Why Futsal is so important to the long term development of soccer players

"In Futsal you need to think quick and play quick so it's easier for you when you move to normal football (outdoor soccer)."  This quote comes from arguably the greatest player of all time, Pele.  As a 3 time World Cup winner, scorer of over 1,000 competitive goals in his career, someone who transcended the sport and is known as 'The King' in his native country of Brazil (read this story to see exactly how revered he is), it is safe to assume he knows what he is talking about.  But what is Futsal and what exactly makes it so important for the long term development of young players?

Futsal was first introduced in the 1930's in Uruguay.  With the national team fresh from winning the inaugural World Cup, Juan Carlos Ceriani, wanted to use this popularity of the sport in his homeland to create an indoor version to be played on Basketball Courts in local YMCA's.  He took the basic elements of Soccer, and derived from other sports - Basketball (5 players), Water Polo (GK rules) and Handball (Goal size).  

The sport, known as Futbol de Salon spread across South America and became immensely popular in Brazil, taking on the name Futebol de Salao (translation: lounge football).  Brazil used it to keep players in shape all year long, as weather has no impact on the ability to play.  Using a size 2 ball with limited bounce, players were able to work their footskills, tricks, flicks and flair - hallmarks of the great Brazilian sides since then.

Eventually FIFA would come calling, wanting control over the sport and with their ability to market it world wide, developed the term Futsal and introduced the Futsal World Cup.  Increasing the size of the ball to a size 4 (for television audiences to see), this is the indoor sport we have now.

When discussing the long term development that Futsal can have for young players of the outdoor game, the mos obvious is the amount of touches a player will receive on the ball.  Smaller numbers on the field allows players to receive the ball more often and as such, find themselves in situations similar to what they would in the outdoor game, with far more repetition of the skills required to succeed in these situations.  Manchester United ran a trial program of their U9 players  playing 4 v 4 instead of 8 v 8 and recorded the technical statistics from the games in comparison to the larger sided variety.  

As you can see, players had more opportunities to pass, score, use 1 v 1 skills and be faced with 1 v 1 encounters.  Although this was an outdoor version of the small sided game, comparisons with Futsal should be made.  It is widely considered that between the ages of 8-12, players increase their technical skills the most, due to how their bodies grow in teenage years.  Being able to paint the pictures of scenarios developing when on the ball on a smaller field with less traffic on the field of play can only be a positive for players still improving their confidence on the ball.  The smaller field helps to eliminate the need to "kick the ball" as a lack of space gives the ball limited places in which it can go.

These skills and comfort in them are vital for a players development and transition to the larger sided game.  Players have less opportunities to receive the ball (on average, players will have 90 touches per game), highlighting the need to make those touches be as clean and as crisp as possible.  Increased repetition, especially in a game situation, will help eliminate mistakes on the occasions players receive the ball.

In Futsal, players are heavily encouraged to use 2 parts of their foot that are either neglected or frowned upon in the outfield game - the sole and (collective gasp) the toe.  The game encourages passing, dribbling, turning and receiving with the sole of the foot.  When it comes to the outdoor game, most coaches I have seen in the US (and I have been guilty of this too), talk about receiving with the inside of the foot, sometimes the outside.  While these are certainly effective parts of the foot to use, the sole has it's uses in particular  situations, such as playing with your back to goal and being tightly marked, or, in the case of this goal by Lionel Messi, wrong-footing a Goal Keeper to allow for a easier finish.

 

Use of the toe brings with it more controversy.  Discouraging kids from using their toe to kick a ball at younger ages is understandable.  Most perform an old fashioned "toe punt", swinging their leg back as far as possible in order to generate power with no sense of aim or purpose.  This is obviously not a benefit for developing the player and it is something that will be found out the older the players get.  A toe poke however, is a skill that is vital when it comes to the 11 v 11 game, especially for players in goal scoring situations.  Disguising the finish when 1 v 1 with the goalkeeper by bending the lower part of the leg from the knee as opposed to the hip and poking the ball past them is a type of finish that is commonly used in the pro game.  As mentioned in this video, there are times where the ball is bouncing around the penalty area and a player may have to stick a toe on the ball to send it towards the goal.

The use of these parts of the foot is highlighted and exaggerated even more in Futsal, with players encouraged to use them in practice sessions and games.  For young players, becoming more comfortable using these extra parts of their foot will greatly assist their ball manipulation skills, especially when in tight areas of the field. 

Spatial awareness is a key attribute for elite level players.  Due to the smaller field and the fact that there is an out of bounds line (as opposed to the Major Indoor Soccer League which used rebound boards around the outside of the court) players have to work harder to make themselves available.  Players cannot switch off and transitions are aplenty. Coaches may even set their Futsal formation to mirror that of a midfield 11 v 11 formation, giving players the opportunity to work on movements and spatial awareness in a microscopic area of the larger field.  Not to mention the limited space really working on a players close control through the worry of losing the ball.

Futsal is a game that is growing a lot of attention worldwide.  Close control, quick thinking and sharp movement are all elements that can be transferred into the larger sided game and a great tool for any aspiring elite player.

