None of the FCD teams made the national finals. Solar sent a team of U13s/'11s that went out in the quarterfinals; Texans U14s/'10s were the national runners up on PKs.
Take it with a grain of salt, but apparently Jordyn Eason (‘09) was also supposed to participate with NTSC last week, but couldn’t make it on short notice.
We'll see if this ends up being relevant, idk. There's a player for this Texans team named Braylon Walker - he might be their captain - that received some national accolades for his performances in the ECNL finals (Best XI kinda stuff). He's a defender, a lefty, has been a multi-time US ID Center invite, and has some genuinely astounding track and field marks for a 7th grader. A few guys on this team look interesting to me, but Walker stands out and the FCD 2010s could use another high-level CB.
FCD U17/18s v Club America, 7/19/24, L 0-2 Lineup (L-R, where applicable): Wheeler; Torquato, Guzman, Scabin, Arteaga; Mendonca, Hickam; Luccin; (’08) Saucedo, Salazar, Gutierrez Subs: Line change at half – Witis-Hughes, Contreras, Charles, Lynch, and Kaakoush come on for Salazar, Gutierrez, Guzman, Wheeler, and Mendonca. In the 61st, Cortalessa comes on for Arteaga and Guandique comes on for Saucedo. Goal(s): · 10:42 – From the CK after the chance below at 9:48, America hits an inswinger at the near post, Gutierrez and Scabin are there marking dudes, but one manages to get a little headed deflection on it and it bounces into the far post past Wheeler, who looks very confused about what just happened. · 12:39 – America has just retaken the ball after an FCD clearance, and they cross it in from the right sideline. Arteaga heads it back across the box to the endline, where Torquato gets it and kicks the ball off a presser’s ankles while falling. America recovers the loose ball, skips around Guzman to a more favorable shooting angle, and fires into the far post. Other Key Chances: · 4:19 – After a few moments of America passing the ball around their defense, the LCB gets on the ball and flights one down the left channel at the ST, who manages to redirect it under pressure from Scabin down the wing into the path of the LB that has gotten behind Arteaga. He takes a touch and fires a ball back to the ST in the PK box as Scabin has run closer to the endline to block a cross into the six. The ST touches, turns, and shoots quickly from about 10 yards while Guzman barely misses blocking his shot. It goes wide of the far post by about a foot. · 9:48 – Luccin trips over the ball hilariously, giving it to America for a counterattack. They play around a little bit in their third before one players thumps a ball over the top and somehow it’s 2v2 and the kid with the ball is in on goal. Guzman manages to recover and get his foot around to deflect the shot from the top of the box out for a CK, but, like, questions need to be asked. · 29:23 – America’s on the ball in FCD’s half on the left wing, and Arteaga and Gutierrez are defending a 2v2. Pretty simple 1:2 gets America running at the box, Arteaga and Gutierrez stand there, Hickam and Scabin have to scramble over, and the attacker shoots from an acute angle and about 10 yards out, whizzing the ball past the far post. Hickam’s unhappy with his teammates. Notes: · Time stamps refer to game time. · A tie at the top! With Kaakoush and Charles starting this game on the bench, Hickam ties Kaakoush for the most starts in the tournament with 6/7! · Still seeing Hayden in place of Asorey on the sideline. At this point, Asorey either got fired or sick or something midway through the tournament. If Asorey is gone, that leaves a couple of opening in the coaching ranks for FCD for next season – interested to see how they cover those. · Neither team appears to want to be here. America doesn’t celebrate when they score. FCD plays like they just want to go home – there’s a selection of farcical moments (eg: Arteaga and Scabin at 18:25, saved by Guzman; Arteaga and Gutierrez at 29:26; etc). · Big, scary looking clouds at 36:00 that portend a tumultuous second half (lots of rain for the last 10min of this one before it’s called off in the 63rd). · Saucedo wins six fouls in the first half. Four more quickly in the second. Draws three yellow cards. If anyone could teach him to turn his dribbling ability into threat he’d be the best prospect in the Academy (or close to it). · Gutierrez plays like he’s in a mini-game where he gets points for dribbling in the most needlessly complex way possible. It’s like he’s filming an And-1 mixtape. · It’s offside (or close to it), but the America goal at 59:45 happens because Charles doesn’t step