Moved from mid to right back....and liked it

Discussion in 'Youth & HS Soccer' started by jeremys_dad, Apr 8, 2013.

  1. jeremys_dad

    jeremys_dad Member

    NYC Football Club
    Apr 29, 2007
    The Big Easy
    Club:
    Paris Saint Germain FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    Claims his muscles have changed to allow him to get squatting down position that killed him before. Comes up-field a fair bit. Besides those skills. there has to be some amount of vision and knowledge to be acquired from changing views. Just never saw him being there.
     
  2. bigredfutbol

    bigredfutbol Moderator
    Staff Member

    Sep 5, 2000
    Woodbridge, VA
    Club:
    DC United
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I always thought my kid would be best as a D-mid or holding mid. He does play there a fair bit, but both his club coach and his HS coach favor him out wide. I guess I didn't think he had the speed but he does OK. And anyway, it's good to learn different positions.
     
  3. bajanyankee

    bajanyankee Member

    Sep 29, 2009
    Maryland
    Club:
    FC Barcelona
    Mine dropped from mid to attacking back for almost an entire season after 2 players were injured early in the season. He hated it but it was a good fit for him.
     
  4. bajanyankee

    bajanyankee Member

    Sep 29, 2009
    Maryland
    Club:
    FC Barcelona
    Mine dropped from mid to attacking back for almost an entire season after 2 players were injured early in the season. He hated it but it was a good fit for him.
     
  5. UofIneedssoccer

    Nov 3, 2009
    Club:
    Rochester Rhinos
    Mine went from a central mid to attacking left back, nothing but the bomb for him. Nothing better then a backfield that can actually pass and handle the ball .
     
  6. nicklaino

    nicklaino Member+

    Feb 14, 2012
    Brooklyn, NY
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    My son when he went to college was sent a book on how to play the left back position by the coach of his college soccer team. He never read it. I told him he should he told me I know how to play the position. My son was a striker, left or right wing mid, and a left or right back in his playing career before college.

    I told him again read the book. I put it in his bathroom. I told him when you have to take a dump use that time to read it. I read the book before my son did. I thought it was not very useful, but I did not tell my son that.

    Any way he gets to the school. He never really read the book?

    So now he is playing and the coach can see he didn't read it. He asked my son. He says I know how to play the position.

    During my sons 4 years there he was their 4th leading scorer on the team. From the back and later the stopper position. Once tge coach really saw how he played he let him alone.

    I would have loved to see the book that coach gave to his new players after my son graduated. I don't think it was the same as he gave my son to study.
     
  7. UofIneedssoccer

    Nov 3, 2009
    Club:
    Rochester Rhinos
    I love it and agree he has had 4 goals this season in the DA and he loves to attack when the other team gives him the space but you really need you midfield to understand when they see the laft back in front of them to hold back a bit and be ready for the counter. That is why it is a team game and not an individual
     
  8. nicklaino

    nicklaino Member+

    Feb 14, 2012
    Brooklyn, NY
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    Midfield has to know sometimes they have to interchange positions. On the counter the other backs have to slide over to fill the gap that he left when he attacks. The opposite side wing mid has to play more defensive when he see they are pushing a back up from his far side. So if need be the far side wing mid can fall back and take up a backs position.

    My son has attacked on his flank. Then when he saw the ball was being switched across the field. He made a diagonal run himself moving across the field as well. Where he has scored from a through pass in the center of the field.
     
  9. rhrh

    rhrh Member

    Mar 5, 2010
    Club:
    AC Milan
    Why can't coaches see the value of having interclub scrimmages with players switched around? How can a striker sympathize with a midfielder not feeding the ball if he never plays mid? How can a defender know that mids can't always help out on defense?

    My son is mostly stuck at striker, but has played center mid too. His current club changed their mind about letting him play on other teams, at the last minute and at great financial and personal expense to us. He lost out on playing center mid for two other teams part-time.

    The most basic thing is that any player who wants to go on to the next level should be a soccer player first, then have preferred posit.ions as an afterthought. Any coach who makes believe his team is "high level" yet pigeonholes players is just like a rec coach who doesn't want to think about how to improve his team
     
  10. nicklaino

    nicklaino Member+

    Feb 14, 2012
    Brooklyn, NY
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    When a player moves from under 19 to the adult game the game changes drasticly. There is no unlimited subs in the adult game. I want my players to be versatile so we can move a player to different positions to get better matchups without losing a starter. Your a starter for a reason in the adult game. I don't want to use a sub if I don't have to.

    You sub to strengthen the team, and not just for fresh legs. You sub for fresh legs if tge starter can't go 90 minutes for other reasons.

    This is for a player that wants to be comming a starter. Be able to go 90 also work on becoming a free kick specialist it will help keep you on the field.

    So you should be able to play a lot of position and be able to play on both sides of tge field
     
  11. rhrh

    rhrh Member

    Mar 5, 2010
    Club:
    AC Milan
    Would it be better to play 90 every game on a less competitive team, or try to work up to playing 90 on a competitive team? Stamina means nothing to my son's coach - the players with the most stamina often sit and big kids with no stamina play full games and give up goals late continually (coach never changes defense no matter how they play or if they are hurt).

    Players with bad attitudes and no discipline get full games on my son's team. Better to be put out at forward and play all over the pitch, never being ready to receive a pass and score, than to play your position as the pros do. Walking is a no-no if you want playing time, despite how much time pros spend walking and standing still.
     
  12. nicklaino

    nicklaino Member+

    Feb 14, 2012
    Brooklyn, NY
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    I want my players to keep moving and don't stop. Walking is fine you can support the attack 18 yards from the ball. You can sipport 8 yards from the ball.

