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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]By far the most accurate statement to date on this board. This is why US soccer is falling behind. Clubs see parents at $$$ and nothing more. Morons salivate each time there is a new league just like people salivate over the latest Mediterranean restaurant even thought it is serving the same thing as the others. Folks, stop being lemmings. The poster is spot on. There are few clubs that focus on development.

"It seems like most parents/players on this board are merely chasing the next great team/league with the least amount of attention to development. Every tryout season is about weeding out and assembling the best 10-16 kids—wherever you can get them. Nobody is working with these kids year after year. They are indispensable to Clubs. No commitment or investment. Just get a new set or next great white hope the following year."
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Could not agree more. FCB policy is once a player is in they never need to tryout again. No cuts or back stabbing other players to take their positions. The policy was explained as “why would we cut someone we have already invested so much in developing?” It’s a different philosophy from anything I’ve seen in years in the other clubs in the area.

Why would you bash something you haven’t seen for yourself, and the parents of kids who are telling about their experiences?[/quote]

OK.  Since it seems that there are one or two highly enthusiastic FCB parents and/or staff on the board, I'll share a balanced view of FCB, from the perspective of an FCB parent.   I'm going to exclude any "religious" discussion on whether or not FCB's style of play is "better" than any other style of play.  I will note that if one were to take one or two exceptional players off the current first team, I think the team goes from being very good to around average/perhaps slightly above.   Feel free to pick any two of three players for this mental exercise or have look at recent match results as a guide.

The training is good.  Not all trainers are Spanish/centrally trained in Barcelona; my understanding is that several are local hires.   The TD is very knowledgeable and centrally trained.  We have not seen video being used to instruct players, in general.   Video has been taken and shown for marketing purposes, but my DC has not reviewed video with a trainer, even once, over the entire year.  There was a written evaluation provided at the beginning of spring season, as described previously, but this did not include much more than a series of checkboxes for each criterion and not a lot of personalized content pertaining to the player.   As a contrast, with this child at another club previously as well as other children, we have received much more personalized feedback, both written and verbal, from other clubs/coaches.  Of course, this varies with club and specific coach.  Players are shifted between training squads, but the communication around these shifts are non-existent.  Players show up one day and led to another group, without explanation.  Team/squad associations are not well communicated to parents, who are left wondering which group their player is with and why/what they need to work on without first figuring out the change has been made and then specifically seeking out the TD, for an explanation.  In some cases, this conversation with the TD results in a player move up to a higher-level group as early as the following week.

In terms of results, it is true that many players who were very direct, kick and run only players at the beginning of the year have adjusted and adopted the style of play fairly well, in general.  That stated, many players still operate from a selfish, run/dribble first mentality (and this ties in with another issue, which I will mention later), so as with any environment, the results depend on the player's mental flexibility and willingness to learn and apply new concepts.   Several players/parents I've spoken with have expressed concern that the training and results leave some of the players a bit mechanical/feeling discouraged from the perspective of creativity, as they try hard to play the "Barca" way instead of following their instincts.  Some parents have expressed concern that their players individual weaknesses have not been addressed and that staff are reluctant to address these deficiencies, even when pointed out.

Staff-selected players are provided with "experience" opportunities to travel and play in Barcelona, not provided to others.   This practice could be construed as both positive and negative.  Positive in the sense that the players/families enjoy the experience in Barcelona, the players are rewarded for their efforts and the experience serves as a big-time confidence boost.   Negative in the sense that, depending on the player’s psyche, this kind of treatment can go to one's head, especially when considering that very little separates most players on a given squad, especially at the younger ages (from observation).   To make matters somewhat worse, a fair number of players selected for these opportunities tend to be the larger, more physical players who assert themselves in a more direct style, which seems counterintuitive.  It has been noted that several players recognized for these opportunities have either displayed these tendencies before the experience and/or have developed them afterward (presumably due to the ego inflation).

Not to mention the expense to the parents in funding the experience, which is not generally covered by the club (there may be a few, rare exceptions to this).    Also, it seems that in some cases, the parents of selected players seem to have a close relationship with the TD and other staff, which runs counter to the club's stated goal of limited parent/staff interaction to minimize favoritism.  These aspects are really not much different, if at all, from many (not necessarily all) traditional clubs, which is disappointing considering this club's stated goals.

Overall, our experience in general has been a good one, with the caveats noted above.   For Barca fanatics, this is probably the a very good place, especially if your DC needs help a lot of with their tactical game.  For those looking for a cure-all solution to all of the problems that exist in the traditional club environment, I'd have to say that, unfortunately, you will not find your escape here.  If you are looking for a good training program to reform a kick and run player into a more intelligent player who can play possession style football, this is a good choice.  However, it isn't the only option in the area, as there are many good, knowledgeable, hardworking coaches available at many traditional clubs who can develop their players just as well (we have seen this with all DC's).

Hope this helps someone out there.
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