Reply to Which NOVA U9 team plays most like Barcelona U9?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Americans are very focused on winning at young ages and developing physicality over technique. So they choose tactics that might not be best for the young players in the long run. [/quote]

I think Americans would be [u]very[/u] receptive to a development academy or system that got their young players playing like Barcelona U9.  Not to mention, it would quickly result in winning -- does anyone think that their ECNL/NCLS/WTFever club team would seriously compete with Barcelona U9, or Malaga, or any club whose games you can watch from that tournament?

I get the sense (not having researched it myself) that the kids who play in the European club youth teams are scouted and recruited, and they don't pay (much) to play.  By constrast, here it's the pretty good / mediocre rich kids who are tapped-out and over-trained to their maximum potential who get all the attention showered on them at young ages (because their parents are forking over $$$), but as they develop they hit their natural God-given limits and remain mediocre. I get that argument.

But why isn't that true for basketball, baseball, hockey, football, and other sports?  I mean, money is always a factor, but nonetheless truly talented kids are identified and provided with a path to develop and shine that doesn't cost a fortune.  Why is is that soccer would be uniquely susceptible to this sort of detrimental influence from wealthy, mediocre players?   [/quote]

Well, for one, they're taking the best kids and practicing all the time against the best kids.  We spread things out and have a few good kids across many teams in this area.  Games are one thing, but practicing against the best every day/week is what brings the overall talent level up, not practicing against a couple very good.  See any of the threads/arguments against talent dilution in the DC area.  The problem with expansion isn't more clubs playing each other (which is nice) - it's that it dilutes the talent pool where good goes against good for a 90 minute training session 3-4 times/week.  That has a much bigger impact on player development than a single 90 minute game that your top players get 60-75 minutes, sometimes against less skilled opposition.

Basketball for one does this well with their AAU model.  This model is actually much more similar to the euro system if you equate the sponsoring shoe companies (basketball) to the sponsoring club (euro soccer).  Those elite teams form early, talent plays early against other talent, and the best teams are typically sponsored by a Nike/Adidas and costs are much more minimal.  But ultimately, those kids are practicing against other elite kids day in/day out.   The travel is relatively insane for these top clubs at a young age, but much of those costs are covered at the higher levels of AAU.[/quote]

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