    I want a player to be up when the ball is up. How up is not that important just so long as he is moving up. Never stop. When youth players stop their telling me they want to be subbed. So I do what they asked.
     
  13. rhrh

    rhrh Member

    Mar 5, 2010
    Club:
    AC Milan
    Then I don't get it. How come it is okay to watch the top teams in the world occasionally walk and even stand still - not for that long but they do, but ask youth players to constantly move? Is the assumption that you're a kid so you need to run around a lot? As a striker, you move and position yourself, then you sprint and acclerate when you get fed. Instead you want the striker to move back and forth and back and forth? The best way to start wrong-footed is unnecessarily move just to move.

    Not one of my son's coach's strikers are good enough - they all try to position themselves, and have varying degrees of moving slowly or stopping when the play warrants. And not one gets more than half of a game at striker, but some get time in other positions that require more constant movement.

    It's almost like it is detrimental to my son to watch EPL, La Liga, and Bundesliga etc. games, and try to model his play on their strikers. (and let's not even talk about how many times offside is called in the pros - one offside and you're on the bench on my son's team)
     
  14. Massmom

    Massmom Member

    Feb 1, 2006
    Nick, is being able to play both sides of the field a plus for college recruitment? Son played primarily centerback for years due to an early growth spurt, but now that others are taller than him he was moved to right back, and now left back with occasional stints at center mid. He is primarily right footed, so I am not sure why they have him on the left now, as they have a couple of left footed players on the bench. He is a regular starter on a DAP team and gets a fair amount of playing time, but plays where they need him rather than "owning" a position. We are concerned that multiple positions could be interpreted as lacking a mastery of one position rather than showing versatility.
     
  15. rhrh

    rhrh Member

    Mar 5, 2010
    Club:
    AC Milan
    Dredging this topic up again: son is trying out for HS soccer, and has gotten a lot of time playing either wing back instead of his usual fast forward. He finds it easier than forward because you just have to get the ball and move it on, instead of get the ball and shoot at the net (which is smaller than the entire field). Versatility is an issue during college recruitment, so he will make sure to try out at both position as possible. Leading goalscorer and assists last year on JV as a forward (double digits each). He feels he should play where he is needed, and nothing is worse than having a fast skilled player sit on the bench because he only can play one position. He is looking for a new club team, and they will be going to a HS game to see him play.

    Both feet are important in soccer, as is playing both sides of the field. The "lack of mastery" thing could be an issue, but a good player should be able to change positions. It is very often in the pros that they talk about one player per game playing "out of position". Not to say there should not be a primary position, but if looking for a college spot for example, the coach is not going to look at recruiting mids if he has a lot already, he's going to look at defense or forwards. The coach may be recruiting only one or two spots each year, if he is happy with the current team interactions.
     
  16. jeremys_dad

    jeremys_dad Member

    NYC Football Club
    Apr 29, 2007
    The Big Easy
    Club:
    Paris Saint Germain FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Germany
    #16 jeremys_dad, Aug 17, 2013
    Last edited: Aug 17, 2013
    Nothing wrong with being a back who gets forward....One can never know.

    Versatility and training for other positions could be helpful some day.

    This threads topic moving to the back actually paid off at ODP callback where as a mid, wasn't that fast as others after ten paces, and got an opportunity to move to the rear where he did a lot better and got scoring and service opportunities.
     
  17. nicklaino

    nicklaino Member+

    Feb 14, 2012
    Brooklyn, NY
    Club:
    Manchester United FC
    I am not sure it is for college, but playing the left side is a big deal. Have him work on his left foot. Until he can when he has the ball on the left flank and he wants to cross. Work on showing the defender the ball so the defender chases and then turn away from the goal and keep turning until your son can make a right footed cross from the left side. That's a 360 turn while he is turning he still has options like the back pass, the cross and he can even shoot on goal and not cross.
     
  18. bajanyankee

    bajanyankee Member

    Sep 29, 2009
    Maryland
    Club:
    FC Barcelona
    My kid has decided that left back is his position of choice
     
  19. UofIneedssoccer

    Nov 3, 2009
    Club:
    Rochester Rhinos
    My son loves the left back postion. Bu if he is thinking of going to college remember the money goes to forwards, mids, center backs and then to the back wing players. Hard lesson but he loves the postion and still woul no change
     
  20. Wingtips1

    Wingtips1 Member+

    May 3, 2004
    02116
    Club:
    Liverpool FC
    I played all over the field. At u-13 i was used primarily at center back (yes, we played flat). At u-14 I joined the state's top team and moved to left back - as a freshman on the varsity of my HS I also played left back. At u-16 (skipped u-15 as I played up with kids my HS year) I joined the state's second best team (didn't like new coach that came in at other club) and played up front due to injuries in our team (scored at a decent rate) for most of the season before moving to attacking mid and I was given a free role on the field with my HS as a sophomore. At u-17 I played holding midfield role while playing center back for my HS. At u-18 I played right back during what would have been my HS season and center mid again in the spring.

    No college coach I ever spoke with deemed my inability to keep a single position as a negative. Instead, it made me a much more complete player. I was a regular starter from day one at college - as a frosh we played a 3-5-2 and I played on the left as a wingback. I played striker the first 6 or 7 games as a sophomore before moving to a free role then eventually to a more traditional center mid role (we played a 4-5-1). I even played keeper in one game as a sophomore because of a red card and an injury.

    The ability to use both feet and understand the tactical demands of every position on the field are incredibly important.
     

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