Here's a good list of the '03 age group. The '03 is the golden age group currently in the YNT system, and I think it's by a long way. It’s early but the 2003s are looking like one of the strongest classes the US has ever had. They've also broken new ground in USL/MLS, with numerous guys at each position having already logged pro minutes. I'd even expect a few of them to be a part of the current U20 cycle. pic.twitter.com/0Beo0ucY7v— We Are Being Overrun in Midfield (@OverrunMidfield) September 14, 2020 I was thinking about what a best 23 would look like, and this is what I've come up with. GK: Elliot Jones, Andrew Cordes, Will Watson DF: Mauricio Cuevas, Colby Quinones, Casey Walls, Jalen Neal, Marcus Ferkranus, Justin Che, Jonathan Gomez, Anton Sorenson MF: Danny Levya, Elton Chifamba, Tarun Karumanchi, Alejandro Alvarado, Moses Nyeman, Caden Clark, Sam Sarver, Chris Garcia, Kevin Paredes FW: Ricardo Pepi, Fabrizio Bernal, Matthew Roou The second 23 is also pretty good with a number of guys who've already gotten significant pro minutes. GK: Mitch Budler, Gavin Krenecki, Jacob Morris DF: Michael Halliday, Noah Hall, Dante Huckaby, Mitch Ferguson, Israel Carrillo, Jalen Calloway, Boima Cummins, Akwasi Douglas MF: Jack McGlynn, Nicholas Pariano, Javier Casas, Anthony Hernandez, Paxten Aaronson, Sebastian Nava, Edison Azcona, Brian Gutierrez, Dante Sealy FW: Patrick Weah, Cade Cowell, Tyler Freeman If we can start producing age groups like this one consistently, I think we are going to get a lot better.
i think the highs are really high but i have yet to see him just dominate a competitive match. could just be sss on my part so i defer to others of course.
By the time the ‘23 U20 WC rolls around, we could make a starting XI of regular starters in MLS that won’t even make the team. And that team would still probably make the KO rounds of the U20 WC.
I think the '03 age group is a very talented one, and there are a lot of good players. It's hard to rank these players without slighting someone who is having significant success. To answer the initial question a little more, I would say that my opinion is that Clark is around a top 10 '03. I think he's been good this season. For NYRB II, he was pretty good, not dominating IMO. For NYRB, he's done extremely well to score his first two games. I don't believe that he's going to be scoring golazos every game (or goals every game), but it's a great start. So I think Clark's hype might be a little high right now. For example, people suggest him as a U-20 NT player, I don't see that. He's also having a very successful season though, and he's one of many very promising players in the '03 age group. To answer the question @Lookingforleftbacks posed, if I have to group him with Nyeman, Gomez, Pepi types, I don't think he's as good as some people think, but I also don't know that everyone believes he's at that level.
Here is the thing with Clark, where did he come from? Yes, I'm a big fan of the kid and now know the backstory of moving to Arizona and blah blah. But if you look back in this thread, which is not far into the past, just March, he was unknown to some of the closest followers of US Youth Soccer Prospects. Chuck finally mentions him, putting him around prospect 47-70 in just the '03 age group. I watched almost all his games for RBNY2. When he first came he showed flashes, just like he has in MLS. But did he dominate? Maybe for spells in games. Then, after about 9 games, he did dominate two games and started to be a real force. Tempered by games in which his team was overrun by better older teams. But, just as he was starting to dominate, RB said, "enough" and put him in quarantine to get into MLS. He has an elite first touch. Maybe his biggest weakness, in July, was shooting. At least, that was what people would have said. Now they expect him to score off foot golazos ever game. The rise as been meteoric. I think he will need time to acclimate to MLS. Probably slightly longer than the 6-7 games in USL. But if you watch him, he does little things at an elite level even when he isn't doing the spectacular. Nyeman is the same age and kind of showed flashes here and there. But now, after playing semi-regularly for a month or two, is starting to really influence games. I don't know if there is enough season left to really see Clark really influence MLS games. But it should be a good first exposure then an off season, then we will see next Spring. Exciting times in the U18 thread!
Valot was terrible there. Just awful. Killed most of the opportunities he had by either muffing the play or passing back for no reason. That said, Clark was completely absent for most of the game and you can't pin that entirely on Valot.
I think to answer your first question: "not at an MLS academy." I feel like people here, and everywhere else, see and talk about the MLS academy kids. And then they hear about and (probably over) rate anyone at a big European academy. Caden Clark was at neither of those places. Sure we all know about Barca Academy AZ, but I don't know that anyone is actually watching many, if any games or anything from there. It's out of sight out of mind, and I don't think it has anything to do with Caden Clark.
