Winning versus Development

There is growing sentiment in the United States Soccer hierarchy that we are producing young players who know how to win but do not properly know the game of soccer.  Parents spend thousands of dollars for their children to play club soccer with two major expectations in terms of return on investment, the prospect of a college scholarship and wins. Lots and lots of wins.

In terms of money for college, the money they spend on youth soccer would be far better invested in a growth fund or even a simple savings account. The NCAA allows for the funding of 9.9 scholarships for men’s soccer to be distributed over a roster of 30 players. That is not favorable math.  As parents begin to realize this an even greater emphasis is placed on winning.

In youth soccer, the teams with the most big, strong, fast kids often dominate in terms of wins and losses. They impose their will through aggressive strategies built around physical play.  The myth of this being the proper way to develop players was given some credence by Bruce Arenas 2002 World Cup team that used superior conditioning to somewhat level the playing field and produce the USA’s best tournament results ever. The United States sank back to global soccer reality  when the USA failed to sustain that “success” and failed to qualify for the 2012 Olympics.



The USMNT recently participated in 2014 World Cup under the guidance of Jurgen Klinsmann, a German national. Coach Klinsmann greatly expanded the pool of players for the national team leaving no rock unturned in search of players with high Soccer IQ and an understanding of playing simply. While size, strength and speed are still valued, the style of play for the USMNT is subtly changing from one reliant on physical prowess to one based in intelligent and simple play.  It's not been an easy transition, but the results are beginning to show up in the teams play.... and results.

The facts of the matter remain that some of the world’s greatest soccer players have been of diminutive stature.  Pele, Romario, Messi, Maradona, are all in the 5’5” to 5’7” range.  Ronaldo is often described as being slow and was recently described by an opposing coach as being “fat.” These guys do not fit the mold of the biggest, strongest, fastest athletes US youth soccer culture is reliant upon to win games, do they?  How then did they become the greats of the game?

Around the globe there is a far greater emphasis on development of skill sets and game intelligence then there is on winning in youth soccer. We marvel at the creativity of foreign players but fear placing the onus of solving problems the game presents in the hands of our players.  Players are urged to “stay in their positions” and coaches sans the existence of a joy stick to control player movement scream instructions constantly from the sidelines.

I view training as my classroom. It is on the practice pitch that I attempt to help the game teach players how to solve the problems (aka pressure) they will encounter in playing the game. I encourage the recognition that mistakes will be made and with this being the case we need to make mistakes of action opposed to mistakes of inaction.  I speak often of making “spectacular mistakes” in solving defensive pressure. I am perfectly fine with attempted bicycle kicks, rainbows and other creative “tricks” as means to solve pressure.  However, there does need to be a proper balance struck between spectacular tricks and simple play. Finding that balance, knowing when it is appropriate to attempt the spectacular and when playing simply is called for is part of the learning process.

Good decisions are a product of experience, but experience is often gained from having made poor decisions.

I do not want to stifle development of problem solving skills through a risk aversion style of play.  Playing it safe might be the prudent course in pursuit of wins, but if we want to find the next Messi or Ronaldo we need to encourage players to solve pressure of their own initiative while recognizing success in terms of a win might be sacrificed. 

“Failure is simply the opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently” Henry Ford.

 We admit our mistakes.  We learn from our mistakes. We do not repeat our mistakes and through this process we develop game intelligence or soccer IQ that allows us to play the game simply.  The process of learning to play simply is a long and difficult one. It is often sacrificed when winning is emphasized over development in youth soccer. Also lost are the basics that allow the world to refer to soccer as The Beautiful Game. 

"I play very simply. That's what it's all about. Playing simple football is the hardest thing." Johan Cruyff   

So it is that I measure success based on the development of a player’s ability to play simply. Not solely the ability of a player to make the simple plays, but his ability to think the game in a manner that simplifies the decision-making process. Eliminating one mistake at a time and replacing it with a better choice until keeping it simple is the habit and playing simply becomes instinctive.

The only way to achieve this is to allow players ownership over their play, their decision making, their mistakes, the resulting knowledge and self-improvement on the field. 

Spectacular plays?  

Playing simply?

Are these not contradictions?
 
When I work with Goalkeepers I stress the importance of making the routine plays.  I never have a goalkeeper practice making spectacular plays.  Never. I am secure in the knowledge that if they are fundamentally sound and can make every routine play, they will make the spectacular play when required to. This philosophy has proven to be true time and again.  The same holds true with field players.  When they are fundamentally sound and comfortable with the ball at their feet, they will be capable of spectacular plays when pressure dictates a need for such.

Playing simply allows for spectacular plays to be made.

When a team I coach or train takes to the pitch my goal is not necessarily to win the game.   My goal is to see some of the things we have been working on in training shine forth in our play. Nothing more and nothing less.  We have been working on simple things in both technical and tactical senses. Tools for solving pressure. We have also been working on not self-inflicting pressure. Breaking down some bad habits and establishing good playing habits that will allow us to play simply.  By playing simply we should be able to vary our pace of play and manipulate the game and our opponents to our advantage. At the end of the match we will take stock of where we are at and adjust our training accordingly.   

Winning?

Winning is actually a smaller picture focus  for us.  I am confident that as our ability to play simply develops, both individually and collectively, wins will follow. And that is the focus we must have in youth soccer if we are to develop our own Romario, Maradona or Pele.

The theme that resonates throughout this article and the root difference between foreign developmental models and those of the United States is quite simple in and of itself. The rest of the world focuses on developing soccer players first and putting winning teams together second. Here in the United States the emphasis is on assembling teams to win as early as possible.  The United States are indeed producing players who know how to win but are found to be lagging on the international stage and will continue to do so until the emphasis in youth soccer switches from winning to developing.