Anonymous wrote:You don't need it. This is for the psycho parents who are trying to turn their child into an athlete to even have a chance to play at a high level. If you truly want your kid to be successful, you will never put a kid through this

Are you into soccer or you're just browsing the soccer room on the forum?

You just said the parents for every soccer player around the globe that achieves playing at high levels are psychopaths.

Does the psycho narrative also apply to the academic world?

Every Olympian has psycho parents.
Every NHL, NBA, MLB, NFL player has psycho parents.
Every Wimbledon player has psycho parents.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I realized something important yesterday. My kid begged me to take him to the park in the freezing rain to practice defending goals and run laps. Also on the field was an older kid getting a private training session. The coach was pulling teeth to get this kid to work through drills and the kid had a good attitude, but not the natural talent or the gritty, raw *drive* that my kid has. And that other kid can't do a single thing to gain those things.

Wait until puberty. lol. A lot of boys and girls that used to be like that lose the love of the game when they grow interest in the opposite sex. Also- the tedium of travel soccer and the way it is run so early can really burn kids out by HS.

That said --my Senior is still like your son, but I think the fact that he was injured for a 1.5 years early HS is the reason he still has a burning passion while a lot of boys on his MLSNext and ECNL teams stopped playing around Junior year.

I would love to see verifiable factual data that shows the amount of kids playing MLS Next who voluntarily dropped out of soccer by their Junior year in High School.

It’s pretty common for guys to drop MLSNEXT (and previously DA) at Junior year, for the same reason girls often drop ECNL at that time. Once the college decision is made there is no reason to keep the travel up. Save those dollars, and let someone else get the exposure. For the guys - you can play high school ball for a year which is fun.

Yes, if the plan is to go pro then you keep playing MLSNEXT.

Wait. What?
You're saying kids who get signed to a college team quit playing soccer for one or two years until college soccer preseason begins?

Why are we unwilling to regularly send young kids away to excel in sports but get a below-average education in the US? Other countries are fine doing it.

Boys soccer is actually a pretty good choice if your kid is a good but not great athlete. The best female athletes in the US play soccer and basketball (and a little volleyball). In contrast, the boys predominantly play basketball and football in high school. We'd be a much better soccer nation on the men's side if even 20% of our best athletes played soccer.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I realized something important yesterday. My kid begged me to take him to the park in the freezing rain to practice defending goals and run laps. Also on the field was an older kid getting a private training session. The coach was pulling teeth to get this kid to work through drills and the kid had a good attitude, but not the natural talent or the gritty, raw *drive* that my kid has. And that other kid can't do a single thing to gain those things.

Wait until puberty. lol. A lot of boys and girls that used to be like that lose the love of the game when they grow interest in the opposite sex. Also- the tedium of travel soccer and the way it is run so early can really burn kids out by HS.

That said --my Senior is still like your son, but I think the fact that he was injured for a 1.5 years early HS is the reason he still has a burning passion while a lot of boys on his MLSNext and ECNL teams stopped playing around Junior year.

For DS, puberty has been a bog boost. He was the kid in privates with 80% effort, and now he’s at 99%. I think he just needed some testosterone.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I realized something important yesterday. My kid begged me to take him to the park in the freezing rain to practice defending goals and run laps. Also on the field was an older kid getting a private training session. The coach was pulling teeth to get this kid to work through drills and the kid had a good attitude, but not the natural talent or the gritty, raw *drive* that my kid has. And that other kid can't do a single thing to gain those things.

Wait until puberty. lol. A lot of boys and girls that used to be like that lose the love of the game when they grow interest in the opposite sex. Also- the tedium of travel soccer and the way it is run so early can really burn kids out by HS.

That said --my Senior is still like your son, but I think the fact that he was injured for a 1.5 years early HS is the reason he still has a burning passion while a lot of boys on his MLSNext and ECNL teams stopped playing around Junior year.

I would love to see verifiable factual data that shows the amount of kids playing MLS Next who voluntarily dropped out of soccer by their Junior year in High School.

It’s pretty common for guys to drop MLSNEXT (and previously DA) at Junior year, for the same reason girls often drop ECNL at that time. Once the college decision is made there is no reason to keep the travel up. Save those dollars, and let someone else get the exposure. For the guys - you can play high school ball for a year which is fun.

Yes, if the plan is to go pro then you keep playing MLSNEXT.

You don't need it. This is for the psycho parents who are trying to turn their child into an athlete to even have a chance to play at a high level. If you truly want your kid to be successful, you will never put a kid through this

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Kid is very good but not elite level. ECNL but not MLSNext. Could likely get there with this kind of training, but no, we can’t afford it. That is my beef. It’s a massive advantage to be extremely wealthy in so many areas… and here is yet another one, where I was just thinking team training and kid practicing on their own (which he does every day) is enough. Such is life.

