MLS announces expansion to its Elite Youth Development Platform

[Anonymous]

Follow up article says not all clubs will participate in all age groups, and there is an emphasis on clubs who are focused on the pre-high school years. https://www.mlssoccer.com/post/2020/08/04/what-mls-elite-youth-development-platforms-first-wave-expansion-means-charles-boehm.

As I understand it, are two tiers in the MLS Academy League: "Professional Development Platform" with all the MLS teams, and the "Elite Youth Development Platform" for everyone else. The PDP will only have U15, U17, U19 age groups, while the EYDP will have all age groups from U13-U19 (including U16 & U18). The plan was for the MLS teams to mostly play each other, with a few local games sprinkled in, but I'm sure that's been modified in the short term to cut down on travel.


One thing's for sure is that none of the local clubs could have gotten in without DCU's approval. Alexandria makes sense b/c several of their players have moved on to DCU teams over the years, and there has always been a good relationship between the coaching staffs. DCU likes the way ASA trains at the younger ages, and even more so the fact that they encourage and support their players to move to DCU if that's an option, rather than trying to hold on to them. The same was not true of all of the clubs in DCU's former "P2P" program. Achilles is a bit of head scratcher for me b/c that's the club a bunch of DCU's former '07s jumped ship to when they got all pissed off during their U12 year. My only guess is DC wanted at least some sort of recruiting base on the MD side and none of the other clubs with decent boys teams were up for it. As for SYC, that seems surprising too at first but I guess if you are looking for a team in NoVA with reasonably strong boys teams that is not already committed to the ECNL, they're a logical choice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Alexandria? Mls league.

Achilles, Alexandria and SYC have been added from the DMV area.

These were the logical three remaining in this area. No surprise here.

SYC plays pretty ugly soccer. They will fit right in.

SYC is not strong for u14. Alexandria is better. Achilles coach took DCU players and that's how they are better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Alexandria? Mls league.

Achilles, Alexandria and SYC have been added from the DMV area.

These were the logical three remaining in this area. No surprise here.

SYC plays pretty ugly soccer. They will fit right in.

SYC is not strong for u14. Alexandria is better. Achilles coach took DCU players and that's how they are better.

Well say what you want, but SYC is ranked #1 in VA for U14...yeah, sure, rankings may not tell the entire picture, but to say they aren't strong kills all your credibility.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Alexandria? Mls league.

Achilles, Alexandria and SYC have been added from the DMV area.

These were the logical three remaining in this area. No surprise here.

SYC plays pretty ugly soccer. They will fit right in.

SYC is not strong for u14. Alexandria is better. Achilles coach took DCU players and that's how they are better.

Well say what you want, but SYC is ranked #1 in VA for U14...yeah, sure, rankings may not tell the entire picture, but to say they aren't strong kills all your credibility.

I agree. Rankings do not always show the true picture. But SYC U14 Boys have beaten Alexandria the last few times that they have played head-to-head. So, what is your definition of "strong" and evidently Alexandria is not better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Alexandria? Mls league.

Achilles, Alexandria and SYC have been added from the DMV area.

These were the logical three remaining in this area. No surprise here.

SYC plays pretty ugly soccer. They will fit right in.

SYC is not strong for u14. Alexandria is better. Achilles coach took DCU players and that's how they are better.

Well say what you want, but SYC is ranked #1 in VA for U14...yeah, sure, rankings may not tell the entire picture, but to say they aren't strong kills all your credibility.

07 syc boys have beaten alexnadria the last 2 times they played. In state cup championship and EDP at home 4-1.

Syc, Alexandria and Achilles are strong options for MLS.




I agree. Rankings do not always show the true picture. But SYC U14 Boys have beaten Alexandria the last few times that they have played head-to-head. So, what is your definition of "strong" and evidently Alexandria is not better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Alexandria? Mls league.

Achilles, Alexandria and SYC have been added from the DMV area.

These were the logical three remaining in this area. No surprise here.

SYC plays pretty ugly soccer. They will fit right in.

SYC is not strong for u14. Alexandria is better. Achilles coach took DCU players and that's how they are better.

Well say what you want, but SYC is ranked #1 in VA for U14...yeah, sure, rankings may not tell the entire picture, but to say they aren't strong kills all your credibility.

I agree. Rankings do not always show the true picture. But SYC U14 Boys have beaten Alexandria the last few times that they have played head-to-head. So, what is your definition of "strong" and evidently Alexandria is not better.

Who cares if they beat Alexandria. SYC 06 finished 10th in EDP. SYC 07 team is better than 06 team, but even they lost to Potomac 0-4 to put things in prospective.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Alexandria? Mls league.

Achilles, Alexandria and SYC have been added from the DMV area.

These were the logical three remaining in this area. No surprise here.

SYC plays pretty ugly soccer. They will fit right in.

SYC is not strong for u14. Alexandria is better. Achilles coach took DCU players and that's how they are better.

Well say what you want, but SYC is ranked #1 in VA for U14...yeah, sure, rankings may not tell the entire picture, but to say they aren't strong kills all your credibility.

