then it is what it is, no matter what I think,” he replies.
“And I had a tendency maybe to not just focus on myself, I was focusing on other things and letting other things maybe distract me. Now, I would encourage them to just focus on what you can control.
“If you don’t get selected, that’s an opinion of a coach or a set of coaches or set of staff. Whereas you can control the next session, go and be the best you can be in that session. The next game or next opportunity – 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 80 minutes, 90 minutes – you give your best.
“And there will be bumps in the road but they’ll be good, because if you get bumps now and can deal with them, rather than if there’s a Premier League title on the line or a Champions League semi-final, then you know what’s right and what’s wrong and you can deal with that the best way possible.
“Those would be the main ones; I probably learned the hard way in that respect. I wish I knew what I know now, to go back and have my turn again.
“And ultimately for me not to be their best friend, because if they want to get to the level they want to get to, you probably have to fall out with players a couple of times. Maybe tell them something they don’t necessarily want to hear, and maybe squeeze a little bit more out of them than they feel they’ve got or want to give in a certain moment, which equally is fine.
“That’s something for them to understand, that while we’ve got to have a good relationship of course, and that they feel they can come and speak, which is really important, but that they know that I’m not here just to say yes to them and just to please them – I’m there to push them.
“If that means we fall out, no problem.
“We won’t necessarily agree on things at certain times, which with a 16-year-old going through growth and maturation, hormones all over the place, GCSEs and stuff, is challenging. But for them to know that I’ve got their best interests at heart.
“If that means it’s a ‘Well done’ then great, if that means it’s ‘Come on, we need to do more’ then equally they know it’s coming from the right place.”
There was significant change at the Academy during the past summer as new head coaches were installed for both the U18s and U21s.
Long-serving leaders Marc Bridge-Wilkinson and Barry Lewtas were respectively replaced by Simon Wiles and Rob Page in the roles.
With players frequently interchanging between squads for both sessions and matches, depending on schedules, Nightingale operates in close tandem with Wiles and Page.
Besides the rhythm of the season, their collective eye is also kept on any avenue for players to be given chances at a higher level.
“The relationship between the three of us is really important because of discussion on players and getting to know players, so if I can help in any way to give the coaches a headstart who might not see them as much,” notes Nightingale.
“And just generally having those conversations about them is really important because ultimately if we feel it’s right to push them then we will do to get the best out of them.
“I knew Simon previously, we go back quite a long way through the world of football. And obviously I know Rob from him being Wales manager and managing in the league. It’s important – regular conversations and just being around each other.
“I’ve got a good relationship as well with Jay Spearing with the U21s, who comes out and works with us on a Thursday night, which is good. He gets to see them close up and takes them for a period in that session.
“The flexibility and how often we speak and see each other, and Simon and Rob and Jay getting an eye on the players, happens a lot. It’s refreshing because sometimes it’s maybe not necessarily the case. But I think it’s really good how you’re not just in charge of your own age group, you have a really good understanding of those below and above.
“And the amount of collaborative approach and conversation we have is really beneficial for the players.”
