Instead of getting into fights with the New York Yankees, it would be nice if MLS would join the fray for a few of the young talents on display in Iquique and Tijuana. In reality, MLS needs to increase its commitment to youth in general.
Chile is hosting the South American under-17 championships while the CONCACAF version currently underway in Mexico and having had the chance to watch many of the games so far I think these are two more boats that the league is missing. It would be rather easy to put together a dream team of these pre-shaving starlets that would embarrass many MLS sides.
There are the usual suspects like Brazil and Argentina who could contribute. Right back Crystian and attacking-mids Wellington and Coutinho are helping Brazil in the fight for their ninth title at this age level.
However, goalkeeper Damián Martinez, forward Daniel Villalva and defenders Leandro González and Estéban Espíndola are representing the albicelestes very well.
Uruguay (D Diego Polenta, F Bernardo Laureira, F Adrián Luna) and Colombia (DM Deiner Córdoba, AM Edwin Cardona, F Wilson Cuero) are loaded with talent. Chile (D Enzo Andía) and Ecuador (LB Cesar Villacís) have players that could step into MLS without missing a beat while Bolivia (Samuel Galindo, 17) and Peru (Joazinho Arroé, 16) have playmakers that would be among the best in MLS right now.
It is not just the South Americans. Look at the United States squad that Wilmer Cabrera has put together. Why hasn’t MLS tried to sign Jack McInerny or Stefan Jerome? Anywhere else around the world and third generation striker Joseph Gyau, Carlos Martinez and Sebastian Lletget would also be signed up by a pro club and being groomed for the future.
As it stands, none of them is on a pro club. Almost every player in the South American tournament is already in a professional environment. Look at the next level and it is even worse. There are players like Danny Cruz (Houston), and the Dallas-foursome of Josh Lambo, Peri Marosevic, Brek Shea and Anthony Wallace. And Jorge Flores is on the Chivas USA roster, but he had to go through an American Idol like process to get there and he is going in the wrong direction with only 16 minutes played this season.
Hertha Berlin (Bryan Arguez), Club Brugge (Jared Jeffrey) and Southampton (Kyle Davies) were stepping up where MLS teams feared to tread. Davies has returned to MLS with Salt Lake, but add all of the MLS youngsters together and it’s a grand total of 38 minutes played.
Compare that with 19-year-old Colombian playmaker Sherman Cardenas who has already played more than 100 games for Bucaramanga and Millonarios.
Around the world, more and more leagues are mandating domestic youth participation. Maybe it is that they start, or play a certain number of minutes – but Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Mexico, Bolivia and Chile are all on board. Heck, even Australia, Malaysia and Scotland have mandated that clubs give more opportunities to younger players.
MLS has its much-ballyhooed Generation Adidas, but the current class is only ten deep and half of them are not playing. Most of these ‘youngsters’ are already so old that elsewhere around the world their futures would have already been written.
While Don Garber is admitting that US fans want to see a better product on the field, the decision to abandon the reserve squads this season looks penny-wise, pound-foolish. Sure, it is saving a bit of money on the short end, but it has cost playing time and roster spots for promising talent for the future.
Sure, getting another star player on every team is a worthy goal, but MLS needs to increase its commitment to growing the game with young talent, both domestic and international.
April 27th, 2009 at 2:20 am
Phil – love listening to you and Ray commentate. What a team. Could you please pass this along to Ray, think he might get a kick out of it. Cheers!
Few weeks back, Barca game was shown on tv without Hudson/Schoen commentating.
Barcelona without Hudson is like a day without sunshine…
April 27th, 2009 at 7:53 am
Phil,
We are only in the 2nd year of the US Soccer Academy program. I have attended a few games here, as one of the local clubs Carmel United joined.
I have seen some bright spots. The Chicago Fire Academy team was down here. They looked very good. Those kids do not pay to participate. They had a diverse group of kids. I was very impressed with the quality of their play. The Crew have their academy team too. My understanding is a lot of those players came from Friedel’s PSA.
I agree that MLS needs to give their teams incentives to use the talent they are developing from the academy programs. The current rules makes it too risky to gamble.
Like I said, we are in year 2 of the academy programs. We have MLS and some European clubs running academy programs here. The present is not perfect, but I am hopeful the future will be better.
(BTW, our inner city program here in Indianapolis, we are already finding a few savants in the elementary level. The key is after school programs on the playground working with school districts – not clubs. Back to an inclusive system, not a country club system. The club system is broken).
April 27th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
elprincipe -
I’ll pass the comment along – it was a majesterial comment
April 27th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
Paul
re: the Academy and MLS youth teams (esp. FC Dallas’s)
It’s a start – and perhaps a US hybrid, but in my mind it’s nowhere near enough to take the US as a footballing nation to the next level.