Learn more about Premier UK

Sign up for our Brazilian Footskills classes

Like us on Facebook

Parents - for better or worse

One of the common themes from soccer coaches is that parents do more harm than good when it comes to the long term development of their child.  This is not just limited to the youth game.  A  former pro manager I spoke to who once had an ex-school friend of mine playing for him in the English Premier League a few seasons back said that, though he was a good lad, his biggest problem was his Dad.  But do parents get a raw deal?  Are coaches using parent behavior as a get out clause for their own lack of ability and performance?  Or are coaches within their rights to voice their displeasure towards parents, despite the fact that parents often fork out over a $1000 a year for their kids to play the sport?

It must be taken into account, that with the pay to play model in the US, parents are consumers.  They spend their money and as a result, they have the right to voice their concerns to coaches when they disagree with something.  After all, they want what is best for their child and at the same time, they want to see their child play, improve and enjoy playing soccer.  This is totally reasonable and a coach that takes winning as a priority over these things should be spoken to and be made aware that is unacceptable.  I myself had an experience playing for a team (I was only there for 8 games towards the end of a season) where I received a total of 8 minutes playing time, spread over 2 games.  The other 6 games saw me stay on the sideline (1 of which I was asked to run the line - the game hadn't even kicked off and I knew I wasn't going to play).  As a 14 year old who just wanted to play soccer, this was no fun at all, and the costs to play in the UK were, and still are, far less than that in the US.

It must also been taken into account that soccer parents have become far more educated in the game in modern times.  Games are readily available on the TV from all nations, the MLS continues to grow,  the internet allows for numerous pieces of information to be consumed and days where a coach could turn up with an accent and blag his way to run a team are no longer present.  Parents have valid opinions on how the game should be played and, as with most sports, want their opinions heard.

Saying that, is the information the parents are yelling from the sidelines the right thing to do?  Only last week, I heard the shout of "kick the ball!!!"  to an academy age player while the game was in play.  My initial thought was one of "it's soccer...what else is she going to do?!"    There is also the case of information being given to players that might contradict wit what the coach is asking of the players.  A friend of mine had asked his Full Back to give the opposition winger space as he was getting beat for speed time and again by sticking tightly to him.  The shout from the parents side "PRESS!!!"  My friends response to that parent, in his own terms, was not particularly polite.

The best youth coaches are 'teachers' of the game, similar to how teachers at school are 'teachers' of particular subjects.  It is our job to teach the fundamentals of the game, and increase the difficulty as the season progresses.  This means that mistakes are going to happen as kids are improving their understanding of what to do.  Would a parent stand at the back of the classroom in math, shouting "Add!  Add!!  Take it away!!!  NO, NO, NO, MULTIPLY!!!!!!!"?  The answer is probably not (of course, I can't talk for everyone).  Kids would get flustered and be unable to think straight, most probably getting the answer wrong.

Yet, despite this, when it comes to game days at a soccer game, some feel the need to do this exact thing, but in a soccer context.  When a young player receives the ball, they have to think where the defenders are, where their team mates are, where the space is, how close they are to goal and make a decision on what they want to do with the ball in less than a second.  Couple that with potential noise from the team mates, parents and the coach, and that is an awful lot of information to process in a short space of time.  Decision-making and quick thinking is what stands the elite players out from the rest, and the reason for this is that they have been given the opportunity from an early age to make these decisions, whether right or wrong.

I go back to a game I watched where I was standing in between 2 parents, 1 quiet and 1 who wouldn't stop talking to his son.  The boy of the loud parent lost the ball every time it came to him,  the boy of the quiet parent had the freedom to play the game, scored numerous goals (in fact, the only time his Dad said anything was when he over celebrated a goal, telling him to calm down) and within weeks was playing for a professional club's academy in the UK.  Since then, the last I heard, he had graduated to an academy of a Championship club and played for England at schoolboy level.    During that game, you could see the nervousness of the kid with the mouthy parent every time the ball came near him.  Tense players rarely make good players.

Most parents see development as one thing - winning.  This is true in a lot of countries, but especially in the US as the culture permits to going out and taking what you want.  Success is celebrated in this country (as opposed to the UK where successful people are often criticized) and that is a great thing.  But should success be judged on only short term results?  In soccer, this can be especially damaging.  Kids are competitive players.  In the Academy program , where results and league tables are not kept, players will come off and know the 'score' of the game.  However, from an adult point of view, if we want to develop high level players long term, it is important that we do not see this as the be all and end all.  Youth games, especially U13 and below, are often won and lost by speed, size and strength, regardless of whether the players can kick the ball properly or not.  While a nice short term feeling to do so, as though players get older, game intelligence will take over and speed easily negated by teams who know how to do so.  Focusing on the win is doing said players who have raw athletic ability a disservice, as eventually, they will be found out.

Sadly, from a parent perspective, this expectation of winning games can lead them to acting a little too aggressively at times.  Once again, this is not aimed at every parent.  This video is a great example however.  After a 9 year old makes a mistake, kicking it away from his own keeper and out for a corner (not a bad thing.  Maybe the keeper didn't call for the ball), one parent decides to scream "What were you thinking!!!"  What makes it worse, is it wasn't her son.  The poor boy's reaction straight away says it all.

