Future of a left back?

Discussion in 'Youth & HS Soccer' started by CornfieldSoccer, May 26, 2016.

  1. Practicemakesperfect

    Liverpool
    United States
    Sep 8, 2017
    There is a very slim likelihood of that happening. I train a youth national team player who is a lefty. Although that is her role on the national team, she plays all over the place with her club teams. Enjoy the ride and be happy that your daughter is a lefty.

    Www.instagram.com/jjsoccerdrills
     
  2. Terrier1966

    Terrier1966 Member

    Nov 19, 2016
    Club:
    Aston Villa FC
    Scanning through all of this, i'd say the feedback is by and large accurate. A couple of points:
    Colleges are always looking for left-footed players...they make up ~14% of players and are in short supply.
    Parents of young players who play mostly defense should politely and proactively seek to have coaches give their sons/daughters time up the field when possible.

    I always stress that training is the place where players develop but game situations are great, especially for dealing with 360 pressure. No matter how hard a team trains, it isn't the same pressure and stress as a live ball situation against kids who want to take the ball from you and put it in your net.

    I think twice in 10 years I have asked a coach a question about my son's position, time etc. Once it was "why do you want him at outside back?". I told him I was not questioning the decision, I just wanted to know why.

    If your son is moved to outside back because they are fast, skilled and capable of playing touchline to touchline that is logical and it could potentially be the right position for your son and for his team.

    If he is there because they are 'sticking' him there, then you have a different issue. You have to know your player and have some objective viewpoints on their ability and potential. You also need to know what you are trying to get out of 'this'. If your son is playing on a top team and has the physical skills to play at a higher level then you need to make sure they have fun etc. but seek out the best circumstance for their training, position etc. If your son is good but unlikely to play beyond HS then I would suggest not being unhappy at left back (or any position) and playing on a team where he can feel like he is having fun and the work is worth it relative to the enjoyment.

    So, whether it is a club coach you trust, a camp or a visit to train with another team you benefit from that objective view of your player and their potential. Nothing could be worse than trying to force your son or daughter into a role/team they aren't qualified to play...that will lead to frustration and dissatisfaction.
     
    TheKraken, kinznk and mwulf67 repped this.
  3. CornfieldSoccer

    Aug 22, 2013
    I appreciate the discussion here, and the feedback.
    I admit some of my concern here comes from the perception other parents have of kids who play defense, and from that general lack of appreciation for the role (Klinsmann, after all, famously once said anyone could play left back -- with tongue in cheek, I think).
    My son moved himself to left back so, as many of you say, as long as he's happy out there, so be it. That he played every minute of the team's first tournament of the season seems to indicate the coach believes he can rely on him.
    If playing with three in the back, as this team now does, limits his chances to get up the field and makes him less happy with what he's doing, I'm on board with him approaching his coach to see time in another position.
    As for what the long-term goal here is, that's up to him. He's 12 and would like to play beyond high school, so that could easily change. And there are lots of ways to play beyond high school if you don't have pro-type talent or the kind of talent that gets you to a major DI program. A number of kids from his club go on and play some kind of college soccer, but most aren't getting scholarships, playing at Indiana or Maryland, ...
     
    bigredfutbol repped this.
  4. Terrier1966

    Terrier1966 Member

    Nov 19, 2016
    Club:
    Aston Villa FC
    If he is 12 and having fun playing then you are doing well. The road gets interesting as the boys hit puberty etc. By 16, so much changes in terms of who is 'good' and who used to be good.

    There are plenty of "sample size of one" stories on here but most of the success stories include making sure the player has good coaching, trains with strong players, has fun and has supportive parents.

    If he is a strong player then people will take notice and you will probably get some good advice along the way of what to do next. Hopefully he has a good foundation on skills and wants to get better...then genes determine a lot of what happens next.

    At 14 or 15 you will have a pretty good idea of where he is projecting...my personal belief is speed is the number 1 indicator of high end capability. The players have to be fast but also play fast. Fair or not, most coaches will take an A minus skill player with A+ speed over a A+ skill player with B+ speed.

    There is a line from "Charlie Wilson's War" about teaching admins to type that I won't re-print, but to paraphrase, "you can teach 'em to dribble but you can't teach 'em to be fast".
     
    bigredfutbol repped this.
  5. CornfieldSoccer

    Aug 22, 2013

    Mixed bag for him here -- he has athleticism from my wife's family that my genes would never provide, and good foot speed as far as covering ground quickly. But he only plays fairly fast -- moving the ball, getting it off his foot. It is something he works at, though. He also has height, at least to this point, which -- fairly or not -- a lot of coaches seem to latch on to.

    It is interesting watching the core group of kids he plays with move up and down the pecking order as they change physically. I spotted a kid at one of my son's cross country meets a few weeks back who, when they were all 9 and 10, was absolutely dominant among the local soccer kids. Genetics have not been kind to him since then, I would say, and he's dropped out of the top local tier entirely.
     
    bigredfutbol repped this.
  6. nysoccerdad

    nysoccerdad Member

    Apr 18, 2016
    Club:
    FC Barcelona
    What age group is this?

