Klinsman's take on U.S. soccer development

Thi is why USSF should have done whatever it took 4 yrs ago to bring this guy in to head up American soccer. FIRST TOUCH IS EVERYTHING!!!!!! Without that nothing else matters

sxcrguy wrote:To paraphrase what Klinsman said after the England-Germany match regarding soccer development in the United States, the development pyramid in the U.S. is upside down. The United States needs to completely revamp our soccer development, and until U.S. soccer reaches out and develops the lower social economic group’s whose ultimate goal is to play professional soccer we will always be a step behind the rest of the world. He equated it to how basketball players are developed in the USA.

Klinsman went on to insinuate that in our current system the underlying trend is to develop middle and upper class kids (whose ultimate goal is a soccer scholarship) as opposed to soccer powerhouse countries where kids are developed in the proverbial streets (whose ultimate goal is to play professional soccer).

Can't say I disagree....

Dead on indeed... in North Texas the vast majority of kids learning the game are only the ones whose parents can afford it. Clubs and coaches primarily about earning a living...

Good idea, but the question is how to implement it? Who pays to teach and train these kids? In other countries there are pro clubs that bring in youth to play in their systems for free. When a player is ready to become pro the club's investment pays off with the sale of the player.
In the US there are few pro clubs and little profit. MLS is starting down this path with the academy system FC Dallas and other MLS teams have, but it will take years to get profitable.

USSF has the money to fund some of this along with its sponsors. WE need academies setup around the country to provide training for American kids. Friedal set one up in Ohio but all most all of the scholarships offered went to foriegn kids. While I applaud Brad for building the academy I would have liked to see American kids who could someday play for the national team be invited.

how many times have we heard on this very site and especially on TM that you "gotta pay to play" or " the cost will cut them loose" too much politics and asskissin' going on with the big clubs and since this is america it's all about the "money in the pocket" nobody does anything for "free" or for "the love of it" it would be nice for a pro club to sponser teams like the Wizard,Chivas, CDI,Barcelona,Bandits etc.... that way the big clubs don't recruit them away with promises of this and that but too only be used for other purposes! which is to win and attract more money!

I saw his comments and totally agree with what he said.
He also mentioned along with the upside down pyramid- that part of the reason is because the carrot that most of our kids go for
is the college scholarship. That going pro is not a priority.

I believe bridging the gap with the USSF Development Academy will help the process tremendously but it may take a good 10-15 years
to compete with the rest of the world in developing the best players- a 20-30 goal scorer a year in europe.

Many people believe that we need to nurture the hispanic market more in the US.
It seems like many people are upset that we did not do better, but the Mexican ,English,Italian and French teams are out the last time I checked.
Ghana deserves more respect. They were more skilled, faster and stronger than our side. Our Center mids commit offensively and don't get back and we are scouted and every team exposes us and we wonder how we always get behind early.

It is a good thing that England, Italy, France, Mexico...etc...all outlasted the USA using this system. Oh wait, they didn't. Maybe we don't stink as bad as we think.

Rightback wrote:It is a good thing that England, Italy, France, Mexico...etc...all outlasted the USA using this system. Oh wait, they didn't. Maybe we don't stink as bad as we think.

Yeah but Germany, Argentina, Brazil and Spain did. And we have never made it past the quarters which we have reached what once? Oh wait maybe our system is broke.

FGFF wrote:

Rightback wrote:It is a good thing that England, Italy, France, Mexico...etc...all outlasted the USA using this system. Oh wait, they didn't. Maybe we don't stink as bad as we think.

Yeah but Germany, Argentina, Brazil and Spain did. And we have never made it past the quarters which we have reached what once? Oh wait maybe our system is broke.

Our system is broke? Argentina has won so many (1)? Spain...oh wait, they have never won and we beat their ass head to head last summer. My point is this...that American's can revel in their pity and self-loathing that they will never be good at this game and that wholesale changes are required but the fact is we dominate in almost every sport and countries like Mexico who have a national obsession with football got knocked out in the same round that we did. England whose starters will make more this year than our last 3 national teams did in their career lasted no longer. In other sports we would not blame THE ENTIRE SYSTEM, we would ask simple questions like MAYBE THE COACH SHOULD NOT HAVE STARTED R. CLARK or maybe the boys should have come out swinging instead of playing soft at the start. If this was a typical American sport they would not blame the entire youth system for failing to produce a winner. The Dutch did this and they have produced how many world cup winners? None.

