The U.S. U-16 Program (2017/18 thread)

It's a shame that they aren't going to get their own U-17 cycle, and by the time they get a U-20 cycle, the best players probably will be out of youth soccer and into the NT.

This age group is a good reason why too many people were overreacting from the U-17's play at the U-17 WC. The contrast between '02 and '03 is so stark, but one gets to play at the U-17 WC, and the other doesn't. Every country has some bad age groups. To have our best age group the year after the bad age group shows that it's more of a one-off bad age group than any type of trend with the program.

 

I wanted to give my updated 2003 rankings:

1. Moses Nyeman-Still the best player in the age group, but the gap has closed. He's struggled with adjusting to playing a more aggressive style of game in the #10 possession. He plays well, but not as good as he's capable of playing. Elite soccer IQ, elite combination play, very good passing vision and creativity. Capable dribbler, although he needs to be more aggressive with his dribbling. Athletic enough and works very hard. Size is obviously a hindrance, but as a #10 its less of an issue.

2. Jonathan Gomez-I view Gomez as the top fullback prospect in the youth player pool. He doesn't have any big weaknesses. Elite combination play, elite passing vision (for a fullback), elite soccer IQ, very good athlete, quality defensive awareness, as well. He's a good positional defender. He can improve in this area (like all 16 year old fullbacks can), but its not an area he struggles with. Good size, as well.

3. Elton Chifamba-Not had a great year, as far as I'm concerned. I fully expected him to pass Gomez for 2nd, but he hasn't. If anything, Gomez has put a little distance between himself and Chifamba. He hasn't been as good as he's capable of in the DA. Physically, he hasn't grown. Size isn't a problem, but barring a growth spurt, a little like Adams he's probably in that 5'8 or 5'9 range. That isn't a huge hindrance towards his athleticism, as he's incredibly mobile with a great motor, but aerially and even in physical duels, it can make a difference. The passing range is still very good and his soccer IQ has improved in recent years. There's potential for him to be a great two way CM, but he hasn't improved much this year.

4. Ricardo Pepi-I view 4 and 5 as pretty close. Struggled at the U-17 WC, and he had a very inconsistent season at Dallas. It was good in stretches, and not very good in other stretches. He's consistently struggled adjusting to higher levels of play for club and country. I like Pepi's potential as a complete CF, but he's still a little too inconsistent for me to call him a complete CF. He's a little too much of a box striker right now. He's a capable passer and dribbler. He's a lot more athletic than most think, but he needs to show a little more of a contribution to the team game. He's capable of it. He has a lot of tools. He can score in every way, elite size and footwork, very good athlete and hold up play, His soccer IQ is adequate. Dribbling and passing is still improving.

5. Danny Leyva-I wouldn't say I'm terribly worried about his athleticism long term, but he was exposed playing up an age group at the U-17 WC. His athleticism is awkward, he looks like a kid that needs to grow into his own body. He may never be a great athlete, but I think he can be passable. I think the experiment of him playing up age groups with USYNT's needs to end, and maybe he might need more USL team. Otherwise, I'm not worried about his ability based on a bad U-17 WC. What Leyva brings is an elite soccer IQ and composure on the ball in CM, a very good passing range, versatility to play any of the three CM positions, and good enough size and defensive play. He's improved a lot in the last year.

6. Casey Walls-Walls is rising up this list. I had initially questioned his defense. I wasn't that impressed by his defense previously when he played some games in higher age groups. I've seen a few games recently where he's played in his own age group, and I like his defensive play a lot more than I initially did. Some lesser defensive performances have come in higher age groups, which is understandable. Reads the game very well. Positioning can be a little hit or miss, but nothing too bad. Sometimes players struggle playing up age groups. What Walls excels at is building out of the back. He's a very good passer with a lot of creativity in his passing ideas. He has good size. His mobility is a little below average. He doesn't put himself in bad positions often because he's a smart player, but 1v1 defending against athletic players can be slightly problematic.

7. Mauricio Cuevas-Cuevas is not a 7th best player in the majority of age groups, but 2003 has a lot of talent that he's a little lower in this age group than he would be in other age groups. Cuevas has to be the best crosser I've seen from a young American fullback. He constantly creates attacking chances with his crosses. Rarely are they not dangerous. He's not as flashy (or talented) as a player like Gomez, but he's an adequate athlete, very good technically, very good passer. Very dangerous FK taker. Good soccer IQ, can get caught out a little positionally, but nothing too worrying, and I like how he reads the game defensively.

8. Sam Sarver-This guy might be the most explosive winger in the DA. He combines his excellent pace with very good end product. He's not flashy, but he's a smart attacker. He knows where to lay the ball off to teammates, he makes smart runs, he doesn't take too long on the ball. He's grown a little physically this year. He's sometimes sued as a CF, so if he develops a holdup game, he might now have the size for the position, but I think he's a lot more dangerous as a winger. The issue here is the upside. He's not exceptionally creative nor does he posses more than average passing vision. He also doesn't have much of a hold up game at CF, as mentioned.

9. Chris Garcia-8 and 9 is very close. Similar players. Garcia is a little more dynamic with better creativity, Sarver is more consistent and currently better. The difference in dynamism isn't enough yet for me to place Garcia ahead of Sarver, but its close. Like Sarver, Garcia is a tremendously athletic winger. He can beat players with ease, and smart fullbacks give him a big cushion. He's very raw though. His soccer IQ is a work in progress, and he can get tunnel vision in his approach. He has some pretty poor games where he loses the ball a lot. I wouldn't call his creativity or passing vision elite, but its pretty good, and if he can learn to make better decisions, he has very high potential.

10. Tarun Karumanchi-Like his teammate at San Jose, Karumanchi is moving up this list a lot. I'm a big fan of what he shows from the holding midfield position. He's a deep-lying playmaker with excellent size and passing range. He has incredible composure on the ball, and he's adequate defensively. He's a little slow, but not terribly slow. If he can learn to position himself well, he shouldn't struggle too much getting around the field. He also plays a role that probably won't require great mobility either. He's far under the radar. I don't believe he's ever been called into a YNT, but I think he's definitely earned a call up to the next camp for the players in this age group.

Just outside the top 10: Kevin Paredes, Anton Sorenson, Tyler Freeman, Matthew Roou, Michael Halliday

Paredes was very close to making the list. Nearly no separation between him and Karumanchi. Sorenson's very under the radar. Very talented player who performs well. Like all fullbacks, suffers due to his position. Freeman has a lot of potential, but big soccer IQ problems. Roou has an interesting style of play and hasn't performed at a high level for very long. He's also not off to a great start this season. I need to see more of Halliday to make a better termination, but I was initially very impressed by Halliday's play at RB.

One minor note, I've read very good things about Caden Clark, but I've yet to see him play, so I'm not going to rank him here. I also don't know if he'd make the list or not.

 

Not close to making the list.