    I feel strange that no one seems to seriously challenge the notion that defenders are usually not the best players on the team.

    My son's team always plays the best all-around player at the CB position. Is it just us? It has been like this since BU9. He is playing U10 now.
     
  7. CornfieldSoccer

    Aug 22, 2013

    U12 at the time I started the thread, u13 now.

    And I should add that the new coach -- new as of this fall - frequently does play either of the two best players on the team at CB in 3-player back line. Previous coach liked a back four, and they didn't give up much.

    I should also add that the new coach has, at least as of a tournament last weekend, started moving my son around -- some LB, some MF (left and sort of central) and some forward on the right in a front three. He played in the midfield and as a forward a lot before u12, but looked lost at the latter this weekend (it's been a while). Midfield was better, and he said he was pretty happy to get tossed in there.

    We'll see what happens -- this coach so far seems to like to stick with one back line the vast majority of the time. Not sure exactly what it means that he moved my son out of that rotation for most of a couple of games.

    I will say this, though -- the team is really doing a nice job of moving the ball around and moving off the ball for each other (lots of speed and athleticism, but very little long ball and very little of the forced, frenetic pace you sometimes see). They're getting to be pretty fun to watch.
     
  8. mwulf67

    mwulf67 Member+

    Sep 24, 2014
    Club:
    Chelsea FC
    No, I don’t think isn’t that uncommon to place very good players on defense or in the CB position in U-littles…

    But let’s be honest, in many case, U-little coaches play their best/better players at CB, in large part, because it helps them not lose or to lose not quite so badly, which can be just as “important” as winning…

    I think the question is does playing defense/CB, more or less full time, negatively impact the development those players and/or their perception/value, in the eyes of others, when moving to the next level, whatever that level maybe…

    The irony could be that being “very good” at 10 could cause you to play a position that makes you “worse” at 15….
     
  9. nicklaino

    nicklaino Member+

    Feb 14, 2012
    Brooklyn, NY
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    When your doing a team you like your best players in the center of the field. You can start that from the back to the top. So a center back might be the best player on the team he can also defend and attack. The game is about match ups. If your a weak player and the coach try's to hide you in the back. You might be facing the opponents best attacker. That is a bad match up for the player playing a back. Coach who put their weak players in the back are not good coaches.
     
  10. nysoccerdad

    nysoccerdad Member

    Apr 18, 2016
    Club:
    FC Barcelona
    Very concerning if true. The system fails the child in this case I think.
    I have been a strong activist in a player-rotating system for some time within the team and the club. Not necessarily solving the above issue but will help, I believe.
     
  11. nysoccerdad

    nysoccerdad Member

    Apr 18, 2016
    Club:
    FC Barcelona
    I cannot state as assertive as you do but yes what you said is consistent with my observation in the area (NY).
     
  12. CornfieldSoccer

    Aug 22, 2013
    That was, in a nutshell, the bulk of my original concern here. You can occasionally see a version of this happen at forward, too, I think -- the kid who is fast and athletic at u8 gets plugged in up high (perhaps because, again, the coach values winning above development), and is never really asked to do anything other than score (and parents/teammates look at the player as a great player because they score, right up until they find they lack the skills to really play).

    At any rate, I am curious to see what the return to a move-around-the field system with my son's new coach means. U12/U13/U14 seems to be where kids start locking into primary positions, so the timing it's a little surprising, but the new coach seems to value versatility and ability to play the total game. I talked to him a bit last night and he said the right things -- "I want my forwards to be my first defenders, back line to be part of the attack, ..."
     
    mwulf67 repped this.
  13. lncolnpk

    lncolnpk Member+

    Mar 5, 2012
    Club:
    Chicago Fire
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    That's funny my kid's coach says the same thing.
     
  14. StrikerMom

    StrikerMom Member

    Sep 25, 2014
    This is my dd's coach's philosophy too. And I agree that in youth soccer coaches tend to put stronger players in the middle of the pitch. But the LB position I've noticed is treated differently. That position seems to be where lefties are pigeonholed regardless of their skill which I would probably be concerned about too if it were my child under the age of 15. Just because it won't help him be confident using his other foot in pressure situations. And also I've seen LB's not make state teams or lose their spot overnight to a new more skilled/dynamic striker or CB maybe because it's seen as a one-dimensional position.

    Now a left-footed CB is something special. And a leftie CB who can organise the back, accurate short/long passes, drive, create and start the attack I would think would go very, very, very far.
     
  15. nicklaino

    nicklaino Member+

    Feb 14, 2012
    Brooklyn, NY
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    I think part of the fun of playing a back now is being able to play defense well 1v 1 and group defense. Then after the ball is won he can attack space where ever that space is. So he can sometimes overload a side. Plus he can change positions with players further up the field and can shoot and score. There are times you might not want him to do that. But if you work with the player so he can see what his team mates are doing on attack. He will know what he can do it and when he can't do it.. the player today can do a lot more as a back then I was allowed to do when I played. The one thing I was allowed to do was you had permission to take on your first defender. Beat that first defender you created more space to pass to others just from doing that.
     
