Goalkeeper Training?

My son is an 07 and is a full time GK and we are looking to get him some private training. Any one have any good recommendations in the Plano, McKinney,Allen, Frisco area? Thanks for any help you can give me.

Not that keeper training isn't valuable, but at 7 years old, I don't believe a soccer player should be a full-time anything. Please trust me when I tell you that it is critical for your son to develop his all-around soccer game. Even as a keeper, his foot skills will be very important. I would suggest that you stick primarily to general skills training at this age. If he still wants to be a keeper when he's 10-11, that's great. Mix in some keeper training along the way too. But don't pidgeon-hole your son into a specific role so early in his development. Best of luck to you.

Hoff knows of what he speaks

I remember reading a Clint Dempsey article way back in the day
If I remember correctly, from ages 11-15 or so he played one year each at center back, center mid, left wing, right wing, striker (don't remember the specific order)

In my own kiddos experience - u10 right mid, u11 sweeper, u12 striker, u13 keeper, u14 striker/left mid, u15-u16-u17-now u18 keeper
At 10 and 11 he was the de facto backup/emergency keeper and occasional indoor keeper
At 12 he played 0 seconds of keeper and 14 he guest played 3 games at keeper
His very first true keeper session was.....
At U13 (he had one training deal at 11 mainly he filled in to rest the starter)

Like Hoff's kid, they are both D1 keepers

So, yeah at 7, i might do maybe one keeper session a month
ONLY if the kid is begging to do it

And my kiddo played football until sophomore year, basketball u11, baseball u10
And still plays regular golf anytime, bowling twice a year, snowboarding once a year, foot golf anytime

Thanks for the insight. My son plays for a club team but they do not have keeper training. He loves playing keeper and that is all he wants to play. His team sessions are all about the other skills that you speak of and he is involved but I want him to get to know how to play GK better. It is not a matter of me pigeonholing him, it is what he wants. He has no interest in playing on the field and I am not going to force him. He will continue to working on all aspects of soccer. Thanks again for the thoughts.

Not sure if there are any keeper coaches actually out there who will train a U8 player. If your club is not offering any keeper training, then you are in the wrong club. But I would assume they just do not offer it in your specific age group.

I believe FCD offers GK practice starting U10.

My U17 boy is a keeper, and I need to agree with the previous posts that field player skills are very important, especially first touch.

If your boy begs for it, take him to the fields and do it yourself. Check the internet for some basic skill sessions, or talk to the GK coach in your club. When my eldest wanted GK practice I usually did it myself (until U14ish), and only once before that paid for a 1:1 session.

For GK drills check Soccer Pilot.

PM me if you have any other questions. Went through similar situation with my eldest. He wanted to become a keeper at U7, when he saw other kids in the goal (when we lived in Germany).

Thanks for your thoughts as well. I have never said that field player skills are not important or that my son does not need them. Far from what I am saying. All I am saying is my son loves playing GK and wants to get better no matter his age. We get all the same training the other players do at team training with our coach so he is working on foot skills, passing, shooting and all the other fundamentals of the game. Looking for GK training in addition to his normal training. I am just asking if anyone knows of anyone. Thanks

http://www.nscaa.com/news/2012/06/a-view-from-the-goal-with-an-mls-veteran--tips-on-nurturing-the-young-goalkeeper?utm_medium=short_url

I disagree on U7 being too early for Full Time specialist, as a rule. Yes, technique in general is important, but there is a lot more for a Keeper to learn (in terms of GK skills) than many of us think. My son has been a full time GK since Keepers were allowed (U7 I think) and believe me, at 13 or 14 it makes a difference having had formal specialist training for 6 or 7 years than 2 or 3. Don't do it just because it is the general opinion... My son has learned (and keeps learning) techniques that most of us don't even know they exist. He'll learn the player skills (that he will need as a GK) by default, because GK training is going to take 15% or 20% of training time until he gets at least to Pre-Academy/Academy/ODP etc. Just my view and experience.