There's a few of us that watch DA games (not me), and then a lot more watch USL games (me). Not being on a USL squad means limited viewing exposure. But I will say those that do watch DA games didn't think he was this good.
Clark was probably the only big name ‘03 I hadn’t seen much prior to this season. I think I saw him play once, and didn’t see him make much of a difference, but the camera angles for that game were bad, so I wasn’t even very sure about that one viewing. I agree that it’s sometimes harder to get views on Barca academy guys. Another player whose underscouted with a big reputation is Brooklyn Raines (‘05).
For Clark, it was actually a combination of factors that lead to his ascension. He is a lot better than people suspect, but his big break was Sean McCafferty became the Red Bull academy director in July of last year. McCafferty had been the Barca Academy Director since 2016. Who recruited Clark to play at Barca? Who recruited Clark to come to Red Bulls? Sometimes it pays to have a connection.
Gallegos is not at an MLS academy and was seen and recognized and identified. Sargent and Pulisic were not at MLS Academies. Plenty of kids, not at MLS Academies, are on YNT teams and, especially, known to the posters around here. On the other hand, a guy like Ledezma was at an MLS Academy and also seemed to emerge out of nowhere. Development is not linear and kids can take big steps forward at different times then their peers. Clark, though, almost seems like Amon (who is back in the news). Amon was almost kept secret by his Club until he turned 18 when they could sign him. I think Barca was not as obvious as Nordj., but maybe they didn't mind not hyping him with their own plans for him. But when NYRB hired the Barca Arizona TD, they got this golden egg with that goose.
Most of the true die hards became aware of Caden after his standout DA playoffs performance. We knew then he was good but without much film from Barca AZ online it was hard to predict that he’d be this good. Unfortunately, we are only able to judge players that we have film and data on
Anybody here understand well how the U.S.-based Barca system works? What it looks like is a network of fairly standard youth clubs, with the residency program sitting atop it offering high-end pay-to-play services, along with some degree of financial aid. That seems fairly straightforward, but any additional insight would be welcome.
I didn't know where to put this, but it looks like Eliot Jones ('03) is yet another player who is attending college a year early. The Pac 12 doesn't have Fall Sports this year, but he's apparently part of their 2020 recruiting class, and is listed on their roster, even though they aren't playing games. Looking at some of the info they give on him, it appears like his mother is from Poland or has ancestry from the country. I would not rule out that he might have access to an EU passport. I do find it interesting how many American keepers with Polish ancestry there seems to be, and Poland notoriously is great at producing goalkeepers.
The Barca Residency Academy is pretty much a separate entity from the rest of the barca network. They do share some resources and I guess the Residency would be considered the top of the pyramid but they really aren’t working hand in hand. If you have specific questions I would probably be able to answer most of them.
I'm sure you wanted his answer, not mine, but I read it more as that the academy's top level team/program isn't seen as the top level of a pyramid made up of the organization's affiliate clubs.
There is a definite connection between the Residency and FCB. There is not a strong connection between the Residency and the other US Barca programs which are all owned a run by a separate company.
Two 2002s debuted for the #USMNT today, and you think that satisfy me, but alas I pose questions.Who is the first 2003 to get a #USMNT cap?— Joey (@USAprospects) November 13, 2020
The way I see it, it’s Pepi or Clark. If Pepi has a really good season next season and is a starter, I could see him being first. He’s a USSF favorite and plays up age groups, so I wouldn’t rule it out. He’s going to need to be a starter next season IMO though, which might be the biggest obstacle. Clark will probably get a cap by virtue of his European move in early 2022, as long as he’s playing regular first team games. Nyeman, it’s all about his citizenship. I would probably say he should be first of the 2003’s to be called into the USMNT, but until we know he’s a citizen, there’s too many unknowns. I think the path for Gomez is that none of the other three get a call up by early 2022, and he gets one just before the World Cup in the Fall of 2022. I can’t see a USL player on the USMNT.
Agree about Paredes, and I would consider Sealy one of the favorites, too. Pepi and Nyeman are too far from their potential at the moment to be the first '03 capped. Nyeman definitely has the quality and Pepi definitely has the potential, but I see them struggling a lot in MLS right now. Sealy hasn't gotten many minutes, but I think he steps in as a difference maker immediately when he does get minutes similar to how Reynolds has this year.