Official Galaxy Youth Academy and Progress

I wonder if there's an issue with the Galaxy having too many quality attackers. He might be better off staying with Pateadores, who are a good team, and getting more minutes.

 

http://www.americansoccernow.com/ar...ya-continuing-to-push-through-with-the-u-20-s

Hope we are paying attention

 

Paying attention to what, though? There really is only so much we can do for players outside our academy. We can't just sign this kid to G2 either because he's not in our academy. We can realistically only have maybe 45 kids between the 16/17s and 17/18s. Given the size of not just greater LA (19m) but all of Southern California (24m), the Galaxy can't realistically come close to getting all the kids with pro ambitions or pro potential into the academy.

 

Out of all the 03s I saw at the DA Showcase, a couple really stood out: Jonathan Perez of LA Galaxy will be a big time prospect. Spoke to a few international scouts at the tournament who highlighted him.

— J.R. Eskilson (@JREskilson) June 25, 2018

Perez is a U15 midfielder

 

While all you say is true, just recognize that the extent to which LAG is limited to about 45 kids is a self-imposed limitation. They could cast a wider net, but it would cost. Whether the additional cost of another 10 academy kids (for example) would be justified by any additional yield is an open question. And of course given the size of the greater LA pool, somebody will always be missed.

 

For my money, Alex Mendez was the MVP of the event. He was consistently great in all of Galaxy's games.

— J.R. Eskilson (@JREskilson) June 26, 2018

 

Or at least, LA Galaxy Academy players. Could be wrong because I know I don't watch as much of the league overall as many of you, but it seems like some teams have been able to move academy players into the starting unit (Tyler Adams at NYRB, that kid in Vancouver, thought there were some in KC).

Again, could be showing my ignorance but…

 

Academy playoff semifinal against Vancouver in a few minutes. Plenty of interesting names :



Watch it there : https://www.lagalaxy.com/post/2018/...xy-academy-u-19s-semifinal-match-vs-vancouver

 

Just tuned in. Some good play.

 

2-0 win after extra time. Very entertaining game where the two goalkeepers shined. Eric Lopez for the Galaxy was not tested as much as the Vancouver keeper, but came up huge in the second half when he stopped a PK.

I'm beginning to fall in love with Alex Mendez. He looks like a great leader, capable of keeping possession, and he is so calm with the ball. His shot is great, and he scored the game-winner on a deflected free kick. Great game.

What more could I say about Alvarez? He knows he's surely the best player on the field, but doesn't try to overdo. He knows when to shoot, when to pass, when to temporize, when to press... He's not only highly talented, he's just incredibly mature for his age (he turned 16 less than one month ago).

Llanez, on the other hand, has a more risked game, with a lot of dribbling. Not a bad game from him, but I think he's the player who could benefit the most by playing with G2.

So, not a lot of interesting things about the attacking players : the future is bright. But the game was interesting about some defenders. Sepulveda had a good game. Bailey was also impressive, in particular in the final third where his final ball was often stellar.

But one player really stood out, and you can argue he was the team MVP : Diedie Traore, the 19 years old french man. Playing as a LB, he looked a man among boys, easily advancing the ball, almost impossible to disposess, and some good passing. A revelation to me.

The goals :

MENDEZZZZZZ #LAGALAXY LEAD!!!! pic.twitter.com/gs7bs5tkB7

— LA Galaxy Academy (@LAGalaxyAcademy) July 9, 2018

.@efrain_alvarez1 SEALS IT! We’re going to the FINAL!!!! pic.twitter.com/LHY4AYMKHF

— LA Galaxy Academy (@LAGalaxyAcademy) July 9, 2018

Final on Tuesday against NYCFC Academy.

 

Nice bit of craft on that Alvarez goal, to fake going far post then bullet it into the near post. Tons of composure.

 

I noticed a lot of the same things. Alvarez is just so graceful on the ball and he never tried to do too much, but he always seems to make the right pass at the right time. I wouldn't be surprised if he's in Europe next summer, I just hope its to a team that's going help develop him and give him playing time.

Mendez is fantastic. He's gotten a lot more confident as he's gotten more minutes for Los Dos. I wouldn't be surprised to see him sign a first team contract before the start of next season.

I agree Llanez needs to keep playing for Los Dos. There's obviously talent there, but he plays with his head down sometimes and I think he just needs to keep playing in the USL and get more confident and decision making will improve. I think he'll have biggest direct impact of these 3 players for the Galaxy first team. (I think Mendez and Alvarez will ultimately end up in Europe).

