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| The U.S. national team's World Cup exit left more questions than answers |
So there's clearly something that those countries (and a few others that have fallen just short) must be doing right, and for all the questions and consternation this week about Bob Bradley, his future and his decision to start Robbie Findley and Ricardo Clark, in the end it's about the players.
U.S. Soccer Federation President Sunil Gulati admitted as much when he met with reporters here in Johannesburg.
"If I coach the team that we all agree has the best players in the world, and whomever we agree is the best coach in the world has the No. 32 team, I'm going to like my chances. Because in the worst-case situation, I'm just going to say, 'Go play'," Gulati said. "Does a coach make a difference? Sure. But I think it ultimately comes down to players."
• World Cup Player Evaluations
• Four Reasons Why US Lost
• Bob Bradley's Future
• US Eliminated by Ghana
And he admitted what's obvious to everyone -- the U.S. does not produce enough world-class talent to compete for a World Cup.
"The expectations have to be realistic. The players that are representing the United States are not players at Arsenal and Inter [Milan] and Real Madrid and Barcelona and Chelsea and Manchester United and so on. The players we're playing against in some of these situations are," Gulati said.
The harsh truth is that when put to the test, Jozy Altidore and Findley couldn't finish, Clark gave away the ball and Carlos Bocanegra and Jay DeMerit were beaten (twice). They are the best we have. For now.
"Everyone in the world wants world-class strikers, and they're at a premium. And that's something, frankly, however we evaluate the coach in a short-term situation like the World Cup, the broader issue is we've got to get better development, better players at the other end of it," Gulati said.
Fans, observers and curious foreigners here in South Africa continue to ask how a wealthy, sports-loving country of more than 300 million people, many of whom play soccer, can't manage to produce a playmaking midfielder, a consistent central defender or a forward who can actually score goals. The answer isn't difficult to find.
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We're contrarians. We ignore the metric system, enjoy free refills at restaurants and play football wearing shoulder pads and helmets. The way the U.S. develops soccer players also flies in the face of global custom, but in this case, it hurts us.
Across the rest of the soccer-playing world, player development is the responsibility of the professional clubs. We see the rich and famous turning out each weekend in red, blue, blaugrana and bianconeri, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. Clubs big and small have reserve teams and youth sides for players at all ages who know that the path to the pros starts in the lower reaches of a given team's system. There, they learn the game from coaches employed by the team and play in local leagues or competitions featuring similar sides belonging to other clubs. Results aren't important -- learning to play the proper way is.
For the teams, the investment is worth it. Either they uncover their next generation of players, or they produce talent they can sell to other clubs. For the players, the incentive is obvious and the pathway clear -- as soon as you're able, get yourself into a club. Once there, the cutthroat competition to make it to the next age group or level creates the hunger and drive all the best athletes have. There's no coasting. That's part of the development equation. The cream rises all the way to the top, where national team coaches can select from the best professionals holding the appropriate passport.
"I don't think it takes a lot of watching to know that [Carlos] Tevez and [Lionel] Messi have a different control of the ball than most of our players," Gulati admitted.
FanHouse has complete coverage of the U.S. national team, including full roster, schedule and story archive.
In the United States, which was without a viable pro league for so long, universities and U.S. Soccer have been responsible for player development and identification. The problems with college soccer are obvious -- players already are relatively old by the time they enter the system, matches and practices are limited, and the physical nature of the game (enhanced by unlimited substitutions) tends to stunt tactical and technical development.
For years, U.S. Soccer has sought out players through the Olympic Development Program, which required kids to compete for spots on district, state, regional and national teams at different age groups. The process was often political and expensive, and in the end had nothing to do with forging good soccer players, but rather picking a few who happened to impress at a tryout.
In 1999, the federation graduated its first class of players from its under-17 academy in Bradenton, Fla. The idea was that an elite corps of players would train year-round and attend school under the guidance of U.S. Soccer coaches, thus replicating the day-to-day environment of a club in Europe or South America. That first group included Landon Donovan, Oguchi Onyewu and DaMarcus Beasley. That was as good as it got. A few pros have been produced since, but not nearly enough to create the competitive environment that would enhance MLS or the national team.
"Success at one level doesn't necessarily translate immediately to the next level," Bradley said.
Youth soccer, so popular in the U.S. now since the 1970s, was disconnected from the top of the pyramid. There was no end to the development track. Therefore, the goal became to win now. Thousands of clubs and teams have been organized to win state cups and do well at an ever-increasing number of weekend showcase tournaments. Players were cut and added according to whether they could help a team win immediately, and because of the pressure put on coaches by the paying parents, there was little patience for long-term development. No other competitive soccer country cares so much about the results of youth soccer games and the standings of youth soccer leagues. Many don't keep standings at all. As a result, American youth players aren't coached with the future in mind. Why teach a striker how to play outside midfield as well, when you need that striker to score your goals in that big under-14 game on Sunday?
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| U.S. Soccer Federation President Sunil Gulati hopes to instill a new values in youth soccer |
Worse, the "pay-to-play" model, as Gulati called it, excluded many disadvantaged youth from participating in the competitions that would get them noticed by college or pro scouts. If Diego Maradona had grown up in the U.S., he wouldn't have been able to afford to play.