Winning at this level is hard and it should not be taken for granted that even if it was a national obsession and we revamped all of our methods...we might still fall short...because unlike other sports Americans play the rest of the world works hard to win and so far they have come out ahead of us.

So you are saying that the American system of soccer is just fine. No changes needed?

go99 wrote:So you are saying that the American system of soccer is just fine. No changes needed?

I think thats whats hes saying? let me get some popcorn!!!!

go99 wrote:So you are saying that the American system of soccer is just fine. No changes needed?

American soccer simply needs more of the better athletes playing and sticking with it instead of going to other sports.. Achieving this is not about changing just one thing - there are several things that can be done.

The interest factor is probably the most important -the sport has been growing in America due to increasing interest. However this World Cup has exposed many of the weaknesses in the sport that drive Americans away. Excessive diving, rolling around on the ground and general time-wasting when a team is up a goal is tough to watch. Also the fact that poor refereeing can change results of important matches but FIFA won't bring themselves into the 21st (or even 20th) century and implement video review of line calls stinks. I would also like to see one challenge per game per team awarded to challenge offside an offside call in major tournaments such as the World Cup, but I doubt we'll see this in our lifetimes. My friends who are not educated on soccer have been trying to get into this World Cup since ESPN has been providing such great coverage of so many matches in HD, however they just can't seem to get by these flaws (and I can't really blame them).


As far as the club system "holding back" development - I can't say I really agree. Yes there are options for the wealthier families to pay $$$ for the big clubs, but there are also many cheaper options surfacing with volunteer coaches and low fees. As these options increase the big clubs will have to come up with a different way of working or face extinction. Let the free market decide who survives. Same thing is happening in baseball, basketball, and other sports and I don't really see it killing any of those sports.

Altidore is one of the best athletes playing in the world cup. He just can't play soccer. The US did not lose because they were less athletic than the other teams. Many people think we have one of the most athletic teams out there. Most would also agree we have some of the poorest soccer (skill and tactically)

Go, that same deficiency, skills and tactics, can be traced from our WC team all the way back to our local system. It's not the athletes we're missing, it's connecting the dots in training.

First thing first : soccer is played all around the world and we are not going to win just because we participate. We went to the round of 16 lost in overtime a game against a slightly better team and there is no shame to it. As mentioned above, England lost , Italy and France didn't' even make it. I know we want to win but this is not the NBA or the NFL there will be a lot of competitions won by non US teams.----------------Second : nobody can deny that soccer is growing in the USA and nobody in the world denies that Team USA is playing better and better and is now a nation to account for.---------------Third : our system is not perfect but I think we are now nurturing kids enough and at least in the Dallas area able to provide enough soccer and a decent enough level to raise the bar of the individual player. We now see kids that are 7 that can play soccer; starting at U9 we now see entire teams that are showing very good soccer. We have plenty of coaches who are focusing on individual skills and are strong enough to resist parents pressure (because in the end, we are the problem, we are the ones requesting our little Johnny to win game on saturday, we are the one switching teams each season because team B just beat team A). -----------------------------I look around during the week-ends and I see incredible dedication from parents, I see knowledgeable coaches that love the game, love to teach soccer because they genuinely love soccer. I see amazing focus from kids, I see an entire generation of kids who breathes for soccer and dream of soccer.Above all, I see talent,  a lot of talents. This is happening now, in the small age groups and it just began a few years ago (somebody told me that youth academy simply did not exist 5 years ago). -------------------I am completely convinced that the current generation is going to grow and create an amazing team USA. We are following the right path, let's keep on working and a few years from now team USA will not only be respected it will be feared.

we would not be playing select without scholarships....I can say I am excited to hear clubs will be bringing in their own player develpemental systems.....also on scholarships -I hope!

Gabs, I agree with your views and believe US soccer is fast becoming worthy of international competition. I would add the NTX market is one of the best areas to develop future American talent.

