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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I think the thought process for many coaches/clubs is that "you can't teach speed, strength, and size but you can teach technical skills".  I think that's why, if there is any debate, most coaches will go with the bigger, stronger, faster kid.  Someone mentioned potential earlier.  Well big, strong, fast kids have potential to become very technical as well.  I don't know.  That's why I don't coach.  I just sit on the sidelines and complain. : )[/quote]

Yea some coaches have their priorities all mixed up. The first thing we look for are players who are naturally gifted with technical ability. We emphasize that our players are athletes and so we make sure that they're whipped into the best shape possible. You can improve the fitness of a technical player so that they perform to the best of their ability. The coaches that choose speed and size over technical ability are clueless, and they will not develop those players technically. They'll just exploit their athletic abilities, making their teams play a style that resembles glorified volleyball more than soccer, and those players will look mediocre when they reach a certain age when most players have caught up to them physically. Just my 2 cents.[/quote]

Interesting. How do you define "technical ability"? There seems to be a tendency for some coaches to equate that purely with localized ball control independent of game context. DS has a friend who can bend throughpasses, loft perfect diagonal balls, kick 50-meter goal kicks, yet he always plays on a low team. Doesn't go 1 v. 1 well at all, but for what he does he's incredible. He's a husky kid, btw. But what is technical ability from your POV? Thanks[/quote]

I think it means a wide variety of things, all having to do with their relationship with the ball. A good first touch, the ability to take your man on 1v1 and beat them on the dribble, the ability to play and accurate pass and add the perfect weight to it. The ability to locate the ball in the air and attack it, be it bringing it down cleanly, hit it first-time or head it with power and precision. The most important thing is if they can do allot this under duress, and they also should be fit physically if they wish to play at a high level. When you're tired, you're prone to lapses in concentration and your technique gets sloppy. Making sure you're in great shape allows you to play at your best level for a longer duration of the game, taking advantage of an opponent who is starting to not be able to control the ball as cleanly and is too tired to defend as resolutely as when the game started. I'd say your friend definitely has potential if he can do all the things you say, but I would definitely encourage him to take his fitness seriously so he can truly express his best form, and impose his passing range on others. The reason why he might always tend to play on a lower team could very well be the ability to beat his man 1v1, as even if you're the most accomplished passer, you need to able to stay calm under pressure and find yourself the space where you can play those pinpoint balls. This is of course just my opinion as a coach and the way I see the game. [/quote]

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