There are plenty of ECNL players with better college options than MLSNext players. And no, they aren’t all getting expensive training year around.

That's the fiction statement of the year!

You obviously know nothing about current college recruiting.

Know enough to look at the rosters of many schools, especially the top performers and see that they filled with International Players followed by MLS Club Academy players followed by MLS Next teams players.
Then a tiny percentage of 'others'

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Kid is very good but not elite level. ECNL but not MLSNext. Could likely get there with this kind of training, but no, we can’t afford it. That is my beef. It’s a massive advantage to be extremely wealthy in so many areas… and here is yet another one, where I was just thinking team training and kid practicing on their own (which he does every day) is enough. Such is life.

There are plenty of ECNL players with better college options than MLSNext players. And no, they aren’t all getting expensive training year around.

That's the fiction statement of the year!

You obviously know nothing about current college recruiting.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Kid is very good but not elite level. ECNL but not MLSNext. Could likely get there with this kind of training, but no, we can’t afford it. That is my beef. It’s a massive advantage to be extremely wealthy in so many areas… and here is yet another one, where I was just thinking team training and kid practicing on their own (which he does every day) is enough. Such is life.

It honestly depends what level of "elite" and what level of college you are talking about. Many of the kids who play at D3 are not doing that level of "elite" level of training. Most who go to play at D1 are. Sorry but Facts. The love of the game and tons of practice and self driven practice/training and YouTube can often get you to D3 levels depending on the school. All of that PLUS having exceptional skills can get you to D1. Those super elite kids are doing the practice on their own in the rain thing PLUS the skills and technique individual practices and trainings. At that tippy top, it's that competitive and so few slots.

But there are so many options and it's hard when your kid is in HS to think about what 'playing in college' can mean. Just being on the teams and doing the extracurriculars helps for applications. Will it help be a 'hook' - sometimes. Then there are other options like lots of kids even who play through HS end up doing other options like playing for club teams in college (so different than my college era) and do it for enjoyment and all of the reasons they do it in HS beyond doing it for their college application.

There is also a mix of doing things like some of the more quality summer camps where kids can grow and gain dramatically in a short time, doing a few sessions with a trainer/coach for some things that you can then work on those skills on your own, etc.

If your kid is not on the D1 likely pool anyway and can keep up on the team she's on, you don't need to get caught up in the FOMO and spend a college tuition on privates. Just take the pathway that works that is realistic.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've been around alot of the top top youth players and their parents in the NOVA area for years and I don't think one of them (or their parents) have ever thought soccer was an investment to get a college scholarship. Noone has even mentioned scholarships ythat I can think of except to say how few their are for boys. We all know there is very little scholarship money in soccer, so I wish posters would stop bringing this up like they are sharing something that everyone doesn't know. Anyway...the most important thing that a kid can have and you the parent can help him with that requires ZERO money is...to have a love for the game. To absolutely love it. Loves the training. Loves the journey. Loves the challenge. Loves to compete. Loves to improve. Is humble. Loves to get feedback. Works on his mindset. Etc. I promise you, if your kid has this, he's better off than 98% of the richest kids. Because I tell you...all this elite private training that you might be thinking about is no different than anything you find on YouTube. You don't need to be an elite coach to learn the basics and you can never be too good at the basics...first touch, shooting with both feet, ball mastery, dribbling, The fact that you said your kid works everyday...that's the key. Consistency! The other part of it is the group of kids he hangs with. You get 10 kids at his level or better meeting regularly to train together and play pick up...he will learn speed of play, scanning, etc. None of this requires money. I wish your kid the absolute best of luck. It's a grind. But don't let the lack of money for elite camps discourage you or your kid.

YouTube cannot replace a knowledgeable coach/trainer live.

YouTube and IG post mainly the finished products of drills. It doesn't show the 5,983 mistakes that were deleted.
YouTube doesn't have an expert eye watching your kid's mechanics, balance, coordination. It doesn't see what causes the bad first touch exactly or what's off with shooting.
YouTube can't give precise coaching cues based on what the player is doing wrong/right.

Many are going out there trying to follow a drill from IG without knowing all the steps and pieces that were addressed and fixed with that person (different issues than them) before they could execute the final product.
Nothing like learning the wrong way then have to reverse, erase and learn correctly.

Copying (trying to) something and knowing something are different things.
Good coaches know the what, why and how. They also know how to get you there specifically based on your attributes.

The coach doesn't have to be expensive or name-brand, just a knowledgeable teacher.