out. He’s got to be two steps forward the second the ball gets put out to the top of the box. At some point he doesn’t get the benefit of “this is his first season playing as a CB” anymore. · Luccin doesn’t have a good game, but he does pull off some nice “eyes in the back of his head” stuff in midfield (eg: 44:23). Habitual shoulder-checker, that one. Lovely take at 55:35 too. · Okay, summary of the tournament: poor performance and poorer than last year when the results were similar but they just lost a bunch of coinflip games, whereas they were comfortably beaten four times in eight games here. Depth and quality both took hits with Munson and Swann’s absences and injuries to Sylvester, W-H, and Salazar, but more than anything this team looked mentally worn, even very early in the tournament. This being the last event of the season rather than the first may have made a difference. Anyway, came away thinking more highly of Saucedo, Kaakoush, Orejarena, Scabin, and Contreras, but in some of those cases that bar is not high. Came away with diminished expectations for most others. Nobody had a tournament such that they exceeded expectations in every game (some might have done the opposite), but there were positives. We’ll see if they get a break or go straight into NTX before preseason in a few weeks.
Norris started and captained the team in every game of the group stage for the US. Played both LB and LCB. Their first knockout game will be on Tuesday against the third-place finisher in one of the other two groups, and the winner of that game will qualify to the World Cup.
Pretty much straight in. 2-1 W for NTX tonight against fellow table-toppers STL City 2. Solidly outplayed STL in open play but gave up a handful of set piece chances that made the game pretty close in the end. Thread-eligibles involved (I'm just gonna update this to '05s and younger given the Olympics is happening right now and none of these people are there) -'06 Molina: Never found work with the ball in the final third, but did a fair amount of good stuff starting attacks on the dribble. Nearly unimpeachable defensively beside one scary moment around 75min. -'06 Garcia - kinda played as the "free 8" in NTX's midfield three with much more license to roam than usual. Like last week, strong to start the game, did less later on. Technically got an assist on the second, but it was a mundane pass. Lots of recovering balls in scrambles. -'06 Urzua - more static than last week with Garcia getting the freer role. Fairly anonymous (to my eyes: stats say he was pretty active). -'06 Baran - Much better this week. Good vision and touch on the assist for the first. Credible PK shout in the second half. Otherwise plenty of healthy driving off the wing. Clearly less comfortable in combination than some of the FCD natives - maybe that holds him back, idk. Was marking the goal-scorer on STL's goal. -'05 Lacy - Sprightly sub appearance, but not much accomplished. -'07 Hickam - debut. Came on as the left side of a double-pivot. Would have said he made a positive overall impression but he left a touch too loose in the last couple of minutes and made a marginally threatening attack for STL. Other than that, positive. Quick-thinking, proactive. -'07 Contreras - Another I'm glad to see debut at least because it means we'll get his birthday (different scouting services list his grad year as either '25 or '26). Better off the ball than on it in this one - still doing the "hey look Contreras is wide open" thing. Got shrugged to the ground by a CB at one point. He's wispy. -'07s Scabin and Orejarena and '08 Kaakoush made the bench but didn't play.
This 2009 GK from Memphis is joining FCD from an ECNL club up there, it seems. Makes me wonder who is leaving, because FCD won't keep all of Carrera, Wells, Rios, and Ortega on the U16 roster.
Are they really kicking out Carrera while he supposedly has a longish injury and his brother is the backup (potentially soon the starter) for the first team? I suspect the appeal of his game and why he got semi-regular minutes this season may be that he's going to develop a lot at some point the next few years, like Nico and Antonio eventually did. I think probably Wells or Rios.
Started and captained every game the US played at the U20 CONCACAF championships, mainly as a LCB. They were runners up to Mexico after giving up goals in stoppage time of both regulation and extra time of the finale, breaking the US' streak of winning the tourney. U20 World Cup will be held next year. Thought Norris' best game was the final, but I doubt many would pick him for the tournament Best XI or anything.
