Spanish Deja Vu...

As I sat watching the U21s first game in Denmark it became all too familiar; An English team chasing Spanish Shadows!

Once again, this time with the youngsters, we saw technique and the ability to find time and space on the ball, conquer an English team that was suppose to deliver so much promise.

Although England came out with a credible draw it was obvious to see to the gap between the two sets of players.  Man of the Match Thiago, currently of FC Barcelona but having only played 13 games looked like a seasoned professional in the middle of the pitch, and would easily fit into any team in the Premier League.

The Spanish U21’s looked every bit capable of reaching the same levels as their senior counterparts and stuck to the same principles and philosophies that have made Spain the current European and World Cup holders. 

Spain enjoyed 64% of the possession and made 690 passes, with a pass completion rate of 86% compared with England’s 36% possession and 370 passes, with a pass completion rate of 80%.  Even more staggering is that Spain made 383 passes in England’s half while England only made 189 passes in Spain’s half. 

Even though Spain conceded a sloppy goal late on, the evidence is there to support this style of total football. 

Having been outclassed by small technical players, the FA must surely sit up and take note and look to implement changes throughout the football pyramid.  

At the TDA we firmly believe in delivering technical fundamentals and teaching the ability to apply that in any game situation.

For more information on our programmes please visit the website www.tdacoaching.co.uk

EURO U21 Preview......Players to watch!!

Xherdan Shaqiri

Shaqiri is a 19 year old Swiss, left footed midfielder.  Currently playing his football at F.C Basel, he has made 11 appearances for the Swiss National Senior team.   

Shaqiri is an attacking winger operating on the right hand side who likes cutting in onto his left foot like so many wingers today. 

He made his mark during the qualification period by scoring a ‘worldy’ against England where he cut in from the right hand side and fired one past a helpless Joe Hart.

                                                      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJAGDUKlEf4

Thomas Pekhart

21 year old Pekhart was at Tottenham Hotspur until 2010, next season he will be playing his football in the Bundesliga with F.C Nuremburg.

Pekhart is a towering centre forward standing at 6ft 2”, and it is this height that helped him to be the top scorer in the qualification period with 9 goals in 6 games!!

His height combined with his technical ability and work rate will make him a big threat in this tournament.   

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgT4I0nLaaw

David De Gea

The 20 year old Goalkeeper currently has the Number 1 shirt at Athletico Madrid having kept 24 clean sheets in 84 games during his time there. 

Has been heavily linked with a move to Old Trafford to replace retired Edwin Van Der Sar.   Critics and peers are predicting big things for the young keeper citing him as the best goal keeper of his generation!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kgyx7tehgw&feature=related

Juan Mata

Mata is a 23 year old Valencia winger who can play on either wing.  Mata is a very attacking, positive player who loves to get forward with a wicked left foot!

Mata has scored 9 goals this season for Valencia and was part of the World Cup winning squad with Spain last summer.

Rumours have been circulating that Liverpool are interested in signing Mata.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZv0GgauQt0&feature=related

Thiago

20 year old Thiago is currently a fringe player at FC Barcelona having scored 3 goals in 13 games. 

Thiago is a versatile centre midfielder playing understudy to Xavi and Iniesta, which is no disgrace.

Thiago’s Father, Brazilian Mazinho was a world cup winner with Brazil in 1994 but Thiago has chosen to play for Spain.

Thiago was a substitute at Wembley for the 3-1 win over Manchester United.  

Thiago will be fresh having not played as much as other players in this tournament and will be keen to show his club manager just what he can do on the big stage.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBBc2xeEWZQ

Years ahead of English clubs

Check out this video of Ajax Academy! So far ahead of English Development its frightening!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vboXBbRfgzY

Changes to Youth Development

Plans drawn up by the Premier League are in place to restructure youth coaching in this country, which could result in those aged 10-18 getting three times as long on the training pitch.

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Under current regulations young players at Premier League Academies, all over the UK, can only receive one and a half hours coaching each week, compared with academies in countries such as Holland and Spain, where clubs can coach every hour of the day if they want.  This continual commitment to youth development is the key to the technical attributes we associate with great players such as Johan Cruyff, Marco Van Basten, Xavi and Iniesta, who are all graduates of the Ajax and La Masia Academy programmes. 

            

The Premier League plans, backed by Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United’s Academy Director Brian McClair, could see those aged players aged 10-18 getting three times as long on the training pitch.

“It’s a fantastic philosophy and we hope that, in years to come, we have more time with young players, to teach them the basics, the technical ability and to have the confidence to take the ball all the time. We’re good at that, but we’re not as good as Barcelona at this moment in time. It’s a wonderful challenge and we can always accept a challenge.”

- Sir Alex Ferguson speaking after the 3-1 defeat to        Barcelona in the Champions League Final.

Current Academy regulations state that young players can receive no more than 3,760 ‘contact time’ hours on the training pitch up to the age of 21.

Young players at the Ajax academy in Holland and Barcelona’s La Masia facility can expect to receive 7,000-8,000 hours of coaching between the ages of 10-18.

  

Another restriction to player development in the UK is that both Premier League and Football League clubs with academy licences, can only source players aged between 14-16 from within a 90-minute radius of their home ground, however that is reduced to 60 minutes for those under 14. In contrast, Spanish clubs can recruit from the whole country.  This ruling is set to be reviewed but it is highly doubtful that the Spanish rule will be mirrored but any change can only bring about positive influences in youth coaching philosophies. 

The move to increase ‘deliberate practice time’, as called for by Ferguson, is viewed as a key aspect of Youth Development and one that will enable leading clubs to produce a new generation of leading players.

By hosting Barcelona in the Champions League Final at Wembley it seems both the FA, and Premier League have sat up and taken notice of other philosophies and are striving to implement them into our youth coaching practices.