GO99, i think my post was fairly clear. The whole system is not a failure because we did not advance beyond 16. Unless i am missing something Portugal is a pretty good team and they advanced no farther than we have...and as i have previously posted England and others went home...and France and Italy would have loved to have advanced as far as we have. Fire the coach, take Ricardo Clark off the team...but dont blame the entire system. If not for a poor coaching decision and a blatant Ricardo gaffe we are still in this thing. The system did not allow Ghana to score, Ricardo clark did. The rest of the world is pretty good at this game and even if we focused our energies on this...we might still fall short. The assumption that Americans are the best at everything they put their mind to may or may not be true, but it is an arrogant assumption in sports.

sxcrguy wrote:To paraphrase what Klinsman said after the England-Germany match regarding soccer development in the United States, the development pyramid in the U.S. is upside down. The United States needs to completely revamp our soccer development, and until U.S. soccer reaches out and develops the lower social economic group’s whose ultimate goal is to play professional soccer we will always be a step behind the rest of the world. He equated it to how basketball players are developed in the USA.

Klinsman went on to insinuate that in our current system the underlying trend is to develop middle and upper class kids (whose ultimate goal is a soccer scholarship) as opposed to soccer powerhouse countries where kids are developed in the proverbial streets (whose ultimate goal is to play professional soccer).

Can't say I disagree....

Hmmmm.... seems to me that soccer at the high school level fits that bill pretty well. HS seems to do well with football, baseball and basketball.

Lots of really good posts in here.. and great points being made...

but I wanna add one thing... Are we really pinning that first goal on Ricardo Clark? Cuz yeah he lost it... but I distinctly remember screaming at my television as I watched Jay DeMerit completely back off the attacking Ghana player INSIDE THE 18 BOX !!! He had to be 6-8 yards away from that guy as he drove in.... I mean holy moses that guy couldn't believe his luck... especially with Tim Howard way out of position.... who could miss that shot?!! So yeah... I think we all agree that Ricardo Clark should not have started... and yeah, he got his lunch packed and the ball taken from him... but to pin that first goal on him.... no way... I'm not buying it... The defense should be ashamed of themselves..... DeMerit especially..

Frankie Hejduk would have crushed that guy, kissed his wife, and stuffed a $20 bill in his mouth as he took the ball back up field......

ok, back to the regular debate

Slakemoth, you will get no argument from me on all points...we agree. You make my point...the system may or not be the problem...but Demerit coughing it up in the box is the more immediate problem. We could have won this game and likely the next one...the system did not choke, players did. I will only add to your great points that to win games you have to be able to score a damn goal at some point during the game. We were close time after time...but close dont count.

go99 wrote:Altidore is one of the best athletes playing in the world cup. He just can't play soccer. The US did not lose because they were less athletic than the other teams. Many people think we have one of the most athletic teams out there. Most would also agree we have some of the poorest soccer (skill and tactically)

Funny that you should mention that. My brother-in-law, a sports fanatic, finally started watching soccer with us this month. He made a typical comment, "If we had two more Altidores, then we'd get something done." Hubby and I looked at him, and asked, "What is it you like about him? The fact that he charges the ball, then loses it?" This BSF thinking is somewhat excusable if you have no knowledge of soccer, but to come on this board, hopefully with some inkling of knowledge and express such views...makes you wonder. Perhaps this is essentially where we stray from the rest of the soccer world? Now, I need Finish to repeat the poop refrain.

Same poop different pile, Smurf Smurf

FlatBack4 wrote:

sxcrguy wrote:To paraphrase what Klinsman said after the England-Germany match regarding soccer development in the United States, the development pyramid in the U.S. is upside down. The United States needs to completely revamp our soccer development, and until U.S. soccer reaches out and develops the lower social economic group’s whose ultimate goal is to play professional soccer we will always be a step behind the rest of the world. He equated it to how basketball players are developed in the USA.

Klinsman went on to insinuate that in our current system the underlying trend is to develop middle and upper class kids (whose ultimate goal is a soccer scholarship) as opposed to soccer powerhouse countries where kids are developed in the proverbial streets (whose ultimate goal is to play professional soccer).

Can't say I disagree....

Hmmmm.... seems to me that soccer at the high school level fits that bill pretty well. HS seems to do well with football, baseball and basketball.

Flat: Priceless.

Klinsman has a very valid point. I will say CL has many more hispanic kids & teams than was the case when I first start coming out. Soccer is still more of a cult sport in the states, and as a result has issues with being able to retain enough young talent.

The good news the USA has enough talent to go around, now how to hold on to that talent is another issue all together.