Finally, U.S. Soccer and MLS are beginning to change things. There is resistance from entrenched interests who benefit from the youth and college status quo, but most seem to agree that America has been doing it wrong. The powers that be finally are flexing their muscles.
"When you've been lucky enough to see first-hand what the level is like at a World Cup or at a Confederations Cup, your sense of where we need to go with players and how they move up the ladder and all the different factors becomes a little bit sharper," Bradley said.
MLS got the ball rolling slowly prior to the 2007 season, when it unveiled its 'Home Grown Player' initiative. Each franchise was required to start amateur teams at six age-group levels, starting with under-14. Some already operated youth teams that competed in various competitions. The new rule was more than a marketing initiative -- those local athletes who played a part in a given club's youth program would not be distributed through the league draft, but would be eligible to be signed directly to a pro contract.
In addition, the MLS club would keep a higher percentage of a homegrown player's future transfer fee (75 percent) than it would for a normal player. This year, MLS clubs are allowed to carry two homegrown players that do not count against the 26-man roster limit or salary cap. So far, nine players have graduated to their club's full professional teams. Clubs work to reduce costs through their own funding, scholarships or by limiting player contributions to cover some travel.
So why throw down lots of money to play for your local Real Xtreme Premiere Futebol Club, which just promises good coaching and access, when you can train and develop under staff hired by an actual professional team? Players around the world have never had to make that choice. The fact that American kids now can should make a world of difference.
"We haven't created sliced bread here. When we start seeing better players, that's the true result. So you do the right things and you hope it puts people in a better environment."
-- Sunil Gulati assessing the Development Academy's Progress
Later in 2007, U.S. Soccer launched the Development Academy, a new program for talented under-16 and under-18 players who would be removed from the win-now, tournament-oriented world of traditional youth soccer and placed in an environment that stressed training and learning. Existing youth clubs from around the country, along with MLS teams, could enter a team at each age group into the Academy. The players would be ineligible to compete in any other leagues or tournaments (they still can play for their high schools), and instead would play only 30 games per season against other Academy sides while practicing at least three times per week. The cost per player would be only the $5 registration fee required by U.S. Soccer.
"When you make the team, you're given a congratulatory letter, not an invoice," Gulati said.
"We interviewed 14-year-olds three, four years ago and found out that they played 114 games at one particular club -- a game every three days. 'How many times did you practice?' 'Twenty-five, or something'," Gulati told FanHouse. "I think we did a very, very good job of putting a program into place that created a better environment for players quickly. It's against the grain of many people that are involved in youth soccer. And we now have 160 teams, two-times roughly 80 clubs [77 in 2009-10], playing at two age groups, with a de-emphasis on results and a de-emphasis on number of games."
U.S. Soccer monitors the games, assigns the referees and makes its staff coaches available for advice and observation. The Federation said its coaches monitored more than 70 percent of the games in 2008-09. There is a national championship tournament, but it's relatively low-key compared to other national youth events and gives the players the opportunity to test themselves in a playoff environment. MLS clubs are placing their top youth teams into the Academy, and sides representing FC Dallas, D.C. United and the Chicago Fire advanced to this year's finals, which run July 10-17 in Los Angeles. That represents the beginning of MLS's key role in American youth soccer.
"I'm very, very cautious about saying how well it's gone," Gulati said when asked by FanHouse to assess the Academy's progress. "There's a very simple reason. We've created a better environment, so I hope we get better players out of that. But it's much to early to know what. We haven't created sliced bread here. When we start seeing better players, that's the true result. So you do the right things and you hope it puts people in a better environment. The reaction we've gotten from people in the soccer community is extraordinarily positive."
Be sure to stay with FanHouse for complete coverage from South Africa, as columnist Kevin Blackistone and soccer editor Brian Straus will be on location for the duration of the tournament.
Additionally, in April U.S. Soccer appointed former national team captain and English and Scottish Premier League star Claudio Reyna as the federation's youth technical director. Reyna will be responsible for establishing a teaching curriculum for players and coaches.
All of these initiatives are still in their infancy. The countries still competing here in the World Cup, and many that have gone home, have been doing it the right way for a century. But fans frustrated by Saturday's elimination should take heart that the people running American soccer have finally seen the light, and as MLS continues to grow, its clubs' ability to direct more funding toward their youth sides -- and young athletes' interest in pursuing a career in pro soccer -- will continue to grow.
Eventually, down the road, it will pay dividends. Eventually MLS clubs should play the chief role in development, while independent youth clubs may continue to contribute through the Academy or some other mechanism. Obviously cultural issues remain, especially the one that seems to steer American kids toward structured play rather than the free-form pickup soccer that we so often hear benefits foreign players. But U.S. Soccer and MLS can't change decades of American habits. They can change the player pipeline, however, and transforming it into a club-based system that focuses on development rather than profit or results is the way to go. It's a long road, but it's the right one.
"Progress is not linear. France went home. Italy went home. The two finalists [in 2006] went home in the first round," Gulati said. "The more important part of the long-term process is that our cycles are at a higher level, that the play is better. Nobody needs to remind me that the first touch of many of our players is not what it is on many of the Argentine players."
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