I read an article on the Soccer America website by John O’Sullivan. He was very critical of an organization called GotSoccer, who have chosen to rank 9-year old soccer players. Mr. Sullivan was not impressed. For the moment, I am not going to join the argument. Instead I am going to provide the link to the article to allow you to make your own decisions and we would be really keen to hear your observations.
Somewhat in defence of GotSoccer, on the day I read the article I was talking to Ray Hall, who masterminded the development of the Everton FC Academy that has produced some outstanding players over the years – including Wayne Rooney. I told him about the Soccer America article and asked him at what age do they bring players into the system at Everton.
“Age six,” was his response.
So this begs the question, should we in North America start the serious development of soccer players sooner, rather than later?
I would love to get your feedback.
World of Soccer Blog 
#1 by patrick clarke on October 24, 2013 - 1:24 AM
Even if you start from the womb, a vast majority of them will never ever become a pro player.so let the kids play.
#2 by Walt McKee on October 24, 2013 - 1:45 AM
Walt McKee, CSA “A” License Coach, retired educator.
After reading the article I concur with the writer that those wanting the “rankings” are misguided parents, who are not (surprisingly) considering the well being of their child. A young child should be encouraged to run, jump and play for fun at these ages. They do not have the maturity to deal with the unnecessary pressure of performing at an elite level. As stated in the article, the young player becomes burned out early in their overall development, physically and psychologically. Let the Kids play!
#3 by Darren Mitzel on October 24, 2013 - 5:23 AM
I don’t agree with ranking kids at the age of 9-12 as stated in the article. There is still a number of beginners or new players at that age that need opportunities to play the game in a risk free environment. Then as the beginners develop their skill and understanding of the game, they can make a decision as to how far they want to go.
Where there should/could be some increased skills development is in extra play, practice and games is by bringing some of the higher ranked players together. Give them opportunities to be with players of similar skills. Not only practice, but set up friendlies with other clubs. It is frustrating for a skill player to make that smart play to a teammate who then has no idea what to do with the ball after that. The skill player making the play at some point will decide to just do it on their own. If they begin to trust their teammates, then will be more inclined to make that pass. It would be a win-win for all players.
#4 by Itamar Keinan on October 24, 2013 - 2:42 PM
I read a very interesting article this week about the rankings of youth soccer in the US and couldn’t agree more with what the writer had to say:
http://www.socceramerica.com/article/54328/gotsoccer-insanity-ranking-9-year-olds-really.html
The article distinguishes the unimportance of rankings and results in young ages vs. the importance of skills development, learning the game and the emphasis on the WAY rather than the outcome.
I would like to say that it is very important and crucial to develop a winning mentality and the desire to compete to win. However, I too feel that the way to achieve the win cannot compromise the way you play the game. To quote from the article,
“In Gotsoccer, you don’t get ranking points fro style, or possession, or close games. You don’t get points for letting all your athletes have playing time, or putting your fast goal scorer in the back or midfield to develop his all around ability”.
Another part of the article discusses the importance of allowing young players to take risks, give them the confidence to possess the ball and play it from the back, including with your goalkeeper. Most coaches, however, would rather play it “safe” and implement a system in which the fastest player on the team is playing upfront, and the goal of the other players on the field is to get the ball to him up the field as quick as possible. That way there is no risk of losing the ball in dangerous areas and you can rely on the speed (usually not skill) of the striker to score goals for your team. This can work in youth soccer very well, and get you the wins and the points, but this is a very short term solution. The questions that need to be asked are, what do our kids/players really learn about the game playing that way? What kind of development do we see here?
I deeply believe that only a system that will allow a coach to work on the technical development of their younger players between the ages of 6-12 (ages 9-12 are known to be “the golden age of skill development”), will reap the benefits of it down the road and will enjoy a winning team that is truly capable to compete in a higher level.
Another component to that is of course, the parents!!! Parents of young players must realize that it is not about here and now. That win/draw/loss at 8 years old doesn’t determine their young star’s soccer career. Parents have to buy into a bigger picture, to be patient and understand that a coach who truly cares about his players will be less focused on results, but rather on setting goals such as: use of skills, movement off the ball, overlaps, possessing the ball, and moving up and down the field as one unit. Once the player can do all of that in a game the results will follow up, but the process will be full of mistakes and YES, also lost games.
I had the privilege to work with a coach/team last year that did just that. This team was formed a couple of years earlier by a coach who understood that development comes before everything else. More so, this team was a mix of where 80% of the players were cut or didn’t make it on any other team.
For two years they worked with myself and other skills coaches on developing their technical ability. Setting the ground for success for those girls, this coach encouraged them to use their skills and applauded them even when they made a mistake while trying to use them. The results weren’t late to come either, within two years this team became a major force in their age group in the top division.
Coincidence? I don’t think so!
This goes to show that if you put the time to truly develop players’ skills and teach the game you will have a winning team in the long run.
To sum up, this needs to be a collaborative effort of clubs, coaches, and parents. It is a long process that requires patience. But let’s take the focus off this coming weekend end result and test our players based on all the other criteria that really matters.
#5 by Richard Dinnis on October 24, 2013 - 3:15 PM
Hi Tony,Fascinating topic.I believe that technical skills can begin at any age–look at other sports;Tiger Woods and Steffi Graff were playing/practicing at 3 years of age I believe,but team play,whether it be small-sided or larger is non-productive according to the psychologists.
Most of the essay I agree with–it would be great to be listed one of the top 3 in the U.S.,but what
would it do to the mind of someone low down the list.
Just a few random thoughts from an old has-been,Dick.
#6 by Ernesto on October 26, 2013 - 9:57 PM
Even worse…..what about seeing little kids playing in older division ! Many time I see on these soccer field U8 playing U 10 !!! Should we keep our kids playing in a fair and safe soccer competition.? Are coaches killing their confidence and skill ability development by allowing this?
#7 by John D Bada on May 28, 2014 - 2:49 PM
The difference between the gotsoccer rankings and what Everton FC is doing would be that gotsoccer ranks teams while Everton FC was looking for individual exceptional talent. The consequences of the gotsoccer method of youth soccer development is the team and winning are paramount. Big, fast and aggressive players are prized not technical ability. Everton FC is looking for talent (hopefully) not matter how that talent is packaged (big/small, fast/slow, aggressive/meek).
Another difference is gotsoccer promotes games, especially tournaments, while Everton FC holds training in higher esteem. Once again, the consequence of the gotsoccer method is teams are constructed to win tournaments and accrue gotsoccer “points” so they are ranked high. The last I checked, my state, New Jersey, had 5 of the top ten girl’s teams at the u11 level. New Jersey has a proud history of producing great soccer players but I think only a fool would believe that of all the u11 girls teams in the U.S., 5 of the top 10 ply their trade in the Garden State. I believe that the NJ clubs have made accumulating gotsoccer points into an art form. Games are important at the younger ages only in that they provide markers for the skills being worked on in training. Games are fun and exciting and I love coaching in them and the girls I coach love playing in them. But just like most kids would eat only ice cream if left to their own devices the adults in the room who know better need to step up and end the insanity. Ten year olds playing 130 games in a year, come on! There is only one reason for that and its not youth soccer development. Its ego, from the parents who mostly know no better and from the coaches who either need the wins to increase cash flow or to massage their fragile ego that got bruised back in high school (or maybe both).