I agree. Thanks for adding that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I try to keep tabs on what is required to be invited to a US National Team camp, and it seems players that receive invitations are getting lots of extra individual coaching…. Regardless of the extra coaching source, the coaches who ID these kids are looking for both great drive and great technical skill. That stand out technical skill usually is not being taught/ coached during regular travel team practice. But rather it is specifically being coached and drilled by very good coaches who know what they are doing and know how to teach those skills.

When it gets to a certain level, everyone has good technical skills. Some sharper than others.
What differentiates players then are IQ and decision making. Game awareness.

+1 speed of thought/execution is key.
That the technical skills are there often is reiterated when players from Europe come to play in MLS or go from MLS to Europe. They acknowledge the technical skills stateside are on par.

Anonymous wrote:I try to keep tabs on what is required to be invited to a US National Team camp, and it seems players that receive invitations are getting lots of extra individual coaching…. Regardless of the extra coaching source, the coaches who ID these kids are looking for both great drive and great technical skill. That stand out technical skill usually is not being taught/ coached during regular travel team practice. But rather it is specifically being coached and drilled by very good coaches who know what they are doing and know how to teach those skills.

When it gets to a certain level, everyone has good technical skills. Some sharper than others.
What differentiates players then are IQ and decision making. Game awareness.

Anonymous wrote:I've been around alot of the top top youth players and their parents in the NOVA area for years and I don't think one of them (or their parents) have ever thought soccer was an investment to get a college scholarship. Noone has even mentioned scholarships ythat I can think of except to say how few their are for boys. We all know there is very little scholarship money in soccer, so I wish posters would stop bringing this up like they are sharing something that everyone doesn't know. Anyway...the most important thing that a kid can have and you the parent can help him with that requires ZERO money is...to have a love for the game. To absolutely love it. Loves the training. Loves the journey. Loves the challenge. Loves to compete. Loves to improve. Is humble. Loves to get feedback. Works on his mindset. Etc. I promise you, if your kid has this, he's better off than 98% of the richest kids. Because I tell you...all this elite private training that you might be thinking about is no different than anything you find on YouTube. You don't need to be an elite coach to learn the basics and you can never be too good at the basics...first touch, shooting with both feet, ball mastery, dribbling, The fact that you said your kid works everyday...that's the key. Consistency! The other part of it is the group of kids he hangs with. You get 10 kids at his level or better meeting regularly to train together and play pick up...he will learn speed of play, scanning, etc. None of this requires money. I wish your kid the absolute best of luck. It's a grind. But don't let the lack of money for elite camps discourage you or your kid.

YouTube cannot replace a knowledgeable coach/trainer live.

YouTube and IG post mainly the finished products of drills. It doesn't show the 5,983 mistakes that were deleted.
YouTube doesn't have an expert eye watching your kid's mechanics, balance, coordination. It doesn't see what causes the bad first touch exactly or what's off with shooting.
YouTube can't give precise coaching cues based on what the player is doing wrong/right.

Many are going out there trying to follow a drill from IG without knowing all the steps and pieces that were addressed and fixed with that person (different issues than them) before they could execute the final product.
Nothing like learning the wrong way then have to reverse, erase and learn correctly.

Copying (trying to) something and knowing something are different things.
Good coaches know the what, why and how. They also know how to get you there specifically based on your attributes.

The coach doesn't have to be expensive or name-brand, just a knowledgeable teacher.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I realized something important yesterday. My kid begged me to take him to the park in the freezing rain to practice defending goals and run laps. Also on the field was an older kid getting a private training session. The coach was pulling teeth to get this kid to work through drills and the kid had a good attitude, but not the natural talent or the gritty, raw *drive* that my kid has. And that other kid can't do a single thing to gain those things.

Wait until puberty. lol. A lot of boys and girls that used to be like that lose the love of the game when they grow interest in the opposite sex. Also- the tedium of travel soccer and the way it is run so early can really burn kids out by HS.

That said --my Senior is still like your son, but I think the fact that he was injured for a 1.5 years early HS is the reason he still has a burning passion while a lot of boys on his MLSNext and ECNL teams stopped playing around Junior year.

I would love to see verifiable factual data that shows the amount of kids playing MLS Next who voluntarily dropped out of soccer by their Junior year in High School.

There is a top study that quantifiably shows kids who over-focus on a single sport during the u12-u9 range are more likely to peak early and burn out early.

That's not specific to MLS Next players dropping out by HS Junior year.
That's the statement made above. Where is the evidence of that is the request.

MLS Next "started" in 2020. The same year half of our region had closed fields for six+ months. There's not going to be any meaningful data yet.

Then statements shouldn't be made if there are no data of facts.
That's the point.