Brad Friedel's PSA Churning Out Some Massive Young Talent

[crewfighter]

I came across a Venezeluan article about some of their players in the PSA who happen to wear Crew jersies and had it translated:
http://crewonespot.blogspot.com/2009/01/1809-crew-lose-out-on-talented.html

An 18 year old that played with the Crew/PSA, Ebby Perez, is headed to a deal with Cercle Brugge of the Belgium First Division. And, now 17 year old Visnu Maharaj is headed to a three month pre-season trial with the Rapids. At 17!

PSA also has Brazilians and Mexicans and etc. So, could McCullers and Hunt please nudge themselves a little closer to Brad Friedel, they are already partners and these kids already play in the black and gold. But, I'm assuming we have no rights to these kids as PSA negotiated the trial for Visnu.

I also figure that since you know guys like Visnu are playing in our jersey, that the Crew knew about him and had the first crack to offer a trial to. But, you know for a 17 year old it's probably a lot easier to make the Rapids roster.

Anyways, someone with a little more knowledge then me on the subject(I think Bill Archer talked about it before). Is it at all possible in the future when MLS fully figures out the academies thing, that PSA will be a full blown academy of the Crew? Or are they sort of at all now, or exactly what is the deal with them wearing our jersies?

Anyways, I hope Cleveland never gets a team and we snuggle up close to this academy in the future. Even if we could get some of these kids when they are 19 or 20 for a couple of years before they jet off to Europe. That would still be a major boost to the Crew and keeping us at the top in the future.

[crewfighter]

Btw, are these at all the same kids who made the deep run in the US Soccer tournament thing, or is that a different team?

I have no clue about the Crew Youth teams except they are looking up this year. Could anyone explain this?

Anyways, even if they are totally off limits to us, if any of these kids turn up to be the next Pele or Diego Messi, we can at least say they played in a Crew jersey for a couple of games. :D Better than nothing.

[mmradio13]

Friedel's PSA academy also had a couple other future stars.

Antonio Beltran is a very tall, quick goalkeeper from LA. He went on trial at Blackburn- not sure what he is doing nowadays. i think he'll end up playing professionally in Mexico.

Andy Lubahn of Erie, PA. Lubahn played for the Crew Academy teams. He was a member of the U-16 national team, then played well enough to play for the u-18 national team, and then played even better there so he traveled with the u-20 national team. He was supposed to go on trial at Cercle Brugge and Werder Bremen, but he did well at his trial at Cercle Brugge and they wouldn't let him leave. i believe he stayed there last summer and is back in the US now. Cercle is supposed to sign him when he turns 18 to a full professional contract. There is already an American goalie on Cercle.

[crewfighter]

Friedel's PSA academy also had a couple other future stars.

Antonio Beltran is a very tall, quick goalkeeper from LA. He went on trial at Blackburn- not sure what he is doing nowadays. i think he'll end up playing professionally in Mexico.

Andy Lubahn of Erie, PA. Lubahn played for the Crew Academy teams. He was a member of the U-16 national team, then played well enough to play for the u-18 national team, and then played even better there so he traveled with the u-20 national team. He was supposed to go on trial at Cercle Brugge and Werder Bremen, but he did well at his trial at Cercle Brugge and they wouldn't let him leave. i believe he stayed there last summer and is back in the US now. Cercle is supposed to sign him when he turns 18 to a full professional contract. There is already an American goalie on Cercle.

Cool, wonder if Lubahn ever played for the Erie Admirals as a kid? I played on their youth teams for a while when I was younger(they had tons of teams). Pretty good program they have up there. Haven't played up there since I was 15, but I bet there are a few other kids from Erie, PA that have done pretty well in college too. Not a bad soccer community up there.

That's pretty sweet. I'll have to look that up. I guess news like that doesn't get as heralded around NW PA as Bob Sanders per say.

[Bill Archer]

The problem isn't one of access or "first dibs" or anything else.. The problem is MLS rules which, among other things, say that you can take one academy product every three years. So among other things if you take one then you're locked out of your own kids for a couple of years.

So if there's someone you really have your eye on you have to wait for him.Rest assured the Crew is very familiar with every one of these players but with the short roster this year there's no room to get a kid GenA'd and then stick him on the reserves roster. With only 24 total spots everybody is going to have to be able to play, and that's going to take a really extraordinary kid.

Plus, a kid has to be with your Academy team for two (or is it three) years before you have a claim to him. Otherwise he gets signed and tossed into the draft like everybody else. And I;m not even sure that the team is that old.

A couple teams have signed kids this year but the bottom line is that it's not easy. The rules are going to have to change before this is a significant source for talent.

[Nonesuch]

Nice info. Bill.

Remember folks, this isn't the same sort of commerce as you find in Europe. MLS is trying to ensure economic survival in a not-necessarily-friendly environment. So, thers's a lot of things you can do in leagues in the rest of the world that you can't necessarily do here.

