Broken American System

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Pretty cool series about player development in the US through the eyes of a mother. The kid plays in Germany now, but as an 11 year old if he could see that the US had a flawed system, why can't top coaches?? Great perspective.

Part 1 - Is it broken?
Part 2 - The Egg Drill
Part 3 - Stubborn Coaches

[Unregistered]

Pretty cool series about player development in the US through the eyes of a mother. The kid plays in Germany now, but as an 11 year old if he could see that the US had a flawed system, why can't top coaches?? Great perspective.

Part 1 - Is it broken?
Part 2 - The Egg Drill
Part 3 - Stubborn Coaches

Good articles! Thanks for posting. I like the terminology "absorbing the ball". My kid can "absorb the ball". Amazing the number of kids that can not.

[Unregistered]

Good articles! Thanks for posting. I like the terminology "absorbing the ball". My kid can "absorb the ball". Amazing the number of kids that can not.

I actually work with a high school (not club mind you) coach who reuires his kids to actually bring an egg down with their feet. Hard boiled eggs.

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Man up and use raw eggs! ;)

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Interesting article in this weeks Sports Illustrated about the US National Team (boys) spending a lot more resources going abroad and looking for talent with dual passports. All these American soccer players and we can't find enough good ones to put together a decent national team? Have to go look far and wide across the globe for dual citizens? That's a broken system all right.

[Unregistered]

Interesting article in this weeks Sports Illustrated about the US National Team (boys) spending a lot more resources going abroad and looking for talent with dual passports. All these American soccer players and we can't find enough good ones to put together a decent national team? Have to go look far and wide across the globe for dual citizens? That's a broken system all right.

They have been doing this for years. Dooley, David Regis......

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Yes but if you read the article you'll see they are making an even bigger effort -- and committing more resources -- to doing this now on an even greater level than previously. And if US youth soccer were on the right course, you'd think the effort would be lessened, not strengthened, no?

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Man up and use raw eggs! ;)

I like how you think. I will pass that suggestion on.

[Unregistered]

Yes but if you read the article you'll see they are making an even bigger effort -- and committing more resources -- to doing this now on an even greater level than previously. And if US youth soccer were on the right course, you'd think the effort would be lessened, not strengthened, no?

All this time and money being spent in youth soccer in the US and they are making an even bigger effort to find players outside our borders? MLS complaining about the quality of American players? WPS stating the best in the league are the foreign players? Ya, I'd say the system is broken!

[Unregistered]

Interesting article in this weeks Sports Illustrated about the US National Team (boys) spending a lot more resources going abroad and looking for talent with dual passports. All these American soccer players and we can't find enough good ones to put together a decent national team? Have to go look far and wide across the globe for dual citizens? That's a broken system all right.

Any chance you could provide a link?

[Unregistered]

Pretty cool series about player development in the US through the eyes of a mother. The kid plays in Germany now, but as an 11 year old if he could see that the US had a flawed system, why can't top coaches?? Great perspective.

Part 1 - Is it broken?
Part 2 - The Egg Drill
Part 3 - Stubborn Coaches

"Our family traveled all over the Mid-Atlantic United States and figuratively speaking - all over the world - in search of "good soccer" for our son."

Now he's in Germany and the mother is in Abington PA. Wow! A little too much for me. I hope the sacrifices are worth it.

[Unregistered]

"Our family traveled all over the Mid-Atlantic United States and figuratively speaking - all over the world - in search of "good soccer" for our son."

Now he's in Germany and the mother is in Abington PA. Wow! A little too much for me. I hope the sacrifices are worth it.

Not bad. We made it to page 2 before someone tried to derail the thread. The point being made is that the US system is failing miserably. The US system REFUSES to learn from other countries, claiming that what they are doing is working. The US system is the very definition of insanity... doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.

This thread was not designed to be a debate to trash the decision of this family to allow their son to train abroad. The family wouldn't be in this position if the US soccer system dropped their HUGE egos and admitted to themselves what everyone already knows.

Players have been going abroad for years, I agree. However, in the past it was excused because the US was building its programs. Well, we are long past the building years. US soccer players are inferior (with a few exceptions) to players from other countires, and until we put more emphasis on skills other than brute force and long balls, we will continue to be inferior players.

[Unregistered]

"Our family traveled all over the Mid-Atlantic United States and figuratively speaking - all over the world - in search of "good soccer" for our son."

Now he's in Germany and the mother is in Abington PA. Wow! A little too much for me. I hope the sacrifices are worth it.

Well that's the beauty of choice. It works for them, and they did it. It wouldn't work for you, so you don't. And just as they probably aren't questioning your decision, you shouldn't question theirs.

[Unregistered]

perspective

To say that the US system is failing is not enitirely correct. Across the country, there are more kids going into soccer than ever before. In fact, while the percentage of kids enrolling into baseball has dropped, the percentage enrolling into soccer and also lacrosse is increasing. Clearly, americans are gaining more interest into the sport. Furthermore, compared to when I started soccer in the 1970s and 1980s we have been moving away from kick and run soccer toward a more controlled game. Concepts such as small side games are gaining. Although we might not be at the level of the internationals, we are moving in a positive direction.

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Part 4 We hear from Zack about why he left the U.S.


http://www.topdrawersoccer.com/club-...seas-Adventure

"I miss home, but I wasn't getting any better in the U.S. and once I got into the Academy system, it was all about getting noticed by colleges and less about training to develop skills that you'd need on a professional level."