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ZenFooty Blog Archive - April Maximize Playing Time or Maximize Club Revenue? Published on Wed 04/29/2009 | 24 total comments Well now isn't that the question of the day? So, do you want your club to survive financially or do you want your kid to get playing time. Its all about roster size and finding the balance between paying the fees that come with running a club program all while making sure that each player gets substantial playing time (translation: that the roster is small enough on any given team to get each player some meaningful minutes on the field). ZenMaster comes down firmly on the side of the player. I say keep the roster size as low as practical to have quality training sessions and to avoid the risk of having too few players for any given outing. Will this make a club rich? Not financially!! But it will raise the quality of the development experience for every player involved (and that is the definition of rich in my book). It also allows for more closely aligned talent levels of the players on the teams. Bigger teams result in huge talent disparity between the better players and the lesser experienced players. This is not good for either. The better players are not challenged and the lesser players lose confidence. I say keep the talent aligned wherever possible so everyone grows. Now, having said that, I must stress that "EVERY PLAYER NEEDS PROPER TRAINING;" not just the most experienced or the least experienced players....EVERY PLAYER HIS THE RIGHT TO GROW. So I do NOT believe in padding rosters for financial gain (or even solvency). I believe in bringing the game to the kids. Please remember though, that if there is not enough balance, we may never be able to afford high quality trainers to develop our children appropriately. So what say you? Are we padding the rosters too much? Is your kid getting enough time on the pitch? Are they getting any better? At what cost? ZenMaster takes the side of the Lorax in Dr. Seuss...I speak for the trees, let 'em grow! « comments » Falling In Love With Skills? - Be Careful Published on Sat 04/25/2009 | 12 total comments We have fallen in love with tricks and moves like "Around The World," "Double Scissor Push," "The Rivelino," "Zidane 360," and so on. I love to see these skills!! HOWEVER, this may well be useless if we don't learn how to put these moves to effective use!! We are now playing futsal and have had incredible 2v2 games in the racquetball courts!! Our 1v1 skills are getting better than ever. But have we really learned how to win in the big outdoor game? We love to beat our man, over and over again (sometimes we even wait for the player we have beaten to catch up so we can beat him again). But do we ever take the "punishing touch" to get past him for good! We love to use our skills to deceive our opponent. However, we are NOT penetrating to goal for the "telling finish" as skillfully as we should be. We have not learned to put our moves to productive use by getting BEHIND the defenders, seal them out of the play, and strike on goal. All of our tricks end up with NO result if we don't work on penetration, combination play, and finishing. Watch the Spaniards, they use skill AND they penetrate fiercely to the finish. Watch Torrez, Kaka, and C. Ronaldo...they use the moves but live for the finish. Falling in love with only the dribbling skills is just as bad as falling in love with shooting alone. Our players must learn to put it all together, short passing, long passing, dribbling, shooting, defending, receiving, and goalkeeping. Above all, we must penetrate!! Otherwise we will build a society of unfinished players who like to goof around with the ball with no goal in mind!! Fun...but unproductive!! What say you? « comments » Do You Really Wanna Be A Pro - Or Are You Just Saying That? Published on Tue 04/21/2009 | 23 total comments Every serious player should ask themselves these questions: Do I really want to be a pro? Am I willing to do what is necessary to separate myself from the other very good players? What is it that distinguishes me from the others? How can I become the "creme de la creme?" How can I raise my game even after I get to the top of it? The ZenMaster says that it all begins with what you believe about yourself and what you are willing to make a commitment to. For example: Are you watching the professional soccer in the US, Europe and South America on a regular basis? Have you set goals? Do you analyze the game or commentate with the sound turned off? Do you follow any pro players that appear to play a style similar to yours? Are you trying some of their moves? Do you read about the game in books, magazines or over the web? Have you set goals? Are you training on your own beyond what is required by any coach or trainer? Do you volunteer to ref and coach the younger players to gain experience? Have you set goals? Have you played every position? Do you seek better players to play against one-v-one? Have you found a soccer mentor? Have you gone to a pro or college game in person? Have you walked on the field or in the locker room? Have you set goals? Do you identify weaknesses in your game and raise them up through long hours of training? Do you identify strengths in your game and make them best in class as compared to others? Do you take charge of a match and demand the ball in the difficult situations - even against older players (2 and 3 years older)? Do you analyze the game afterwards and learn from it win or lose? Have you set goals? Do you know the best defender in the world and why? Do you know the best attacker in the world and why? Do you know the best midfielder in the world and why? Are you a student of the game? Can you adapt to any formation? Can you assimilate to a new team and a new position without loss of ability? Have you set goals? Have you tried out for the state team, regional team and national teams (if old enough)? Do you have the discipline? So you wanna be a pro? These are half the questions.....what say you? « comments » School AND Soccer Are A Perfect Pair Published on Tue 04/14/2009 | 35 total comments Hey players out there!! Don't fall into the trap of "laying off" your studies because you are too busy with soccer training or the hours of practicing on your own!! To be a true student of the game, you must also be a good student in the classroom. My very best developmental players are also very good in school. Not just the grades, but also the commitment to learning and studying. The greatest gift you can give to yourself is learning how to learn. Making your brain work hard will not only help you in life but also in reading the game of soccer. I have also found as a player, and a coach, that having a solid academic schedule along with a soccer schedule keeps good balance in a player's life. Many players who leave high school or college and no longer have the rigorous schedule, lack the discipline to make time for soccer or developing their brains. Don't let this become you!! Get into the good habits of studying and performing in the classroom!! It is the best way to improve your game!! Challenge your brain and challenge your game!! Attack this Spring with a goal of straight As and a great soccer season!! What say you? « comments » Does Baseball Create Bad Habits in Soccer Players Published on Sun 04/05/2009 | 30 total comments ZenMaster Says Yes! Baseball is a great sport......However when a player plays baseball and soccer, they must recognize the tremendous difference between the two. In my experience, the baseball players often maintain fixed positions when they stand in the outfield and have very fixed roles. Unfortunately, this thinking sometimes transfers over to soccer and many players "stay" in their positions when they should be constantly moving to support the play wherever it is on the field. Baseball players watch the ball at all times (except when sprinting to steal a base or when looking at the first and third base coaches when rounding the bases). Every player on the field is a "ball watcher." If you watch the ball in soccer you will get burned. Many of the baseball players who play soccer get burned on defense because they are watching the ball while their man is making a threatening run behind them. When it comes to being constantly aggressive on the field, many of the baseball players are groomed for a fairly passive experience as there is very little contact in baseball outside of plays at the plate and at the bases. The baselines are protected for the runner so there is no tackling or shoulder charges until you get to the base. When it is time to teach the player a give and go in soccer, or a three man combination - the baseball player is used to being on their own offensively when up at the plate. Sure, there is some bunting, hit and run, and other offensive strategies in baseball..but a player has no need to combine with others using the ball to create offense. This develops a mentality in the player that when they have the ball in soccer, they have to be "the man at the plate" as they are in baseball and make the killer pass or score the dramatic goal (a la the home run). This limits the player's thinking in terms of constantly moving the ball around and quickly running to find new space to receive a return pass. Sure, baseball is a great sport and there is wonderful learnings there for youth players. However, it is truly a world away from the fluid masterpiece of soccer where every player is active on every play and responsible for playing every role at one time or another. As a former baseball player, I would say that stealing bases, beating out an infield hit, being part of a rundown, or running to be a cutoff man in a relay throw to the plate were among the most exciting parts of the game. Funny how these are among the most related to soccer. What say you? Does baseball help or hinder the development of soccer players? « comments » |
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