ECRL v ECNL

[Guest]

Do you want to know who at the age of 12 was NOT doing gym work, counting calories or hours of sleep, working with a trainer, clinics upon clinics, tournaments, etc.???

Messi
Ronaldo
Ronaldinho
Zidane
Bergkamp
Ribery
Iniesta
Cantona
Should I keep going?

What those 12 year olds did was simply play... on the streets. No parents around, no coaches around, just endless play.

And that's why American kids will never make it. ECNL MLS Next, Showcases... blah blah blah.... none will ever make it to the top.
Pulisic is the best we have to offer and if we are honest, he's not top 100 in the world.
This country has never produced a world class player... and probably never will.

By about this age, Messi was diagnosed with an HGH deficiency and began treatments. Ronaldo was in an academy far away from his remote island home.

Yes the above poster is overcomplicating it with trainers, dietitians etc… but the kid should have a ball at her feet almost constantly. Far exceeding the amount of time spent at club training.

[Guest]

These are the same TS people who compare and look down on players choosing what division they play in college based on there academic needs. These D1 parents hate the comparisons to D3. Same with those players choosing to play ECRL vs. ECNL. There is no logic for there negativity especially since they are anonymous. It has nothing to do with experience, intelligence or the needs/wants of these players.

In my experience, ECNL parents fully acknowledge the lunacy of how all-consuming youth soccer is, and dont begrudge kids/families who want a different path. However, what sets them off is when those other families start denigrating the kids and the families that do choose to go ECNL. They stand up for themselves when attacked rather than actively seek others to attack. If your kid wants to ‘have a life’ (stare at their phones), and wants to be a ‘multi sport athlete’ (middling at 3 sports instead of one), then good for you. You do you. Let us alone so that we can do our thing without you in our ears.

[Guest]

By about this age, Messi was diagnosed with an HGH deficiency and began treatments. Ronaldo was in an academy far away from his remote island home.

Yes the above poster is overcomplicating it with trainers, dietitians etc… but the kid should have a ball at her feet almost constantly. Far exceeding the amount of time spent at club training.

I think that more importantly, by age 12 both Messi and Ronaldo were already tremendous players. What the academies did was recruit them for what they were already capable of doing on the field.
So I do agree with the poster... most likely prior to joining Barcelona and Sporting, neither was doing much other than playing soccer every day in unstructured environments without the pressures of what a 12-year old American kid faces from both parents and coaches.

[Guest]

Because every 12 year old should be making sacrifices, training every day, counting the calories they consume, etc. etc. otherwise they will never make it?
This is what youth soccer has come down to?

Kids who have "it" want to play all the time. Once they hit U14 or so, mental toughness and commitment matters a lot more than it did before. If they aren't willing to put in the time and effort then they shouldn't try to play at the highest level. There's plenty of B and C league options out there.

[Guest]

Do you want to know who at the age of 12 was NOT doing gym work, counting calories or hours of sleep, working with a trainer, clinics upon clinics, tournaments, etc.???

Messi
Ronaldo
Ronaldinho
Zidane
Bergkamp
Ribery
Iniesta
Cantona
Should I keep going?

What those 12 year olds did was simply play... on the streets. No parents around, no coaches around, just endless play.

And that's why American kids will never make it. ECNL MLS Next, Showcases... blah blah blah.... none will ever make it to the top.
Pulisic is the best we have to offer and if we are honest, he's not top 100 in the world.
This country has never produced a world class player... and probably never will.

Creating "World Class" players is not what the youth soccer system in the US is about.
It's about college. And no it's not about scholarships because at the later stages parents realize that "high level" youth soccer is a waste of an investment, but they still love the possibility of bragging rights, that their kid got recruited to play and X and Y college. That's what it's about.

[Guest]

Creating "World Class" players is not what the youth soccer system in the US is about.
It's about college. And no it's not about scholarships because at the later stages parents realize that "high level" youth soccer is a waste of an investment, but they still love the possibility of bragging rights, that their kid got recruited to play and X and Y college. That's what it's about.

So bitter...

[Guest]

So bitter...

^ so unrealistic

[Guest]

^ so unrealistic

Right? So many of these "stakeholders" pretend they don't know the real reasons behind the youth soccer industry.
Poster is absolutely correct. It's not about developing world class players.

[Guest]

Right? So many of these "stakeholders" pretend they don't know the real reasons behind the youth soccer industry.
Poster is absolutely correct. It's not about developing world class players.

It isn't. It won't be. They can fantasize all they want but it won't be. It's nit for men either. At most pro clubs hope to make money off a few pro players and pro clubs are a small percentage to the total league. Our standing on the international stage is immaterial to them.

[Guest]

^ so unrealistic

The only real thing posted on TS is your Bitterness.