1) we need to identify and utilize coaches who will not allow creativity to be beaten out of the kids for the sake of physical efficiency.
2) MLS needs to sign kids to youth/schoolboy contracts by the age of 16 at the latest to get them into the pro development scheme
3) safeguards – like college scholarships, tutors, academic benchmarks – need to be put in place as a safety net for the players that don’t make the grade.
Otherwise, we’re destined to be another England where hard work and a big heart take the place of true skill. And that’s just not going to cut it in the modern game.
April 28th, 2009 at 1:06 pm
Just wanted to say that you and Ray are by far the best soccer broadcasting team on the planet. You guys can even make games that aren’t to exciting still fun to watch with the commentary you provide. Keep up the good work. Now if GolTV would only go HD!
One last thing. I agree with Ray on most things, but for the life of me I can’t understand his fascination with Arjen Robben. I am a Real Madrid fan and I think Robben is one of the worst transfers they ever made. He’s always injured, never passes the ball, dribbles aimlessly and has no right foot. Just had to get that off my chest. Now I feel better.
Will
April 28th, 2009 at 2:38 pm
VICTOR WHO? he doesn’t even compare to our SPIDERMAN ST IKER! What about the MIRACULOUS saves that Casillias makes time after time? Just because he makes it look easy doesn’t mean that it is! I loved it when Ray said after one of Iker’s saves “are you watching Victor, that’s how it’s done”!!!! I couldn’t have said it better myself! You and Ray are the best “for my money”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Loyal Fan,
Kari Nell
White Lake, MI
April 28th, 2009 at 9:46 pm
Three or four years ago – Valdes and Iker were dead even. Heck in late 05-06 they even both started playing poorly.
The difference is Iker has fully rebounded, while Valdes has only rarely showed flashes of the promise.
It maybe has a bit to do with the talents of the keeper coaches Unzué (B) and Canales (and Cano and Tancredi before at RM), but probably it has more to do with what they have to work with.
April 28th, 2009 at 9:52 pm
I agree and disagree.
(No – I’m not running for Arlen Spector’s seat in Pennsylvania! 
Robben has more talent and ability than 99 percent of the players out there.
BUT:
1) He’s always injured
2) He’s got tunnel-vision and is extremely selfish
3) (Although less than before) he flops rather than fights through the bumps.
I think 1 and 3 could be forgiven (and perhaps even avoided) if he would correct #2.
Phil
May 1st, 2009 at 5:41 pm
I could not agree with your assessment more. It seems like many people realize the lack of opportunities for young players in MLS is a problem. My question is why does MLS not see the problem?
May 1st, 2009 at 6:26 pm
What about Gerson Mayer, he leads MLS this week with 4 assists for Chivas USA. He came up through their academy system. I guess he didn’t fit your mold though. or Jozy Altidore, who is exactly the sort of player you’re arguing we need more of. Look, the problem is that the US lacks more players of Jozy’s caliber. If there were more of them, then you’d see more 17 year old kids on MLS teams. But that problem lies outside the scope of MLS or the USSF and has more to do with culture.
Theres is a lot of room for improvement, but let’s face it…..it’s not like we’re exactly holding back players that would otherwise take the world by storm.
May 1st, 2009 at 6:47 pm
Until MLS changes the rules allowing clubs to sign players they produce in their “youth academies” we simply won’t see the development model employed in most other countries around the globe. While college soccer is not the factor it once was, it still has an effect on just who is willing to sign away their amateur status and go pro without the safety net of an education. I am curious as to what you would have Garber change.
All the best,
BellusLudas
May 1st, 2009 at 7:11 pm
While I agree in general that trying to prepare younger players for the professional game is a good idea I have two important issues to bring up:
1. Money – Who is supposed to pay for this and is it truly the best use of the money?
2. College – American views on the importance of college are much different than those around the world. How do teams/MLS adapt other countries’ development models to the U.S., how will this change how players develop, and how much variation in results (from the level of success in other countries) should expect from this?
May 1st, 2009 at 7:38 pm
Phil
Then we need send all the carpet bagging English Coaches like Carver back to the UK.
May 2nd, 2009 at 12:30 pm
I think you have to consider the emotional maturity of the average American teen. MLS definitely avoided risks this year in its Generation Adidas class, the youngest pre-draft signing being Danny Cruz at 19, but they’ve been burned so many times in terms of kids who couldn’t handle adult careers at the time that one can see why they do it this way. (They signed a younger guy after the draft, Felix Garcia, who is another case in point about kids with talent not being emotionally ready.)