I agree. Rankings do not always show the true picture. But SYC U14 Boys have beaten Alexandria the last few times that they have played head-to-head. So, what is your definition of "strong" and evidently Alexandria is not better.

Who cares if they beat Alexandria. SYC 06 finished 10th in EDP. SYC 07 team is better than 06 team, but even they lost to Potomac 0-4 to put things in prospective.

This guy above is a troll just mad af syc


Syc 07 were 2nd in EDP and tied Achilles who are in first place. They were also above potomac who they lost too and they lost that game due to some players missing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Alexandria? Mls league.

Achilles, Alexandria and SYC have been added from the DMV area.

These were the logical three remaining in this area. No surprise here.

SYC plays pretty ugly soccer. They will fit right in.

SYC is not strong for u14. Alexandria is better. Achilles coach took DCU players and that's how they are better.

Well say what you want, but SYC is ranked #1 in VA for U14...yeah, sure, rankings may not tell the entire picture, but to say they aren't strong kills all your credibility.

I agree. Rankings do not always show the true picture. But SYC U14 Boys have beaten Alexandria the last few times that they have played head-to-head. So, what is your definition of "strong" and evidently Alexandria is not better.

Who cares if they beat Alexandria. SYC 06 finished 10th in EDP. SYC 07 team is better than 06 team, but even they lost to Potomac 0-4 to put things in prospective.

This guy above is a troll just mad af syc


Syc 07 were 2nd in EDP and tied Achilles who are in first place. They were also above potomac who they lost too and they lost that game due to some players missing.

They lost to Potomac 4-0! Top teams don't get blown out by Potomac.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They lost to Potomac 4-0! Top teams don't get blown out by Potomac.

Potomac should be in ODSL!

[Anonymous]

Hahahahahahahahaha.....this is hilarious. Chumps.

[Anonymous]

It's an interesting assortment of clubs. I don't know much about Achilles, but Alexandria's and SYC's club philosophies are completely different.

It's good for developing kids for them to play against both kinds of clubs. With Alexandria they get a look at a patient team that wants to keep possession and will look to draw them out of position defensively. With SYC they don't have the same level of technical skill or tactical training, but they're big and fast and will run right at you. Challenging, because no one will get time on the ball. Really, an ideal opponent if you're looking to teach kids how to play fast, smart football. Odds are that you'll lose against big, fast teams until U15 or U16. But hopefully being the best U13 team in Virginia isn't your goal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's an interesting assortment of clubs. I don't know much about Achilles, but Alexandria's and SYC's club philosophies are completely different.

It's good for developing kids for them to play against both kinds of clubs. With Alexandria they get a look at a patient team that wants to keep possession and will look to draw them out of position defensively. With SYC they don't have the same level of technical skill or tactical training, but they're big and fast and will run right at you. Challenging, because no one will get time on the ball. Really, an ideal opponent if you're looking to teach kids how to play fast, smart football. Odds are that you'll lose against big, fast teams until U15 or U16. But hopefully being the best U13 team in Virginia isn't your goal.

All true. However, being the best U13 team in VA isn't a bad thing to be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's an interesting assortment of clubs. I don't know much about Achilles, but Alexandria's and SYC's club philosophies are completely different.

It's good for developing kids for them to play against both kinds of clubs. With Alexandria they get a look at a patient team that wants to keep possession and will look to draw them out of position defensively. With SYC they don't have the same level of technical skill or tactical training, but they're big and fast and will run right at you. Challenging, because no one will get time on the ball. Really, an ideal opponent if you're looking to teach kids how to play fast, smart football. Odds are that you'll lose against big, fast teams until U15 or U16. But hopefully being the best U13 team in Virginia isn't your goal.

And playing one brand of soccer isn't for everybody (I do like the way Alexandria plays).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It's an interesting assortment of clubs. I don't know much about Achilles, but Alexandria's and SYC's club philosophies are completely different.

It's good for developing kids for them to play against both kinds of clubs. With Alexandria they get a look at a patient team that wants to keep possession and will look to draw them out of position defensively. With SYC they don't have the same level of technical skill or tactical training, but they're big and fast and will run right at you. Challenging, because no one will get time on the ball. Really, an ideal opponent if you're looking to teach kids how to play fast, smart football. Odds are that you'll lose against big, fast teams until U15 or U16. But hopefully being the best U13 team in Virginia isn't your goal.

Brought to you by Alexandria Coaching Staff...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's an interesting assortment of clubs. I don't know much about Achilles, but Alexandria's and SYC's club philosophies are completely different.

It's good for developing kids for them to play against both kinds of clubs. With Alexandria they get a look at a patient team that wants to keep possession and will look to draw them out of position defensively. With SYC they don't have the same level of technical skill or tactical training, but they're big and fast and will run right at you. Challenging, because no one will get time on the ball. Really, an ideal opponent if you're looking to teach kids how to play fast, smart football. Odds are that you'll lose against big, fast teams until U15 or U16. But hopefully being the best U13 team in Virginia isn't your goal.

Brought to you by Alexandria Coaching Staff...

Yes, and I agree with this, which is why my kid went there. So what?