Tall players at GK have the advantage as you get older and if you are going to put in the time to excel at the position then make sure that you are not going to be passed over or discriminated against by height when BB is older (which is a big source of frustration for the GK parent/player combo). That means BB needs to develop quickness, hand strength, and the ability to touch the crossbar and cover the distance between the posts to overcome the height factor. (Don't be discouraged by the facts, but know that you must overcome them so you can make good choices)

Have BB play central defender half of each game as a way to develop touch and to gain stamina on the pitch. A sweeper keeper is very valuable in the modern game so you will accomplish your GK development and have a fallback position in defense if you are passed over for height later on.

Practice your GK hand drills and your juggling drills daily and discuss the parts of a goal and the distances and heights so BB has an awareness of what is covered and starts to develop spatial awareness. Judo is excellent for young and old goalkeepers and is recommended by one of the top football academies in the world.

Teach BB to communicate with the defense and to understand the mechanics of set plays even though he won't necessarily have good execution because of his age, size, ability,  etc.

make him a footballer first and a GK second at this age knowing that a lot will happen over time and his interests may change.

This is a realistic method for developing a young keeper and will allow you train him and keep his options open without limiting his ability to learn this specialized position at a young age.

PM me if you would like to know more because at this age you will need to be his GK coach, but I could help you with the basics and save you some frustration until BB is older and ready for additional coaching at GK which some of the parent/player combos have already stated comes "Later". Trust me they know what they are talking about and you should PM GK parents to learn additional tips and tricks because GK parents are usually a pretty tight bunch and develop friendships over the many years of football ahead.

** It is never too early to start and you can tell which GK's have the formal training and experience by their warm ups and game performance. All of the top GK's in Classic get an early start in youth academy so don't be discouraged from getting the GK training process started at U7.

Well said PLF! 
My bb plays keeper U12. I agree with what has been said about making sure your keeper has foot skills also. Keeper training is not about just diving. It works on footwork and good keeper coaches emphasize on the keeper being able to play the ball. My bb has been training and playing keeper for 3 yrs. it isn't important for a keeper to play on top teams at a young age. I have purposely not put him on a top team, even though he has been offered spots on top teams. You want your keeper to learn how to handle 2v1 and 1v1 situations. You want him to get a lot of shots. 

It has been said on the blog before that the top keepers are not on D1 teams.

The top keepers in Classic are spread out among D1, D2, and D3 teams and that is a fact. Each division has top keepers and whether you believe it or not some parents prefer their GK's to stay on teams that are more defensive because they know it develops them.

On the flip side there are some excellent GK's in division 1 that are also on top teams. The argument in their favor is that they see less shots, but when they do it usually ends up as a save or a goal. Decision making is a big issue for GK's and there is a good argument for both preferences at GK placement in the U15 and under age divisions.

Some of the top D1 strikers actually develop the opposing GK's ability to read and adjust because these players have a definite advantage over the defending GK and are good at using that advantage to score against them under the right circumstances.

D2 is full of physical play and the attacks are painfully difficult and they seem to always occur in the middle of the box which is a nightmare for a GK, but definitely develops their ability to sort out close range shots and difficult set plays so I think that a talking keeper in D2 is a good sign the your GK is developing.

D3 is arguably the "Wild Wild West" and every team is scrambling to promote or requalify so if you like the 1v1 this is the place to hang out since you will see it here more often than in any other division. On the other hand if you can learn to "stay in your line of play" and "Get Real Big"  then this division will reward your BB immensely and is a good sign that BB is developing.

In summary D3 1v1 and angles, D2 Decision making and calling out defense and set plays, D1 learning to effectively communicate and adjust your defensive positioning to avoid creating opportunities for the dangerous footies.

There are definitely teams in Classic that should appreciate their good fortune at goal in each of the 3 divisions.

Each passing year the top GK's tend to get moved up or recruited by other teams who want to promote or rise in the rankings and there will come a time when the top GK's (and their parents) will be recruited onto the top teams, but not until they are older and have physically matured or decided to make the jump on their own.