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Started By
Message
Advice for my son's soccer development. [wall-o-text]
Posted on 9/16/15 at 9:21 am
Posted on 9/16/15 at 9:21 am
My boy is 9. He played one year U8 rec and one year U10 rec. At the end of last years season he was picked up by the best team for a run at state. He scored the most goals of any kid at district but was mostly shut down by the better defenses at state.
He's tall and fast and is an efficient striker. The problem is...he's simply a foot race soccer player, and that just doesn't work against the better teams.
So, I put him in an Academy camp over the summer and he's on the U10 elite team now. This is his first time with actual good soccer coaches, and I think he's learning quite well. They're impressed with his speed and accuracy of kicks. He kicks every set piece he's in for.
Select doesn't start until U11 where we are...and the elite team doesn't play during rec league.
My worries are that he's not good at positioning himself on the field, he doesn't have the vision to one touch pass it, or create space for him or anyone else...he just wants to turn and burn. His coaches now pull him off to the side and coach him up on what he should have done, but I don't expect that to happen in rec league and I'm worried what a season of shitty play will do to his game.
You can see that his teammates who've been on the Academy teams understand soccer better than he does, and man if he could make the leap he'd be absolutely insane. His coaches say he's got special talent, I just want him to get better with vision and positioning and support and through balls...he's young, there are million things he could be better at.
So, do I put him in U10 rec or U12 rec, or find a 3v3 travel team or something else? His elite team coaches say he'd be the best kid in U10, but I'm worried he won't develop like he needs to. I don't want him to turn and burn all season, score a shite ton of goals and think that this is real soccer (though I think it'd be fun for him). I want him to excel in Select (they've picked him up for a tournament in October so we'll see where he's at soon). Am I crazy to think that U12 would be a better fit? I think the kids will take it more seriously and his speed advantage won't be there against the older boys...so he'll have to figure out another way.
Advice?
He's tall and fast and is an efficient striker. The problem is...he's simply a foot race soccer player, and that just doesn't work against the better teams.
So, I put him in an Academy camp over the summer and he's on the U10 elite team now. This is his first time with actual good soccer coaches, and I think he's learning quite well. They're impressed with his speed and accuracy of kicks. He kicks every set piece he's in for.
Select doesn't start until U11 where we are...and the elite team doesn't play during rec league.
My worries are that he's not good at positioning himself on the field, he doesn't have the vision to one touch pass it, or create space for him or anyone else...he just wants to turn and burn. His coaches now pull him off to the side and coach him up on what he should have done, but I don't expect that to happen in rec league and I'm worried what a season of shitty play will do to his game.
You can see that his teammates who've been on the Academy teams understand soccer better than he does, and man if he could make the leap he'd be absolutely insane. His coaches say he's got special talent, I just want him to get better with vision and positioning and support and through balls...he's young, there are million things he could be better at.
So, do I put him in U10 rec or U12 rec, or find a 3v3 travel team or something else? His elite team coaches say he'd be the best kid in U10, but I'm worried he won't develop like he needs to. I don't want him to turn and burn all season, score a shite ton of goals and think that this is real soccer (though I think it'd be fun for him). I want him to excel in Select (they've picked him up for a tournament in October so we'll see where he's at soon). Am I crazy to think that U12 would be a better fit? I think the kids will take it more seriously and his speed advantage won't be there against the older boys...so he'll have to figure out another way.
Advice?
This post was edited on 9/16/15 at 9:24 am
6
Posted on 9/16/15 at 9:52 am to Gaston
quote:
Am I crazy to think that U12 would be a better fit? I think the kids will take it more seriously and his speed advantage won't be there against the older boys...so he'll have to figure out another way.
Not Crazy...just kind of depends on your kids mind set. How does he respond to failure? I've always been a proponent of playing up if you have the talent...but not at the price of messing with a kids head. Strikers can mentally take themselves out of the game, perhaps moreso than other positions.
So it just kind of depends on the personality.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 10:13 am to Gaston
Do you watch soccer with him? If he sees some teams that play like you want him to play, that might help. The urge to hold onto the ball for young players is pretty great, since that is what separates good players from the chaff in unskilled environments. Even young professionals who make it at the top level have the problem of holding the ball too long.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 10:26 am to 5thTiger
quote:
Strikers can mentally take themselves out of the game, perhaps moreso than other positions.