Bobby Convey was recently asked about turning pro at his age and said “it’s not something I would ever recommend to anyone. I was a cocky kid making adult decisions.”
Pretty strong words there.
Bobby, Freddy, Felix, Santino Quaranta, Eddie Johnson. . . that’s a lot of kids with real talent who signed very young who probably weren’t helped by it in the end. They all could probably have waited until about 19 or 20 and not been at any worse a stage in their careers.
May 3rd, 2009 at 2:50 am
G’day Phil,
I jus wanted to say Phil, that you & Ray make an absolute spot on team mate. I absolute fancy your commentary, analysis, and most importantly, the both of yours passion for the game…….indeed it is, “the worlds most beautiful game” mate!!! When you see Ray mate, could you be so kind, as to pass along the incredible job that he does, and and thank him, and of course yourself, for the most amazin’ job you both do, consistently on GOLTV. You both are a class act and are by far the an absolute pleasure to listen to.
ALSO, BY THE WAY: “BARCELONA” IS THE GREATEST TEAM ON PLANET EARTH ………. AND THE LITTLE ARGENTINE, “LEO MESSI”, IS THE GREATEST PLAYER ON PLNAET EARTH…….I KNOW RAY WILL DEFFINITELY AGREE WITH THIS MATE……EH!!!!!!!! BARCA WILL GO INTO STAMFORD BRIDGE AND NICK A GOAL OR TWO…..PUTTING CHELSEA TO BED IN THE SEMIS OF UEFA CHAMPS. LEAGUE MATE
Both of you keep up the incredible work and don’t change a bloody thing mate…..aight mate…….G’DAY!!!!!!!!!!!
CHEERS,
BRYAN
May 4th, 2009 at 5:17 pm
So, because Preki found one gem on his own everything is alright? Jozy is a good player, but there are a lot of players out there that have similar potential. The difference between here and everywhere else in the world is that the US does not have a developmental set up to avoid good talent from going down the drain.
May 4th, 2009 at 5:20 pm
They do have a rule allowing that. One per year IIRC. However, until the league makes it financially feasible – or sets up a system to cover college costs in case it doesn’t work out – they’re not really playing the same game.
First I would have a true mandate for youth teams and development. It would cost a fraction of what David Beckham costs and would have a long-term and short-term payoff.
Second, I would make sure that the developmental program truly develops talent, not athletes.
Third, I would set up a stipend/scholarship system to make up for whatever they lose from giving up their amateur status.
May 4th, 2009 at 5:20 pm
See above re: college – although it is up to the players to decide which route.
As far as the league – they have to decide if they are truly in this for the long haul.
May 4th, 2009 at 5:21 pm
Not all – but feel free to warm up the bus.
May 4th, 2009 at 5:22 pm
19 is too old. Get them when they’re 13 or 14 into a system – and into the pro system by the time their 16 and they won’t have problems adapting.
It’s the old school boy system back in England – boot polishing, etc.
May 7th, 2009 at 3:34 pm
I can’t tell what is funnier – Phil equating the U-17 players with keeping their options open with MLS not even trying to sign them or Phil touting Bryan Arguez as a place where MLS dropped the ball.
On the first point, how do you know they haven’t tried Phil? How do you know the mistake is with MLS and it’s not just simply the young players holding out for the best offer based on their U-17 performance? Why is the assumption always that MLS has failed when the reality might be that an agent is pulling the strings for his client.
On the second one, your absolute and utter ignorance on the fact that DC United drafted Bryan Arguez and got a nice transfer fee for a player who hasn’t seemed ready for Hertha’s squad and has been in trouble on international duty makes me smile. It shows that for all your position, you are no more educated on the facts of the matter than any yahoo posting on the Internet. MLS got Bryan Arguez at a young age and spun him into some money. That’s a positive example, especially considering he might not have been worth that money.
But let’s ignore the facts and point both barrels at MLS because it’s more fun to do that than to take a reasonable and rational look at the situation. Player development needs to continue to evolve, but ignoring the reality that parents aren’t going to throw their kids into a pro development system before they can start shaving just because the “rest of the world” does that adds nothing to the discussion.
I would expect more of an even-handed look at the developmental academy, the possibility of changes in the CBA to encourage more youth development and an examination of why players return home after finding they overshot their potential instead of a ham-handed screed designed to do little more than pimp a GolTV product.
May 12th, 2009 at 6:22 pm
I think they do see it – but feel as though they can spend their $$$ more wisely elsewhere. Short term that looks good, but in the long term it’s a waste.
May 12th, 2009 at 6:22 pm
They just did – well, they allowed them to sign even more of them. What do you think about them apples?