I’ll be surprised if he’s still playing soccer in three years. The primary thing you can do as a parent for your kid is to help nurture a love of the sport. Without that, none of the technical training or experience will mean much in the long run. As soon as he can start standing up for himself the sport will become a battleground for other issues.
Well that is one way to get your point across. Haha. Parenting is a hard job, personally I have not done it before so I am learning as I go. Raising an elite level soccer player was even more random and luck. And an amazing first coach when he was little. Same coach and club for 5 years before going to an academy. My wife and I are not athletes and are not soccer politics smart. Made a few mistakes along the way. I just fed his love and learned to love it to. Once I learned the game I can not watch any other sport except hockey. But I feel like they are similar with constant movement.
He's had plenty of time to nurture a love of the sport. You can't coddle them forever. Now is the time to learn a new position. Not when you are 13, in a highly competitive environment.
Early specialization is bad for development, but his approach does seem to be an example of the cure being worse than the disease. Most kids stop playing in their early teen years, so that's always the likeliest outcome. And his son is also playing baseball and succeeding there, so it's even more likely that his kid will be done with soccer soon. You never know. I told my son a while ago that I blame myself a little for his injury because I thought he should stay on a club team in high school. His answer was to totally dismiss that--he got the injury because he was pushing himself to play too much (on top of club & HS, he was playing a LOT of pickup back then, especially indoor). You never know how kids are going to internalize the implicit messages we send them. If NewDada had asked for advice, I would have advised against his course of action but what's done is done. We'll see how it pans out.
I’m not sure why you keep saying the things you do, when so much is false. Players learn and adapt, young people can grow into any position along the way — especially when no one knows who will coach them the next year. I didn’t become a goalkeeper until 15. One pro player became an outside back strictly because of a formation change, and he came into college as a forward. I coached against a player who was a 2x Offensive Player of the Year in the conference as a central forward. He’s made his USL and MLS career as an outside back and even captained his team as a CDM. These stories are all over. Just a few that show that over-generalizations are stupid.
I know I shouldn't, but I can't help myself. Are any of us surprised that newdada's kid doesn't listen? Apple, tree, etc...
This is something the OP's approach misses (and if you haven't been there before may be easy to overlook, in fairness). Eventually, you'll play where coaches need you to play, whether that's your preference or not. As you note, lots of forwards become CBs, wingers become fullbacks, ... And you may play all over the field as needed -- a 6 spends some significant time at CB out of necessity, a winger has to pull shifts at wingback, ... No kid should be position-focused at that young of an age, but -- based on watching this play out for a lot of kids, including my own -- what they need to learn is a broad set of skills that apply all over the field (on and off the ball, scanning the field, ...) rather than the particulars of a single position. At some point, the kid may well find that a coach locks them in for a time (hopefully not too young), and yeah, they then need to learn some things that are really particular to that role. Also a late-blooming keeper here (14 or 15, I think -- it's been a while), so high-five to that.
My course of action is to tell him he has to learn midfield... that's bad? why is that bad? How many years should a kid learn only forward? this is his 4th year in club soccer. Here's something to consider - the forwards touch the ball less than midfielders during a game. Esp the striker. Sometimes he gets very few touches. And also usually the forwards are subbed out more often and get the fewest minutes. So now you have a kid who is getting few minutes and fewer touches per minute on the field. Now compound that over a 40 game season and over multiple season. Many less touches than the other kids!
Goalie is different. That is a unique position and kids really shouldn't specialize in that too young. So naturally that will be chosen later, for the most part. If you have kid A who has been playing a lot of midfield starting in U8... and kid B who almost exclusively plays forward since U8... then you get to U13 MLS Next tryouts... who is going to be most well equiped to play midfield and will the coaches at that point even give the forward a kid to learn the midfield... won't he be too far behind many other kids in midfield skills by that point? see my point? If this is rec soccer then sure. None of this matters. I'm talking about the highest levels available. In your state just think of all the kids playing a lot in the midfield during ages 8, 9, 10, 11... and the kids that aren't... will it be too late to really make a go at it at age 12 in your state's most competitive leagues? I doubt they will be seen as a midfielder by the coaches doing the decision making. So then he is pigeonholed further, no? A midfielder though won't be pigeonholed... they can move to anywhere on the pitch. It was it seems to me. So it is better to play a lot of midfield ages 8-11 then you can decide later where to play as a teenager. you dont' agree? Have you ever seen a striker move to center-mid as a 15 year old in club soccer? Yes I know forwards often move to fullback or maybe even CB. But not often center mid that I know of. Maybe CDM as you point out but that is different. But I could be wrong. It just seems the skills and habits you build playing striker would not transfer well to center-mid, particularly the work-rate and defending aspect.
