What do all the best Footballers in the world have in common? It's not dribbling skills, finishing accuracy, strength, size, or good looks. The answer is SPEED! Not speed like running a race or breaking the gym's 40 record. No not that type of speed. We are talking about Footballers SPEED! What's that you say? Footballing Speed is not only how fast you can get from A to B, but I am going to tell you and show you through The Greenwood Method of Player Development why these such promising athletes end up quitting Soccer.
First let me explain who I am.
My name is Clint Greenwood and I am a former professional Footballer who had stints in Wales, England, Canada, and The U.S. before creating The Clint Greenwood Soccer Academy. It was formed in 1991 when I was in CAlifornia for a 2 week holiday during the Winter Break in The UK where I was playing for Hereford United F.C. at that time. It wasn't till 1996 when I hung up my boots and stopped playing full-time professionally, and started focusing on Coaching, Training, and running CGSA. I have been Technical Director of 2 major youth clubs in Southern California, Director of Coaching of 2 more clubs located in Southern California, and Director of Operations at Clint Greenwood Soccer Academy LLC since 1991.
The truth is simple. And I would like to explain it to you if you don't mind. It would be nice to just point your finger on one component that is a miss in US Soccer. Some experts say it's the week Soccer Culture in America that keeps the nation handcuffed and no keys to unlock the cuffs that has basically not allowed Soccer to grow more passionately because the majority of Americans are still stuck on the concept of Sport has to have a lot of scoring and more action. Some others say it's the media and their purposeful lack of covering the Soccer in The U.S. and covering more in depth and personal the better Americans that are playing. I am going to list what I think are the issues that are capable of fixing in the near future, and I will show and tell you how. After a long study on this subject, I came with the obvious components that stick out to me and can be fixed, but the obstacles that are in the way remain and nothing has been done yet about them. Here are the 4 components that are not happening in The U.S.
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4 Soccer Components Missing in US Soccer
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Purposeful Teaching of individual skills, including fundamentals.
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No Superstars, household names with a passionate media backing.
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Strong and Demanding presence from the MLS clubs that fund great talent, with realistic opportunity going from Youth Academy and signing with the 1st Team.
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A Conscious effort on developing a style of player that has developed in the States and that we can start to have young boys and girls naturally try to emulate their idols.
* The result of not having these Soccer Personality Traits in this culture results in a non Soccer Country. At the youth level there are far too many bad club coaches, trainers, referees, spectators, board members, and associations. As I said earlier in this article, and other before this is this. Without advancing the American Soccer players fluidity in their running and their rhythm as well, far too many promising athletes will not notice until its too late, because Lastly Until American Soccer Development stops signing players as rookies after they played 4 years of College Soccer, and developing the best talent at 12 years old and up with proper contracts of Academy Youth, U-19 Academy, B Team Academy, and then 1st team with all contracted and paid this country will always be a College level National Team.
Above - Landon Donovan noted as The best US Soccer Player of All Time. Landon of Redlands California was an Alumni playing his entire youth career with Director of CGSA Clint Greenwood. Donovan also attended CGSA Camps, Clinics, and Private Lesson Programs. "Landon was rare in this country in regards to knowledge of the sport as a young boy loved so much. Coming from non Soccer Parents, Landon seeked out through great curiosity the right education, and was a mature young boy who truly controlled his mind in regards to receiving the best Soccer Trainer, and Coach so he would maximize his efforts in developing his proper skills to play at a high level, and the right tactical teaching and coaching that would be a platform for learning and advancing his ability to what would be later the best Soccer player in The United States holding records as the player that has scored the most goals for the USMNT, and the most goals in MLS history, the record 5 Honda Player of The Year Awards, the only American to sign for a Bundesliga team Bayer Leverkusen for a record 1.2 million dollars, and being the youngest to sign that contract at age 17.
The Clint Greenwood Soccer Academy Pyramid of Player Development
"The Blueprint of The Greenwood Method"
Question #1
Do you watch Football on the television?
Result of Survey
13 % are avid fans and do watch English Premier League, Spanish La Liga, etc.
23% of the people we asked said no because its never shown on their cable channels, and its expensive to get the channels that are showing the games.
10% Answered that they don't regularly watch Soccer, but do watch the World Cup.
The Rest said that they Do Not watch Football on TV because it's boring.
Question #2
Can you name 5 players from Liverpool F.C. and 5 Current Players from The U.S. National Team?
Result of Survey
100% of the 20 people in the survey could not name 5 current Liverpool 1st team players, as well as they couldn't name 5 current USMNT players.
Question #3
(Pt. 1) What do you like about Football to both the adults and the campers, and (pt. 2) Just to the campers, What do you like to do at practice.
Result of Survey
60% of the adults like watching their child play Soccer but don't like to watch it on television, or professional games. 40 % like watching Soccer abroad but not the MLS games. 75% of the campers like to shoot on goal at practice, and play scrimmage. ONLY 25% of the campers said that they like to learn new dribbling moves, and work on passing and 1 on 1 to get better performance in a game.
The History of Soccer and What Could Have Been.
This is an example of a lack of passion from a naive country without much of a history in tradition anyway. Americans have come a long way and getting better, because in the 70's through the 80's and really were hanging on a thread and could have lost Soccer professionally all together but for my generation when my good friend and former teammate Paul Caligiuri of Diamond Bar scores a goal against Trinidad and Tobago, which sends the U.S.M.N.T. to the World Cup in Italy, and then following it up with winning the chance to be host of the next World Cup in 1994, and showing the Americans the beautiful game, ultimately hosting one of the best World Cups in history. At that time I was settled and playing in the UK and doing well. Back home in the States same thing was going on where no major professional Soccer League except the Major Indoor Soccer League which them too were on their last legs and barely surviving. A lot of stories were going around that they too might have to close up shop which to me looked very unstable. I have dual citizenship so for me I could play in the UK and not be a foreign player which in Europe each club is only allowed 4 foreigners in the entire club. I returned home a year and 1/2 later and finished my last 5 years of full time Football in California in the USISL and began the formation of The Clint Greenwood Soccer Academy. If you would like to read more on the piece of American Soccer History and what could have been click the link listed below.
Why Are Such a High Percentage of Young Soccer Players That Were So Successful When They Were U-10 through U-14, Just Fall By The Wasteside, or In Many Cases Just Disappear From High Level Youth Soccer? If Speed of Play is So Important At The Highest Level of Football, and There Are An Abundant of Young Talented Soccer Players With Physical Attributes That Can Transition Into A Very Good Player, Why Do You See That Big Drop OFF Of Athletes That End Up Playing After Youth, Either in a University or Professional. It Shows My Point Better This Way.
The Club Coaches Are Developing Bad Habits Not Players
The Club Coaches Are Developing Bad Habits Not Players
- At The Clint Greenwood Soccer Academy alll our exercises focus on the proper Footspeed, Suppleness, Balance, Rhythm, and Timing of Soccer Dictated Scenarios always planned carefully with the upmost authenticity focusing on an overall makeup of a Professional Footballer of today.
Above Ashley Nick a former CGSA Team Program Player, USC NCAA Champion and Professional Footballer all around the world.