He did this all through state last year and during the finals of his first travel tournament two weekends ago. They only played a defender on him when they pressed off-sides and it fricked with his head. They'd let him get the ball then bracket him with defense and he'd go to shite, every time. All he had to do was touch pass it and open everything up...but instead of his head being up looking at the field and his options he'd look down at the ball and try to beat the defense to the corner. Credit to the other coaches because they'd play the inside guy up on him and make him take it wide, then they just poke it out of bounds when he'd distance himself from it for the run.
My worries are that in U10 rec league he'll never see well coached defenses like that and his poor habits will be reinforced.
He does take himself out of the game, ends up trying to avoid that press by collapsing into the middle and that takes away even more space from the center. After he realizes his ineffectiveness his posture changes and 'he's done'. He ends up with fewer and fewer touches and those are even moreso all or nothing footraces.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 10:37 am to Gaston
Where do you live?
If he can't get on a U11 select team, I'd say go with U12 if you think he's mature enough.
Additional advice, take it or leave it:
Watch soccer with him. If he's a striker, watch games with the best strikers. Watch Bayern Munich (Lewandowski) and Man City (Aguero) and tell him to just focus on their movements.
Get him to practice his touch. A good first touch will separate him from almost every other kid his age.
- Have him shoot balls off the wall and trapping it when it returns to him.
- Have him start off 20-30 yards away from you and then sprint towards you. Pass the ball to him firmly and alternate having him do the following things (1) pass it back to you 1 touch, meaning he can't trap, just pass it back with his first touch of the ball. (2) trap the ball. Make sure he keeps the ball close, close control will really separate him from other strikers. Trap the ball and have him take a couple of dribbles back towards you. (3) Have him turn with the ball. This is where he can have fun and be creative. There are countless ways to turn he can really show some of his flair off in this exercise. Be careful to make sure he's always in control when he turns with the ball.
The most important part of that exercise is having him listen to your commands. For instance, if you pass it to him and yell MAN ON, MAN ON he should do (1). If you yell TIME he should take a touch and control the ball No (2). If you yell TURN he should do No. (3). Mix them up and try to catch him off guard.
- Work on his weaker foot. If he's right footed, have him dedicate parts of practice working solely on his left foot. One things players are coached to do on defense is give up the weaker foot. If I'm playing center back and I'm 1v1 with a guy who's faster than me, I'm going to try to force him to his off foot. That way if he tries to blow by me on his strong foot, I'm in a position to cut him off and if he tries to blow by me on his weaker side, I'm more able to capitalize on a bad touch or force a weak shot.
If he's good with his weak foot, he becomes almost unguardable in 1v1 situations which means he draws more defenders or he scores a ton of goals.
- Encourage him to have fun and be creative. As long as he's not in a defensive position and a threat to give up a goal, he should be encouraged to get creative. Don't be afraid to shoot and make sure he's leaning over the ball. Most goalies will have a harder time with a ball that's low or skips off the ground. Encourage him to try to beat defenders if the opportunity presents itself. Too many times, I see coaches stifle creativity and you end up with predictable robots.
You seem to be involved with his development so kudos to you. Hope he does well. Let us know if you have any more questions.
If he can't get on a U11 select team, I'd say go with U12 if you think he's mature enough.
Additional advice, take it or leave it:
Watch soccer with him. If he's a striker, watch games with the best strikers. Watch Bayern Munich (Lewandowski) and Man City (Aguero) and tell him to just focus on their movements.
Get him to practice his touch. A good first touch will separate him from almost every other kid his age.
- Have him shoot balls off the wall and trapping it when it returns to him.
- Have him start off 20-30 yards away from you and then sprint towards you. Pass the ball to him firmly and alternate having him do the following things (1) pass it back to you 1 touch, meaning he can't trap, just pass it back with his first touch of the ball. (2) trap the ball. Make sure he keeps the ball close, close control will really separate him from other strikers. Trap the ball and have him take a couple of dribbles back towards you. (3) Have him turn with the ball. This is where he can have fun and be creative. There are countless ways to turn he can really show some of his flair off in this exercise. Be careful to make sure he's always in control when he turns with the ball.
The most important part of that exercise is having him listen to your commands. For instance, if you pass it to him and yell MAN ON, MAN ON he should do (1). If you yell TIME he should take a touch and control the ball No (2). If you yell TURN he should do No. (3). Mix them up and try to catch him off guard.