Agree with you that he was very good in the final. His longer passing was a little off this tournament. Not sure why.
Glosson lists himself as an FC Dallas player on Instagram. Fills a significant hole in that '09 group that needed another real ST to pair with Wegman. Allows Echevarria to go to W full-time - that position also looks pretty strong now with Eason, Salm, Ech, and Chukwu. I still have questions about their CB quality if Vejrostek is going to be either a LB or a DM full-time.
His signing with North Texas is now official. We won't know for sure that it's a homegrown deal until he bumps up because FCD isn't transparent about that stuff.
As 3rdDegree points out, Sedeh's joining FCD. Another good FW option for the 2009s. Been working up my academy rosters for 2024-25, on the lookout for kids joining #FCDallas. Spotted two '09s.Anderson Grimm from Solar (younger bro of FCD grad Mason). D/LB. Samuel Sedeh (Brazil/US) from BVB Dallas, F/W. pic.twitter.com/O2hr6TjiFm— 3rd Degree (@3rdDegreeNet) August 10, 2024
Haven’t watched him super closely, but my expectation is he’ll be a decent-level Academy LB. Not a pro.
2-0 win for NTX last night over SKC. Didn't watch as closely as usual, so all this comes with a pinch of salt. Thread-eligibles -'06 Urzua: Saw some smart, incisive stuff in/through midfield. Fotmob suggests he didn't win his duels at a good clip. -'06 Garcia: Rang the crossbar after a late run into the box at one point. -'05 Ramirez: Started at RW and scored off some Striker Play 201 movement marked by some Defending 101 work. Same goal as against MN a few weeks ago. Lots of defensive activity. -'06 Molina: Came on as a sub and killed a bunch of time on throw-ins. -'05 Lacy and '06 Baran: Came on as subs and didn't have much positive to contribute.
Orlandelli's kid, who was with Internacional's U14s last year and so is maybe a 2010, is joining the Academy. This website suggests he's a LB/LM. US/Brazil/Italy/Austria quad-nat.
4-1 win for NTX over HOU this evening. Gave up a handful of good chances but conceded on a cross that floated over Collodi's head and in. Go figure. I missed the bulk of the first half. Thread-Eligibles Involved -'05 Tarik Scott: Scored the first on a classic "Tarik Scott does the little things well and consistently and they turn into chances at scale" play, racing a CB for a ball over the top, stripping him, beating another defender, and scoring off a big deflection from the goalie. Unselfish assist on the third bypassing a shot to find Pedrinho open in front of goal. Only one other shot involvement all game. -'05 Anthony Ramirez - played as a CM in this one and had little to do apart from shot-faking the HOU LB into oblivion for his assist on the second. Don't look now, but he's got 10 G+A in about 1,400 MLSNP minutes over the last two seasons. Very healthy return for a relatively young player on a team that doesn't score a million goals a game. It's him and Sali at the top in club history (going back to 2019) when it comes to G+A/90 production by non-ST U19s. -'06s Diego Garcia and Alejandro Urzua subbed on lateish. Both looked like they were hunting goals. Garcia had more chances to actually contribute to danger.
And now plays for Austin FC's academy. I believe that's now five different clubs in the last six years (Solar, FCD, Texans, RSL, Austin).
A player named Albin Angelo Williams might've joined FC Dallas based on his social media. He was with a 2009 ODP team earlier this year. Looks like he was previously based in Germany https://www.topdrawersoccer.com/clu...uth-soccer-boys-odp-national-rosters_aid53019
ECNL All-Conference Teams were announced today. Here's Texas'. PsOTY were Kaifa Yuoh of Texans for the U15s, Hudson Jacobs of OKC for the U16s, Jonathan Luna of DKSC for the U17s, and Duncan Sullivan of Texans for the U19s. That U15 group has quite a few good players in it, so I'm taking it as meaningful that Yuoh was selected as the top player. He's got a twin named Kabili who also made the first team. You can read a little about their play at USYS nationals two summers ago here and here.