 

With beautiful technical skill players lijke Alvarez the ceiling often comes down to their athleticism. Are quick enough to work their magic after moving up a few levels? Are they strong enough to shield the ball against top tier professionals? Do they have the instant Tesla acceleration needed to create space? Do they have hops that will allow them to compete in the air despite being say 5'8"?

Most people think Freddy Adu was a bust as a pro because of his attitude but I don't think that was it. Yes his attitude was sometimes a problem but it wasn't the reason he was a bust as a pro. There are many successful pros with a history of attitude problems - hell, we have one leading our front line! No Adu's biggest limitation (and one seldom noted) was that he had youth team level athleticism -- but no more. Against U-17 and U-20 WC opponents he could pull off his amazing moves and at that level his speed and acceleration were sufficient for him to get his head up and make the killer pass, beautiful shot or take on the next opponent. But the moment he got to DCU his lack of pro-level athleticism quickly became apparent. He couldn't outrun anyone. He couldn't hold onto the ball without getting knocked off easily. He didn't have the hops to compete in the air. If he had a break-away he was caught from behind. The moves that worked so well even against older boys on the national team just didn't translate to the first division pro level. Since he was only 16 when he started for DC there was hope that as his body matured he would get stronger and faster but it never happened. He just happened to have one of those bodies that quit growing and plateau at age 16.

The only way Adu could have succeeded at the pro level was if developed into a 1 and 2-touch specialist, a style that would have maximized his incredible touch and hidden his lack of athleticism. But Adu's game was built around dribbling and he tried to stick with that. The end result was him being completely ineffective as he would get dispossessed repeatedly time after time, game after game. Until finally his was dispossessed of his first division pro career.

Of course Adu was an extreme example. But I think his career was a good example of how having all the skill in the world won't get it done alone. You also need to be a pro level athlete if you want to make it in the big leagues. So here's hoping that Alvarez will have skill, vision and high level athleticism - the whole enchilada.

 

It's gonna be very hard for Alvarez to get minutes with the first team right now but, he should at least get some time practicing with them. He needs to lose that baby fat though.

 

That sucked. I think both keepers guessed right 3/5 times but, Lopez couldn't stop one.

 

Am told Galaxy academy product Alex Mendez is training with Freiburg.

— keith costigan (@KeithCostigan) July 13, 2018

 

I read/heard that Alvarez primarily trains with the first team. I don't know how much truth there is in that. If he isn't, he definitely should be.

 

Am told LA Galaxy Academy winger Uly Llanez will be training with @FCBayernUS this week. Bayern have been doing a good job monitoring the top talent in the U.S

— keith costigan (@KeithCostigan) July 16, 2018

Please no!

 

U.S. U20 MNT defender @julian__araujo is joining @LAGalaxyAcademy - first event will be this week at the Silverlakes International Cup - for the 2018-2019 season. Araujo was a standout for @BarcaAcademyAZ last season. Barca U17 finished third in the Dev. Acad playoffs.

— J.R. Eskilson (@JREskilson) July 25, 2018

 

1️⃣2️⃣ #LAGalaxyAcademy players announced college commitments on National Signing Day.

Read where the players are headed: https://t.co/bTnT9vPlmY pic.twitter.com/T7i96MfZVH

— LA Galaxy Academy (@LAGalaxyAcademy) November 15, 2018

 

So who are the new hot prospects?

We had the pre-G2 generation: Zardes and Ariola.

The first G2 generation, which pretty much entirely failed

The next generation, Zubak(98), Arellano(98), Lopez(99), Mendez(00), Llanez(01), Alvarez(02). Although it's not clear what we're going to finally get out of this.

Invited into the January youth camps

Aristotle Zarris (99) (now at Wake)
Julian Araujo (01)
Kobe Hernandez (02)
Adam Saldana (02)

and Brian Kleiban made a special mention of

Victor Valdez (04)

 

Hernandez is a very highly rated LB. I'd like to see more of him at G2 this year. He's 2nd choice LB for the US U-17 behind George Bello who people project playing in the Champions League in a few years. He's been pushed into CB there because he's too good not to have on the field.

I know Araujo is also really good, I bet he gets a lot of minutes for Los Dos this season. He's a RB who can also play CB.