Reply to The Development years - Direct (Kickball) versus Possession Style

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote]
Unfortunately, DS never going to be large in terms of either height or weight. He has decent technical skills, and hopefully will keep improving. Last season, he often got pushed off the ball by larger opponents.

I think it’s worse on the girls side at U11/U12 as it relates to size differences as girls undergo growth spurts earlier than boys do. There are quite a few U11G games where I see girls that are twice the size of my DD and she’s average height for her age. [/quote]

Right, but on the boys' side, there are some good players on higher level ASA teams (including red) who are short and small.   I want to know how they handle this situation.  Our coach didn't have any specific advice except "be more aggressive."  DS tried, but that didn't work if the other kids were much taller or heavier.  [b] Next year we will watch the red, white, and blue teams play and try to watch what those smaller kids do more effectively than DS[/b].

[/quote]

Agreed that these guys are good. but also shows that even the best players can't keep avoiding multiple defensivemen. Most of the clips end with the awesome dribbler losing the ball. ... That said, they are impressive!

So he may be standing too upright. Try lowering his center of gravity. [/quote]

It's great you want to watch more soccer to help your own kid improve, but your time would be better spent watching how the pros do it rather than other youth players.
Here's a pretty cool video of Xavi & Iniesta -- 2 short small guys who were pretty good about not getting knocked off the ball -- teaching ball retention technique to youth players.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y77UuP6YYSA

What gets missed in a lot of these conversations is just how damned good you have to be to keep the ball when you don't have a size & strength advantage.  I hear a lot parents complain that their kid isn't getting opportunities because the dumb coach values size/strength over their small smart and technical player, but when I watch I think the real problem is he just isn't smart or technical enough yet.   This is how good you have to be:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNEoBZus0JA

Unfortunately Xavi and Iniesta's time is done, but there are plenty of good examples in the modern game.  Verratti for PSG, Arthur for Barcelona (and Brazil playing this month), either of the Silva's who play for Man City.  All are 5'7 or shorter. Hell Verratti and B. Silva are both under 140 lbs.

A tip - learning how to properly shield is critical but mostly what you'll find from watching those type of players is how good they are at avoiding the contact to begin with. They're so tricky and evasive - defenders are trying to knock them around but just can't get near them.     [/quote][/quote]

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