[PVancouver]

Archer is confusing Developmental Academy signing restrictions with GA signing restrictions, but it was news to me that academy players cannot be signed to standard developmental roster spots, which is appalling. I am having a difficult understanding why this rule is in place. As it is, up to two players per year can be signed (but the second one would have to go to the senior roster, apparently.) If two players are signed, other teams may sign remaining players from your academy team. At some point, teams will be able to sign up to 3 players.

Ives Galarcep has a good article here (http://www.soccerbyives.net/soccer_by_ives/2008/10/a-closer-look-a.html). The only player I know of signed to date is Tristan Bowen for LA, who was signed to a GA contract.

[puttputtfc]

Nice info. Bill.

Remember folks, this isn't the same sort of commerce as you find in Europe. MLS is trying to ensure economic survival in a not-necessarily-friendly environment. So, thers's a lot of things you can do in leagues in the rest of the world that you can't necessarily do here.

Not sure I understand this. I have always thought MLS did a poor job in the transfer market but these youth rules are silly. If a team develops a player why should they not get to sign said player or a cut of the transfer fee?

Any other teams have these youth academies?

[chmk]

Any other teams have these youth academies?

Houston has one and they explain the system here:

http://web.mlsnet.com/t200/youth/academy/

I think tfc has one too

[DetroitTFC]

Houston has one and they explain the system here:

http://web.mlsnet.com/t200/youth/academy/

I think tfc has one too

TFC's started last year. The U-16s were pretty good, the U-18s were pretty not so good, by their records. No active prospects that I can recall. I'm not sure what the motivation is for the clubs to put a lot of resources into the academies, with the current restrictive rules like Bill and others have noted.

[DRWCrew]

TFC's started last year. The U-16s were pretty good, the U-18s were pretty not so good, by their records. No active prospects that I can recall. I'm not sure what the motivation is for the clubs to put a lot of resources into the academies, with the current restrictive rules like Bill and others have noted.

To develop better players in the US.

[zman31]

To develop better players in the US.

I should probably remove my password protection from my WiFi and up the speed that I'm paying for so my neighbors can enjoy the fruits of my labors.

[mmradio13]

I believe Lubahn DID play for the Erie Admirals. He is on the roster for the u18 Academy Team

[crewfighter]

Man, I dislike the MLS with their fairness all the time. Okay, on there being a cap if they bump it up a little but you should be able to do whatever the hell you want with your own academies.

I figure eventually MLS will get to that point. And, when it loosens it's rules we are going to be in good shape in this department. It seems like overall with some of these kids going to Europe that we have a better academy then other MLS teams already.

At least we can sign 2 players a year if we want but the fact that they will not be ready for MLS usually at 17 or 18 doesn't help. Because we can't hold onto our real good academy players of this age because they either go to Europe like Perez or Lubahn who's academies can hold onto them for as long as they have a contract(it's not likely Lubahn will be right on the first team) or like Maharaj who gets a trial with a possibility of signing with the Rapids because Maharaj may be good enough for the Rapids, but not yet for the Crew. Or maybe the Rapids are willing to sign him to a 4 year deal or so hoping he gets good.

Anyways, rather hold onto these kids until there 21 or 22 when they will be ready for the first team. But, there are no U-23 teams, although there should be.

[crewfighter]

Another Crew player in U-18's, Columbus Crew Juniors Chad Barson is headed down under for U-18's USA squad:
http://www.socceramerica.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=Articles.showArticleHomePage&art_aid=30474

[puttputtfc]

Man, I dislike the MLS with their fairness all the time.

New around here?

[fidlerre]

I should probably remove my password protection from my WiFi and up the speed that I'm paying for so my neighbors can enjoy the fruits of my labors.
Yes please...

[crewfighter]

New around here?

Lol, we did win the double right?

For all the breaks they gave LA, look where it put them. I'm of a strong belief that if Columbus wants to compete in the future when they bump up the cap, our academy has to be pretty damn good.

And, we have to do what we have been doing lately with the first team by giving them all good but rather even and non-extradroinary deals.

What we did in 2008 if we can keep that family mentality on the team and keep that awesome support going and improving in the corner, it's going to lead to more talent wanting to come here.

I like where the team is going. I like that they look for the right fits on the first team, hopefully Warzycha has learned about that.

Moves for Padula and Carroll and Ekpo were strokes of genius. While other teams are making pipe dreams with guys like Ruiz, Laurent Robert, Eduardo Dominguez, Cunningham, Gallardo, Marinelli(although I don't think he was that bad, he was waived by KC), and other guys who have been massive failures.

[myshap]

With Friedel's Academy, and for that matter other affliated youth clubs, a distinction has to be made between Crew Juniors and Crew Soccer Academy. The Crew can not "sign" players who are Crew Juniors unless they play on the U-16 and U-18 CSA teams. Crew Juniors is a feeder to CSA which theoretically trys to pick the best of the best from Crew Junior teams from across the state.

http://web.mlsnet.com/t102/imgs/youth/regional_partners.gif

I do not believe either one of those kids mentioned in the original post played on the Crew's Academy teams last year, therefore the Crew have no rights to them.

[danndamanny]

Well seeing as how The PSA/Friedel Academy is no more, hopefully lots of these players still play for the crew academy.