Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OMG - YES!!!!! I wish i was a Barca coach and be so witty.

Why are you so obsessed with them?

Anonymous wrote:OMG - YES!!!!! I wish i was a Barca coach and be so witty.

Anonymous wrote:OMG - YES!!!!! I wish i was a Barca coach and be so witty.

Anonymous wrote:OMG - YES!!!!! I wish i was a Barca coach and be so witty.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Could the Barca PR machine please get back to its dedicated thread?

We understand that you will be happy to take the money of any parent, no question asked. This is very refreshing, but this is not what this thread is about.

+1. They’ve found a new way to push their product because their old thread went down in flames. How “refreshing.”

No one is pushing anything other than you pushing a conspiracy.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Could the Barca PR machine please get back to its dedicated thread?

We understand that you will be happy to take the money of any parent, no question asked. This is very refreshing, but this is not what this thread is about.

+1. They’ve found a new way to push their product because their old thread went down in flames. How “refreshing.”

Anonymous wrote:Could the Barca PR machine please get back to its dedicated thread?

We understand that you will be happy to take the money of any parent, no question asked. This is very refreshing, but this is not what this thread is about.

Anonymous wrote:Could the Barca PR machine please get back to its dedicated thread?

We understand that you will be happy to take the money of any parent, no question asked. This is very refreshing, but this is not what this thread is about.

Anonymous wrote:Could the Barca PR machine please get back to its dedicated thread?

We understand that you will be happy to take the money of any parent, no question asked. This is very refreshing, but this is not what this thread is about.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a close friend from college that coaches in the area and he said he had a conversation with his TD regarding his 1st and 2nd team. He was the age group lead and due to the lack of performance with his 1st team, he was told to only focus his attention on that team. Then he was given a few activities to give the 2nd team to keep them "occupied".

Basically if you aren't on the 1st team in your age group, you are not important and you are just a funding source.

It's a warning sign when a club implements a player pool approach of 25 kids under one coach. The bottom half of the pool is a funding source and never gets the attention of the coach.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:^Barca. God, it was mother f@cking refreshing not going through tryouts last spring with my kids...and will be again this Spring. Makes for a much nicer spring season as well when not totally eclipsed by weeks of Club tryouts vs practices and frantic parents/players wondering where they stand. They invest in the kids they have. You can’t develop players when you cut and recruit continually every 10 months.

Crap players making the team, never gets better, and has no incentive to work hard to earn your spot.

That’s a very American way to think. On the other hand, the players do get better every season as they get a firmer grasp on what is a very difficult style to execute properly. They have multiple teams with fluidity between the rosters, so you do have to work hard to earn your spot, whether on the specific, as a starter, etc. They just don’t cut players from the PROGRAM.

Really, do you think anyone can just walk onto a european club and join? You need to minimally show potential and after that, compete for spots, but just to pay and join any competitive environment is a waste for everyone involved.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:^Barca. God, it was mother f@cking refreshing not going through tryouts last spring with my kids...and will be again this Spring. Makes for a much nicer spring season as well when not totally eclipsed by weeks of Club tryouts vs practices and frantic parents/players wondering where they stand. They invest in the kids they have. You can’t develop players when you cut and recruit continually every 10 months.

Crap players making the team, never gets better, and has no incentive to work hard to earn your spot.

That’s a very American way to think. On the other hand, the players do get better every season as they get a firmer grasp on what is a very difficult style to execute properly. They have multiple teams with fluidity between the rosters, so you do have to work hard to earn your spot, whether on the specific, as a starter, etc. They just don’t cut players from the PROGRAM.

Agree. There is definitely serious motivation/competition in the older age groups. My kid knows if you continually miss training--it will affect play time. If you don't continually give 100% intensity in training session, you will be replaced by a hungry kid in another training group. And there are a lot of hungry players. They also sit kids with continued behavioral issues-even if they are a top player. This never happened at other Clubs we were with. The difference is---Barca walks the talk. This is 100% FAIR. It's not like a place where you meet every standard, challenge, etc. that the Club says will get you moved up--and then you are ignored. That is what breaks kids down and makes them not like the sport. BUT, if you make the kid feel like they are in the driver's seat, in charge of their development and keep your word and reward them when they meet the set goals--they will work harder. When you haven't been giving that intensity or you aren't developing as quickly as others---the reasons given make 100% complete sense and as a parent/player you can see exactly what they are seeing and what you need to do to move back up or get more playing time. It's the first time a trainer or coach has given us very detailed areas to work on that are spot on with our individual kids, sometimes we didn't see it but once pointed out--yes--we see it too. We had so many random, vague reviews at other Clubs where it didn't even feel like they knew who your kid was (actually he's a leftie coach) and they weren't even helpful because there was not detail with them. We want constructive criticism, but as a former player when it's some bogus horsesh*t that doesn't even match up with your kid, there is no good in that. There aren't tangible areas given and, frankly, it's either because the coach is not a good coach or they just don't know the player as well because they are coaching so many different teams. Further, the training groups are all doing the same things and they all have coaches very dedicated to the players they are working with and other coaches/TD are always moving around training sessions and attending games. They keep records, videos, etc. on the players.

My kids have gotten their confidence back since being with Barca. They are motivated players again and they are having fun. There is real comradery with the players. And, I see a definite improvement in their game. But, the love of the game coming back is the best. Some of these places just break kids down and lie to them.