Hopefully this will open the eyes of some and people will stop pushing so hard for 17/18 year old kids to be on the field every week. The amount of games and minutes Cremaschi played last season is borderline negligent by Miami. Vargas is another example. There is a balance that needs to be achieved with young players gaining experience necessary to take next steps but also understanding their bodies simply aren’t ready to play 35+ matches. Hopefully he comes back quickly, but that is a concerning injury for a young player.
It wasn’t so much every week. If Benja started a game every week, okay. But starting teenagers through congested schedules when teams (with MLS, Leagues Cup & Open Cup) had long stretches of midweek games was a lot for very young players
Fletcher Watch Full-time: D.C. United 6️⃣ vs Sudan 0️⃣⚽️ Aaron Herrera⚽️ Kristian Fletcher⚽️ Jacob Murrell⚽️ Cristian Dájome (2)⚽️ Trialist 2 https://t.co/S7WoF1voRC— D.C. United (@dcunited) January 30, 2024
I’ve been told there will be a U.S U-20 camp in March. The U-20 team has been off since the U-20 WC and will now have the latest start to a cycle I can recall. U-20 World Cup qualifying starts this summer
This year's Concacaf U-20 Championship will take place in Guanajuato, Mexico with Celaya and Irapuato serving as the sites. pic.twitter.com/Kb1DxD5PRR— Jon Arnold (@ArnoldcommaJon) February 26, 2024
Not sure which of a half-dozen threads this goes best in... Fidel Barajas Dual nat 🇲🇽🇺🇸 Fidel Barajas has been called in to the USMNT U-20 camp this March Played for Mexico 🇲🇽 at the U17 World Cup, and has appeared for RSL in each of the first two MLS matches 👀Via @ManagerTactical pic.twitter.com/2rkHuRiZFo— Youth Soccer Central (@yscentral) March 2, 2024 Dual nat 🇲🇽🇺🇸 Fidel Barajas has been called in to the USMNT U-20 camp this March (friendly matches)The player plans on accepting the call up. In order to play an official match for the 🇺🇸 he’d have to file a one time switch but clearly he is undecided about which to represent.— Tactical Manager (@ManagerTactical) March 2, 2024 Yes, this is true. Good scoop from @ManagerTactical!Only thing I want to clear up: The rules with this type of situation have been relaxed within the last year or two. He doesn't need to file a switch here unless 🇲🇽 pushes it with FIFA, and the reality is that's unlikely.… https://t.co/bf2SYjBUxO— USMNTProspects (@ProspectsUsmnt) March 2, 2024 Dual-nats who wouldn't need a one-time switch: Alex Alcala, Emi Ochoa, Jonny VillalWould need to file: Giulio Misitano if eligible, Cole Campbell, Alejandro Granados, Fidel Barajas, Olger Escobar, Lazar Stefanovic, Bryan Destin, Bora Aydinlik (Assuming N. Buck is uninterested) https://t.co/ad2deCaFJi— ChuckMe92 Soccer (@ChuckMe92Soccer) February 25, 2024
I'm not ready to say that the whole switching thing is just a complete non-issue now but, I mean, who knows really? It might be!
I have known about Fidel's news for a few years. I just don't understand why is Fidel doing this. Also, I have heard players that will try or will play for the USMNT U20 team. Players that people don't expect.
There’s actually no indication at all that the rule has changed or been relaxed. And there’s zero chance US Soccer would play Barajas in U20 qualifying unless he files a switch.
I mean I agree with all of that. It seems at least from the evidence in front of us that perhaps (?) FIFA has chosen not to care whether someone switches between competitions at the same level. I find this rather surprising but hey, who knows. I haven't seen anything official about it. But you could certainly see this creating new issues down the line. At some point someone will surely try to switch back after getting "tied" at U17 level, topping out at U20 for another country after a switch, and then perhaps not having a third option for MNT play. Maybe it's already happened? And yean, switches at YNT level, especially when you're not making a large change in program quality, seem odd, and I am guessing U.S. Soccer would play it by the book (and that people like Barajas would know what the book says).
Barajas isn't the first person that will try this out. There were rumors of Argentina, France, and other countries that had the same type of players. FIFA might be be enforcing this rule.
Those weren't rumors! But those were different situations. Argentina used a guy in the U20 finals who played for another country in CONMEBOL qualifying. France did something similar at U17 level. Barajas, if this is happening, would be changing between age groups, not in the middle of one.
Agree that those players had different situations but Provisional cap-tie is Provisional cap-tie no matter what situations those players are in. USSF most know that FIFA is not really enforcing this rule so this rumor might have something right. Even if it's a camp and no game. You still need to file a one-time switch.
Well Fidel started exclusively representing Mexico instead of the U.S. in 2022 so I'm curious what this "news" you have known about him for "a few years" is
Ultimately, I don't know what FIFA is going to do or not do, but there's been a lot of talk that FIFA has starting relaxing their rules. If you want to doubt me @gomichigan24, go ahead. Exactly what that will amount to, who really knows? I don't work for FIFA or make the rules. I could've heard untrue information, but I don't really know how I can be any more clear that this is starting to go around. What we know for a fact is that in the past Barajas would've not been able to attend a US camp without switching. I don't know how one could see these pieces of the puzzle come together and put their head in the sand as to some of the changes going on, but to each their own.
How long ago was that a thing? It wasn't in 2019 when Niko Hämäläinen attended a U.S. U23 camp under Kreis after playing official UEFA YNT games for Finland.
We’ve already gone back and forth on this before so no need to rehash. We clearly disagree and no need to have the same argument. It is my view if players are being told this is the case in youth circles they are being given bad advice. And there’s zero chance USSF would play a player provisionally cap tied to another country in U20 qualifying without a switch being filed. But there’s never been a rule about being able to attend a US camp without switching. Dual nationals have attended camps all the time in the past prior to switching. And in some instances they attended camps and didn’t switch. It’s never been a rule you can’t attend another team’s camp without a switch. It specifically applies to playing games for another country (though I think something like a closed door scrimmage wouldn’t count as a game).
The examples that have been given aren’t examples where there hasn’t been a switch but a separate rule where you can’t play in the same competition for different countries. To say that a switch is no longer required based on those examples is conflating two separate rules. It’s also the case that someone might not be punished unless it was noticed and pointed out. See Zendejas and Mexico leading to punishment much later after the fact. A lot of that probably has to do with him never playing in an official competition for Mexico where I’m guessing this sort of thing is checked (as who is checking for a friendly). But that’s different from saying the rule has been changed or relaxed. USSF is definitely going to play it by the book in any case.
I guess it hadn't occurred to me that the Argentina and France guys might not have filed switches that were approved. I just assumed they had, perhaps wrongly! But yes, I am talking about a couple different things, in part because I've been discussing this with at least a couple different people.
Right, I don't feel the need to rehash the prior discussion, but you were the one that was responding to the content of my tweet and basically called it unfounded. You know I post here. Should I not look at that as you are trying to call me out?
That's a fair point. I don't know exactly how or why that happened, but think of all the players that might've wanted to attend a friendly camp over the years that didn't because they were provisionally cap-tied. Do you think Hamalainen was an exception or some protocols maybe weren't followed properly or even the scope of his participation was limited for this reason? Thats what it seems like to me because if you were allowed to all these years I don't know why we wouldn't see constant situations of this happening.