Since the embarrassing 6-0 International loss (the high school team I coach) much in life has improved. Back to back victories 11-0 and 4-2 followed by that 2-1 loss started by a 'muppet' ref giving a penalty with 12 mins left for penalty box dive. More recently the lads dissected their opponents on Monday night with an effective 2-0 home win. It's lovely when the kids you are coaching move the ball around in a manner that simply wears the opponents down and 'lets the ball do the work'.... Also the Happy Hammers are indeed smiling again. A surprisingly fun 4-1 win away at Forest was cracking plus some additions as the transfer window closes and only the departure of Scott Parker (for a few million quid to Spurs). The surprise was to see a couple of academy graduates move on, Stanislas and Hines - still the talent coming through beneath them is superior and the Academy made the club money. He's my take on some of the incoming players...
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| A lot better looking than her |
Guy Demel - friends with Chelsea's Drogba so must be good
Brian Montenegro - from Paraguay, also must be good if named after an entire country
Papa Bouba Diop - anyone with 3 names making no sense is a winner
Sam Baldock - just the letter c away from a last name horror story - talented player
Henri Landsbury - grandson of Angela but a lot better looking
International earned a #16 seed ranking going into the 1A HS season, but the 6-0 thumping put a stop to that. Still, we'll be operating in stealth mode now, slipping quietly under opponent's radar - the best way to see how we are doing in relation to others in Indiana is to go to the Hoosier Futball high school page - here.
The International players have all been down in Southern Illinois at a camp, not for soccer though. Magic place near Ozark, IL. Team Building etc around sandstone gorges etc. Back to business on Tuesday v Cardinal Ritter. Target - a win and conceed no more than 2 goals.
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| Elliot Lee - WHU |
It's an interesting debate - the extent to which clubs commit to a Youth Development Program and whether those players get a chance to play first team football. My friend Mark Roberts, whose son, Matthew, is a hard working lad playing in Toronto sent me these stats on this issue:
By Club- Academy graduates playing professionally
1. Real Madrid (27)
2. Olympique Lyonnais and Barcelona (18)
4 . Stade Rennais (17)
5. Toulouse FC, Atalanta Bergamo (13)
7. Espanyol, AC Milan (12)
9. Stuttgart, Bayern Munich, Athletic Bilbao (11)
12. AS Saint-Etienne, Manchester United, West Ham, Juventus, AS Roma (10)
By Club- First team opportunities
1. Barcelona (9)
2. Athletic Bilbao (8)
3. Stade Rennais, Toulouse FC (6)
5. AS Saint-Etienne (5)
I find the last club-first team opportunities 'list' interesting - there they are, Barca, the team that is re-writing the game of soccer. From what I have seen this year in the Premier League, Manchester United are the closest to adapting. Arsenal have believed in the future of young players but currently are in free-fall following the 8-2 defeat at Old Trafford last weekend. It's also been a shocking start for West Ham's north London rivals Spurs. Following the London riots the opener for them was cancelled. That left an away trip to Man Utd and a home game v Man City. Both ended in defeat for Spurs who find themselves at the foot of the Premier League. I'm sure Spurs will recover, but the Modric transfer talk has clearly unsettled the squad. It'll be interesting to see how soon the media start using that terrible phrase 'too good to go down' if Spurs cannot get some quick points under their belts.
The media have a lot to answer for with respect to unsettling teams and players. Currently Arsenal are spinning out of control, which is incredible considering the intelligence and commitment Arsene Wenger has shown at Arsenal since 1996. Fabregas has been targeted for nearly two years. The constant diatribe from the media has suggested he has been on the way to Barca for ever. Nasri gets added more recently and amid all the uncertainty, which includes Spainish national team players telling Fabregas (via the media) to move to Spain, Arsenal try to start the season. Ultimately they lost both - one to the inescapable pull of Catalan football and the other to a fat wage packet. Spurs have endured the same with Modric. It'll be a challenge to see how they deal with a player who has not moved on but clearly wants to. Modric requested to not be played in the Man City game - Rednapp chose to select him then brought him off at halftime during the 1-4 home loss.West Ham escaped some of the media attention in the end. Parker made a unsurprising move to Spurs and a few big wage earning players who were out of contract moved on. Hammers fans will be happy to see the back of Upson, Dyer and McCartney. Spurs may end up owing their premier league status to Parker, who has the quality and passion to make a difference. Gareth Bale is the litmus test for me. When he is targeted by clubs, media or both as a transfer possibility in the January window then Spurs fans should really worry. Oh, don't be surprised if Jermaine Defoe jumps ship too. Just ask any Hammers fan what we think about him...
OK. Final notes for the day. England - well done for grabbing a professional 0-3 win in Bulgaria - Wales - an even bigger well done for beating a talented Montenegro side 2-1.
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| U18 Squad - Nick (left center coach) |
Have a good week. Happy Birthday Dad.
Interview One
Interview Two
Interview Three
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