As mentioned before, would this be acceptable in everyday life?  If a kid was to drop a grocery bag and an adult, not related to the boy, shouted at him "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!!!" would this be tolerated?  I doubt it.  Yet during a game of soccer, for some reason, this adult saw it as reasonably normal behavior.

A coach I once worked with, had decided to switch his team around in terms of playing positions and playing time when leading a game 4-0.  The game remained the same.  He later received an e-mail from a parent asking why he did this and his response was that the game was already won and it was a good opportunity to switch players around and let them learn something different.  The parent was not happy with this, stating that in the US you are taught to "crush" the opposition, he did not agree with the coaches decision and that he would not be educating his daughter that way! 

For those players who have aspirations to play Elite level, whether on a national league stage, college or professional, winning a U11 league is not going to play a part in their tryout.  How they think, how they  move, how they control the ball certainly will.  For those that do have that ability, winning a U11 league is not going to play a huge role in their development towards becoming an adult.  Reactions like the one in the video above, or here, very well may do and one would think, not for the better.

It should be said that  most parents are not like this.  They are supportive of their children, allow them to make their own decisions on the field of play and offer encouragement after a difficult performance.  As mentioned in a previous blog, the support they provide on game days in terms of numbers is fantastic and offers kids a great tool in their development for performing in front of watching eyes, whether that be any kind of sport or presentations that they make in later life for their chosen line of work.  However, it is vital that as adults, we do not take wins and losses personally, we do not try and live our sporting dreams through our children and that we act in a way that towards  the players that we too would want to be treated, allowing them to learn the fundamentals, learn the aspects of the game and give them the best opportunities possible for success.

After all, that is what every parent wants.

Learn more about Premier UK Soccer

Like us on Facebook


 

USDA v ECNL - will the girls game improve?

Earlier this year, US Soccer announced that they were introducing the US Soccer Development Academy (USDA) model to girls soccer, with the idea that it would mirror the way the program works for boys in developing elite players.  Similar to the recent changes to the heading rule, age groups changes and sizes of teams, this has created a lot of controversy, namely what will happen in the shape of the current elite program for girls in the US, the Elite Clubs National League (ECNL).  Is the program really necessary considering the USWNT are the reigning world champions and the current no.1 ranked team in the world?

As 3 times World Cup champions and 4 time Olympic champions, it is a fair assumption to make that the development of female soccer players in the US is something that has excelled over an extended period of time, arguably ahead of anywhere else in the world.  Alex Morgan, Abby Wambach, Hope Solo (for soccer related reasons at least) and Mia Hamm are all well known names across the country.  We have also seen the rise of Mallory Pugh into the USWNT, while plying her trade at ECNL level and having a huge impact.

According to US Soccer, the reason for the Development Academy program is that they "want to provide a player centered program that is focused on the development of the individual without bias, distractions, self-interests and financial gains that compromise the optimal everyday environment. We also believe this is needed so we continue to set the standard for world-class players." 

The first sentence of the statement is where the real positive for this transition is obvious - a player centered environment without bias, self-interest and financial gains.  The ECNL was formed by a number of DoC's of  'Elite' clubs.  With this, regardless of the integrity of each individual involved, comes a conflict of interests.  Youth soccer in the US is a very political place, from rec to the elite level, whether it be coaches heavy loading their rec teams to win a 'championship' or board members refusing to give their players opportunities to play elsewhere.  It is perfectly feasible to surmise that those running the program have their own clubs interests at heart when it comes to decisions.  One ECNL coach shared as much with me, stating that it what something he was concerned about, despite being a big fan of the league.

Being run by the national governing body, the USDA will have no such concerns.  Their interests, you would like to think, will be what is best for the players in terms of getting them to USWNT level.  In this sense the program change can only be a positive for players hoping to reach the highest levels of the game in the US, with all being afforded the same opportunities to progress.  It should also be noted that the USSF consulted with the ECNL, detailing that they believed they could improve standards better without them.  No specific reason was given, but you have to think the conflict of interests played a huge role.

Development wise, clubs will be required to have coaches who licensed to at least USSF B level.  Though not in place yet, US Soccer will aim to push towards this in the future.  Though most ECNL clubs will have coaches at this level, it is not a requirement for coaches, as it is the clubs decision who they hire for which teams.  It can be argued that a B license doesn't mean a coach can effectively communicate with 12 year old girls, but it does guarantee a level of standards that the ECNL currently does not.  

It is hard to predict the long term benefits to the changes.  So far, 74 clubs have agreed to be a part of the inaugural season, leaving the ECNL, including NC based teams CSA and CASL.  Where as ECNL can have individual team registering and taking part, the USDA requires the whole club participation, meaning a more filtered pathway for elite players.  This could have a huge impact on smaller clubs, who are already struggling to keep players after the age group changes.  One would surmise that it will ensure the USWNT and college programs have a more specific scouting range as the best players gravitate towards the bigger clubs.  Only time will tell.

Learn more about Premier UK Soccer

Like us on Facebook