I agree but we're talking about 10 year olds. Is there really anything that precious about a soccer game for 10 year olds that you can't give kids opportunities to learn midfield?
Next year is U12. I really would like him to get some midfield play time before he tries out for U12. Is that so unreasonable? If he finishes the spring with nothing but forward play that will be four straight years of club soccer at forward and only forward. Frankly, and I know a lot will disagree with this, but I'm pretty sure that when he's 18 he will be most suited as a midfielder base on his body shape and fitness traits. Probably he won't be fast enough for winger, probably not strong enough for striker. He will end up about 5'9" or 5'10". With an average build. Average stamina. Above avg quickness. Avg full speed. Above avg IQ. He already has a great first touch, and good vision and quite accurate with his passing. So to me, it seems he is best suited for midfield. Ironically he'd most likely be the best midfielder we have. It's just that he doesn't have the "work rate" that some other kids have, but that's just because he's never played midfield and now he has the habits of a striker (ie "stay high"). He does press a lot and "defend from the top" and often picks off the goalie or defender. He's a good playmaker as well as a good finisher.
Not to be arrogant here or anything, but you’re in no position to tell me about any position or what is better for soccer players. You dismiss everything anyone has chimed in with and about. You clearly have your own way and like an echo chamber of yourself. I’ll just do myself a favor and not participate in any discussion with you.
My my so sensitive. Didn't think it would be controversial to think that kids should spend some time playing midfield. jeesh
I don't see much controversy here over kids playing multiple positions at a young age. People are disagreeing with about how big of a deal it is and the pros and cons of taking drastic action (like threatening your son or his coach that you'll pull him from the team) versus just letting your son play and kind of figure out it (perhaps with some guidance).
At the risk of engaging with this thread, if he's only played forward, I wonder why you aren't trying to make the case that he should spend some time playing as a defender.
My youngest son became a CB his sophomore year year in college and was a starter the next 3yr at the D1 level after playing his entire youth and academy career either up top or down the left side. My oldest son became a target center forward his sophomore in college (to find playing time) after playing primarily CB, but also outside back and DM during his youth career. My oldest son starting loving the game at 12 years old, my youngest son's love for the game came at around 15. Both coincided with exceptional coaches
But its been literally 3.5 years at this club with him only playing forward. U8, U9, U10, U11. How much longer should I give it? A few more years? 7 years of playing only forward and not learning any other position?
I think every kid should be learning every position (not in one season but over the course of say 5 years - is that reasonable). He plays defender occasionally. He's played 98% forward, 2% defender, 0% midfielder. The thing is we have defenders who are way better than him at defending, so he would be a risk of giving up goals which probably isn't a good time to learn the position if you're in a highly competitive league. He guest played on a lower team and they played him at defender and that's happened a couple times and it was good. But as far as midfielder qualities, I guess the irony is that he has some of those qualities at a high level already - first touch and passing. He moves the ball better than anyone which is what a midfielder is supposed to do. I would say that all "defenders" at these early ages should be also playing midfield. A lot of kids get pigeonholed as defender/forward and don't get midfield exposure which is the richest environment for developing soccer IQ. As I think about it... to be totally honest... every single kid should be playing equal time in midfield for their first 3 years. After that they can start to specialize. But unfortunately, even at U8 and U9... winning is a high priority. So they play the best defenders at defense.
From what I hear it is fairly common for young forwards to end up in a defensive role later in life. Your kid is probably big and strong. My kid will be 5'9" most likely and not super fast. His qualities fit the midfield. Highly doubt he would end up a CB, goalie, striker. Maybe fullback/wingback/winger. But most likely his qualities would fit midfield best. (they've played him at forward because he's good at that position, but what you're good at at age 9 isn't always going to carry into age 16.) If I were big and tall, and my son were, then I would guide him into striker, CB, or goalie. I know a lot of people will disagree on looking that far ahead, but it's just how things work. It's far more apparent in basketball or football. The tall kid gets put at center, the short kid at point guard. Everyone is cool with that. But for some reason its looked down on in soccer. But we can see the data. CB's are usually tall, goalies too. Midfielders can be any height but usually are the shorter players on the team. For some positions you need speed, for some you need higher stamina.
He's not a very good hitter. He's a good pitcher. Decent infielder. But he likes soccer more than baseball.
He already has a love of the sport. Maybe he wont' be playing in 3 years. I don't see what that has to do with playing midfield. Its is where you develop the most soccer IQ. So all kids should try it. Don't cheat the kids.
I know a kid who is in an MLS Academy. Family friend. Playing up a year to u18 and a starter too. He's played a ton of midfield. This is an anecdote just like yours.