Who should be the real soccer role model for the kids to emulate/imitate? Any other great great skilled role model for over 6ft american teenagers?
Kaka, C. Ronaldo, Gerrard, F. Torres, Sergio Ramos, Pique, Busquets, Drogba, etc - from the US: McBride, Dempsey, Holden, Altidore, Bradley, Spector, Buddle, Gooch, etc There are plenty of very good and great tall players. If you are looking for a role model though, then it should be someone who plays a similar position and/or plays in a similar way to how you want to. So what position? What kind of player do you want to be?
No arguments there. Just trying to provide some other players, ones who are playing now. It can be difficult for a kid to have a player role model who is retired, but that is easier with youtube. Unfortunately there aren't any games or competitions with that player to get excited about anymore. More for the list of great tall players currently playing: Schweinsteiger, Xabi Alonso, Mario Gomez, Rio Ferdinand, Lampard, Arjen Robben
I didnt know Robben was tall but Ill have to check it out I guess. Luca Toni is another descent one. Petter Crouch he is not bad for his size. Ronaldo and Kaka are the best over 6ft right now I think, oh yeah and Drogba of course. Ibrahimovic is just really impresive for his size, he is even more skilled than Luca Toni.
Robben plays like he's 5'8", but he's actually 6' tall. Very impressive. I'm not a big fan of Ibra, kind of a lazy player with a huge attitude problem. You are correct that he has great skills though, very impressive for anyone, much less someone that tall. Toni's ok, but I think Gomez is a better player. Anyway, there are plenty of great, exciting players over 6' tall to follow. Zizou is definitely a good choice if you're looking at past players, but I think I would lean toward Xabi right now if it were up to me. A great deep lying playmaker who always seems to do the right things with the ball.
Xabi is great but not the most skilled, he is a defensive player. Im talking of skilled players. Xabi may look "elegant" for a defensive player but he would never come close to the class of Redondo, in fact I have never seen a defensive player as clean and as classy as Redondo. What about Adebayor? hahaha a tall stick. I forgot both, Klose and Muller, but again, they are descent players, but Im talking tall players with sick moves like Ibrahimovic, Adriano used to be very skilled for his size too, and very strong, Ill get some Adrianos videos to show you. Adriano was just the perfect athlete, but he had some problems in Italy. I used to watch him playing at Inter and I was like wow he is an animal.
Toni at 6 5" and Adriano at 6 3" very skilled for their size. Any tall players of now days that are tall and do good moves? [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxR4_x88hiQ"]YouTube - Adriano Inter[/ame]
dont insult zidane by putting him in the same sentence as Ibra. Although this is interesting. The American way, especially if inner city kids get into soccer more, will make kids want to be like Ibra.
I swear I had to use Wiki just to find out what club Luca Toni plays for now. The guy has been off the radar map for years now. The obvious answer is Thierry Henry because he plays in the US.
zidane was such a great player. ibra is very very good thought, for his size, he is so sick. the only problem ibra has, is he is wayyy too fancy, he always try to score fancy goals and sometime he misses obvious chances. like i said, for a tall player, ibra is amazing.
Honestly, for technical ability of taller players, there is no better example to follow than Zidane. The execution of his technique was so "pure" and elegant. I will never forget how he played vs Brazil in WC 2006. Ibrahimovic is very good example as well. Kaka is elegant too. Ronaldo de Lima is also good example. Pique and Rio Ferdinand are good examples of skillful defenders. I do not agree with suggestions for Luca Toni, Crouch and Mario Gomez. They are all sticks compared to the above mentioned players.
Yeah, a youth coach we know who substitute-coached for a team our son was guest-playing for at a tournment talked to me in between games a little--he's known our son for awhile and was glad to have a chance to coach him again that weekend. This coach suggested that I have him watch some YouTube clips of Nedved, since that's the great/famous player whose style most matches he most plays like (not that our son is some great prodigy or outstanding talent; just a decent youth player who obviously loves the game and wants to get better). A great suggestion, but it's hard to get a 12-year old that excited about watching old clips of even a recently retired player. Like most kids his age, he wants to emulate names he knows from watching games now and--let's be honest--names he knows from playing FIFA 2011.
thats your job, i still listen to the music my dad used to listen to, in fact i still listen to some of the music my grandpa made me listen to. your job is to get your kid excited about watching nedved videos, kind like listening to classic music. do your job