  16. CornfieldSoccer

    Aug 22, 2013
    I looked back and it's been more than two years since I threw this question out there. All the good advice I received here played out well over those two years -- my son continued to be mostly a LB (CB in a back three on a separate team he played on this past summer), asked to start the attack, switch the field, take some FKs, ..., and almost never comes out of games.

    But this all may be about to be tested, and I'm curious to see how it works out. His coach is apparently telling the backs on the new version of this team (now a mix of 2004s and '05s playing u15) to just move the ball to the attacking players as quickly as possible and not worry about carrying it when they can, making good overlapping runs, ... I've heard early complaints from my own son and, through the parents' grapevine, from others. I'm not sure why the change in philosophy -- maybe concern about playing true U15 teams as a team of mostly u14s? -- but I'm curious to see how it'll work.

    An interesting factor for my son is that a coach at a camp he went to this summer decided he needed to be a forward as they assigned them to teams for the week, and he had a good week doing that, had fun, ... I'm curious if he'll wind up wanting to make a move of some kind (if it's even possible).
     
  17. Terrier1966

    Terrier1966 Member

    Nov 19, 2016
    Club:
    Aston Villa FC
    There is an old rule of thumb that players move back, never up.

    From our experience, coaches want you to be something and be good at it versus it being unclear what your role might be.
     
  18. StrikerMom

    StrikerMom Member

    Sep 25, 2014
    You're probably right about that - except the L/R forward and L/R back - in the women's game I see many players that play both positions throughout the season.
     
  19. Terrier1966

    Terrier1966 Member

    Nov 19, 2016
    Club:
    Aston Villa FC
    Indeed, I could have been more clear...I meant over years.
     
  20. StrikerMom

    StrikerMom Member

    Sep 25, 2014
    Our L/R backs are expected to slide into the CB position if the CB is out of position for whatever reason and the DM hasn't been able to drop. They are also expected to be involved in the attack at the other end of the field. And of course they are expected to mark the speedy wingers out of the game.

    A hard position that's for sure. Especially because not all teams are skilled enough to use their midfield properly so the ball gets moved up and down the wings a lot.

    @cornfield soccer - is he fast? Is he tall? Can he cross well?
     
  21. CornfieldSoccer

    Aug 22, 2013
    Pretty fast over distance, but only average quick over short spaces. He is tall for 13 -- 5-9 or 5-10 -- and has a decent cross (though he's pretty one-footed -- he'll go to great lengths to get the ball on his dominant foot, his left). He's also pretty good at playing with his head up and getting the ball off his foot in a hurry.

    The new emphasis as he's described it would seem to take away a lot of his strengths: pushing up the line, carrying the ball, looking for teammates to send a diagonal ball to or switch it to across the field, overlaps, ..., in favor of stay back, play D, and, if you do get the ball, slot it to the nearest midfielder.

    We'll see how it goes -- first games this weekend. A U14 team in his club that's short on attacking players is already calling for guest players for the weeks ahead. Maybe he can spend some time with that team, too.

    Though I do get Terrier's point and tend to agree that that players do seem to work their way back as time goes on rather than foward -- after a certain point (u15 or 16?) it seems like almost everybody on the field was their team's best attacking threat at u8 or u9.
     
  22. StrikerMom

    StrikerMom Member

    Sep 25, 2014
    That's true!

    So you're worry that because the coach is worried about being exposed at the back he won't get to attack much and lose that aspect the game. I wouldn't worry about that because if the other teams are bigger and stronger moving the ball through the midfield may not always work and if your son forces a turnover he can bring it up the wing on the counterattack. So maybe things will work out better than you expect. Keeps his attacking skills up when you can maybe through being a guest player or futsal.

    If he's going to be tall have you thought about left CB? It's so nice to have a true lefty in that position.
     
  23. MySonsPlay

    MySonsPlay Member

    Liverpool FC
    United States
    Oct 10, 2017
    #48 MySonsPlay, Aug 30, 2018
    Last edited: Aug 30, 2018
  24. MySonsPlay

    MySonsPlay Member

    Liverpool FC
    United States
    Oct 10, 2017
    #49 MySonsPlay, Aug 30, 2018
    Last edited: Aug 30, 2018
    This is exactly what has happened to my left footed youngest son. After spending his youth soccer career from U10-U15 playing up top and on the wings, both sides depending on the coaches preference, and from U16-U18 at left back with the occasional left wing play, he is now a starting left CB on a Division 1 team.

    This thread caught my eye because of his journey. I remember distinctly the first time he played at left back during his u15 season. He was so disappointed and thought of it as a demotion. His mother was upset. I was thrilled. He had come to a point where he needed to see the game differently. He had all the skills necessary to be a very good left back. Which eventually he did, and got him the chance to play at the D1 level.
     
    StrikerMom repped this.
  25. CornfieldSoccer

    Aug 22, 2013
    My wife and I were puzzled, to say the least, when he moved himself back to LB. When I coached him in rec soccer he always considered his turn on the back line to be punishment. But, similarly, he had the skill set to do well at the attacking part of being a fullback, and has learned to be pretty good defender. And his game vision is miles better than it was as a forward or midfielder (age and experience no doubt help).

    Well done by your son. I hope he's enjoying himself.
     

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