If you want to get closer to excellence you must eliminate the following from your vocabulary: Pace Unlucky Target [forward] Obviously [I, You, They, He, She, We] Deserve it These are the words of the status quo. They make you focus on the superficial, excuse you from responsibility, and brainwash you into the philosophy of […]
Problems
The 3 Main Cultures Influencing Soccer Development
They are one macro-culture and two micro-cultures. Big organizations The household The team Macro Culture This refers to the culture driven by large scale organizations. The most obvious are state governments. They dominate the rhetoric, implement policy, and execute the law. Neglecting the minority, these things combined funnel the worldviews and value systems of an entire […]
US Soccer Development Academy Coach Threatens Friendship
What follows was a text from the head academy coach at a US Soccer Development Academy club who we’ve known for … I don’t know … around six years. I won’t say who it is or when this happened, but it gives you insight as to the types of things that go on. Dear Brian, […]
The American Soccer Community Hates Spain
Maybe not the individuals … or maybe so (think of all the shit that’s said about Busquets). But moreso, it’s what they represent. They have been exposing all of American soccer shortcomings and fallacies in a way that’s unprecedented. What they’ve been doing has gone against what the American rhetoric has been for decades. They […]
Recognize Speed of Play Issues [Video]
… and work on them. These are our U11s during a friendly over a month ago – versus San Diego Surf. Be Careful The interpretation of speed of play in general can be dangerous. We have to be careful here. One of the biggest problems with US Soccer at all levels is that we have […]
The Amazing Irony of the ‘Culture Problem’
There’s lots of American soccer: media outlets coaches fans / supporters organizations … In general, there’s a huge American soccer community. And all its constituents cite that the game in this country suffers from a culture problem. The irony is not only are they participants in the culture problem, but they actually work hard to […]
What Are You Talking About?
Lack of definitions is a huge problem! In the context of soccer, when one says: “Culture” “Creativity” “Possession” “Attacking Style” “Development” “World Class” “Great Coach” “Great Player” etc .. Those things can all mean wildly different things, unless you have a proper reference. And that reference must be based on the best – the gold […]
The 50/50 Rule of Coaching: Looking Beyond the Win/Loss Columns
First 50 The right activities and the efficiency of your training sessions only get you to 50%. By the “right activities / exercises” I mean right with respect to your philosophy of course. For instance, what’s the point of doing activities that work possession out of the back, if all you do in games is […]
You Know What They Say About Arguing With Idiots …
… they drag you down to their level, and then beat you with experience. But still, it’s an exercise in willpower to stay away. It’s hard to let ignorance, be ignorance. Sometimes you say to yourself: maybe if I just spoke their language they might understand something You start rationalizing: If I don’t say anything, […]
Cal FC exposing US Soccer Cockroaches!
The story of Cal FC in the US Open Cup is not what people are making it to be. Cal FC is simply a messenger. They’re trying to tell the American soccer community something that only the badasses in this country have truly known for a VERY LONG TIME. The Enemy For those of you […]