- Work on his weaker foot. If he's right footed, have him dedicate parts of practice working solely on his left foot. One things players are coached to do on defense is give up the weaker foot. If I'm playing center back and I'm 1v1 with a guy who's faster than me, I'm going to try to force him to his off foot. That way if he tries to blow by me on his strong foot, I'm in a position to cut him off and if he tries to blow by me on his weaker side, I'm more able to capitalize on a bad touch or force a weak shot.
If he's good with his weak foot, he becomes almost unguardable in 1v1 situations which means he draws more defenders or he scores a ton of goals.
- Encourage him to have fun and be creative. As long as he's not in a defensive position and a threat to give up a goal, he should be encouraged to get creative. Don't be afraid to shoot and make sure he's leaning over the ball. Most goalies will have a harder time with a ball that's low or skips off the ground. Encourage him to try to beat defenders if the opportunity presents itself. Too many times, I see coaches stifle creativity and you end up with predictable robots.
You seem to be involved with his development so kudos to you. Hope he does well. Let us know if you have any more questions.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 10:37 am to crazy4lsu
quote:
Do you watch soccer with him?
Oh shite, that's all that's on our DVR. Bad thing is that he idolizes Messi...the set play Messi though and the genius without space Messi...not enough the perfect through ball Messi.
Not sure if we need to do some white board work to see if he can pick up on the specifics of what they are doing. Basically break down his favorite scores to make him understand that it wasn't just one striker that made it happen.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 10:39 am to Gaston
quote:
Not sure if we need to do some white board work to see if he can pick up on the specifics of what they are doing. Basically break down his favorite scores to make him understand that it wasn't just one striker that made it happen.
Bookmark zonalmarking.net - LINK / Doesn't look like they've been doing more artciles but all their old shite will really help.
Read Adin Osmanbasic's site. He's pretty good with his writeups too LINK /
Posted on 9/16/15 at 10:40 am to Gaston
Might as well ship your boy off to Europe. He's the next American hope
Posted on 9/16/15 at 10:42 am to Gaston
quote:
3v3
wow. Never heard of this.
What does he play now? 5´s?, 7´s?, Short pitch?
Posted on 9/16/15 at 10:42 am to hendersonshands
Thanks. Great stuff. I will absolutely use all of that. We kick the ball together a ton, but I haven't been working on anything worth a frick with him.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 10:44 am to Dandy Lion
His travel league is 8v8. They practice 3v3, and some of the kids do tournaments with that setup.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 10:52 am to Gaston
No problem, I love the coaching and tactical side of soccer.
One of the most important things he can learn is how to use space. All of the smartest coaches in the world utilize space to their advantage. That means, if I'm on defense, I try to decrease the amount of space there is in the middle of the field. If I'm on offense, I'm trying to create as much open space as possible.
The striker is very important in accomplishing this for a team.
For instance, he has to be aware of how he's being defended. Let's say the team is pressing -- high pressure, man always on his back, trying to cut off the opportunities to turn -- he can create some space for his striker partner or wingers or midfielders making runs by doing one simple thing, checking back to the ball.
He makes his run back to the ball and brings a defender with him, that creates space in the opposing team's defensive alignment, if they pass it to him, he can lay it back off to the passer or to a fullback or center mid who can then try to exploit the space he just created.
He checks back for 65 minutes and the guy follows him all around the field, he'll be annoyed and he won't be getting many chances on goal, but he has to stay the course because I can almost guarantee you that the defender won't follow him one time and that's when he can turn with 10 yards of open space in front of him. He can be a decoy for 70 minutes but if he scores 1 goal, he's done his job. Such is the life of a striker.
If you can record the Bayern game this afternoon, I'd do so and tell him to watch Lewandowski and especially Thomas Muller. Muller is a freaking genius when it comes to his runs and how he creates space for everybody else.
One of the most important things he can learn is how to use space. All of the smartest coaches in the world utilize space to their advantage. That means, if I'm on defense, I try to decrease the amount of space there is in the middle of the field. If I'm on offense, I'm trying to create as much open space as possible.
The striker is very important in accomplishing this for a team.
For instance, he has to be aware of how he's being defended. Let's say the team is pressing -- high pressure, man always on his back, trying to cut off the opportunities to turn -- he can create some space for his striker partner or wingers or midfielders making runs by doing one simple thing, checking back to the ball.
He makes his run back to the ball and brings a defender with him, that creates space in the opposing team's defensive alignment, if they pass it to him, he can lay it back off to the passer or to a fullback or center mid who can then try to exploit the space he just created.
He checks back for 65 minutes and the guy follows him all around the field, he'll be annoyed and he won't be getting many chances on goal, but he has to stay the course because I can almost guarantee you that the defender won't follow him one time and that's when he can turn with 10 yards of open space in front of him. He can be a decoy for 70 minutes but if he scores 1 goal, he's done his job. Such is the life of a striker.
If you can record the Bayern game this afternoon, I'd do so and tell him to watch Lewandowski and especially Thomas Muller. Muller is a freaking genius when it comes to his runs and how he creates space for everybody else.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 11:29 am to hendersonshands
I have a bit of a different opinion than some of the above. I would probably say to leave him in U-10. It is better for him mentally at that age to be the dominant player and built on that confidence as he gets older. I don't think playing a kid up is a good idea unless he will still be one of the top kids in the next age group. If he falls to the middle somewhere leave him in U-10. There is a huge physical difference between 9 and 11.
I don't actually think what he is doing is a bad habit at his age. Not many kids have the ability to drive to the goal and score, at any age. The last thing you want to do is coach that desire out of him as soon as possible because once gone it is nearly impossible to get a kid to regain. Kids learn tactics as a necessity as they grow with the game. They don't learn to be aggressive as they get older and it is that value that I would most want to preserve in a developing player.
I don't actually think what he is doing is a bad habit at his age. Not many kids have the ability to drive to the goal and score, at any age. The last thing you want to do is coach that desire out of him as soon as possible because once gone it is nearly impossible to get a kid to regain. Kids learn tactics as a necessity as they grow with the game. They don't learn to be aggressive as they get older and it is that value that I would most want to preserve in a developing player.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 11:33 am to Maderan
quote:
I have a bit of a different opinion than some of the above. I would probably say to leave him in U-10. It is better for him mentally at that age to be the dominant player and built on that confidence as he gets older. I don't think playing a kid up is a good idea unless he will still be one of the top kids in the next age group. If he falls to the middle somewhere leave him in U-10. There is a huge physical difference between 9 and 11.
I don't actually think what he is doing is a bad habit at his age. Not many kids have the ability to drive to the goal and score, at any age. The last thing you want to do is coach that desire out of him as soon as possible because once gone it is nearly impossible to get a kid to regain. Kids learn tactics as a necessity as they grow with the game. They don't learn to be aggressive as they get older and it is that value that I would most want to preserve in a developing player.
This is a good point as well. I took his OP to mean that he's so much better than everyone else to where it's actually a detriment to him when he starts to actually play against high level talent, which is where I'd say he should play up. If it's not a drastic gap, I could see playing with his own age as long as he's working off the field.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 11:37 am to Maderan
quote:
I don't actually think what he is doing is a bad habit at his age.
It's not. It's pretty typical. I'd venture to say that he needs to make sure his son's ball skills are on point. If he can't make the one touch pass into space on a technical level, then the tactical element can't be executed.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 11:41 am to hendersonshands
In addition to those sites, you could read Spielverlagerung, which is fairly advanced but breaks down some key concepts of spacing that aren't readily available in English otherwise.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 11:43 am to crazy4lsu
Yeah, Adin is a writer for that site. I just remembered his name and not the site so that's why I linked to his page. It's all really interesting.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 11:43 am to hendersonshands
Well if we're getting advice...
My son plays U12. He’s very fast, good ball control, vision, & passing; plays CAM or RW. Takes great shots in practice, but will not shoot the ball in game. He will be in a 1v1 with defender, and slow play to wait for someone to pass to.
My son plays U12. He’s very fast, good ball control, vision, & passing; plays CAM or RW. Takes great shots in practice, but will not shoot the ball in game. He will be in a 1v1 with defender, and slow play to wait for someone to pass to.
Posted on 9/16/15 at 11:53 am to bless u boys
quote:
He will be in a 1v1 with defender, and slow play to wait for someone to pass to.
Is he scared? When I was that age I was desperate to not make a mistake which is why I played similarly.
This post was edited on 9/16/15 at 11:53 am
Posted on 9/16/15 at 12:00 pm to crazy4lsu
That's what it appears to me, mixed in with the fact that he is naturally unselfish.
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