Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
U.S. pays for youth system failures
As the first half ticked down on the worst night U.S. Soccer has endured in a quarter-century or more, Mike Barr was nowhere near the touchline in Couva, Trinidad.
Barr, the legendary Strath Haven boys soccer coach and current Kennett boss who also serves as technical director for the Eastern Pennsylvania Youth Soccer Association, was watching on television as the United States men’s national team sleepwalked through a game that should have been a mere formality on the road to the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Like the rest of us, Barr watched as T&T, with nothing to play for and a population smaller than the City of Philadelphia, manhandled an uninspired squad from the third most populous nation on Earth.
But unlike the average fan, who only saw the devastating 2-1 loss that will keep the Americans home next summer, Barr picked out one moment that perfectly exemplified what ails U.S. soccer.
It came in the 37th minute, when Trinidad’s Alvin Jones found himself 40 yards from goal with no defenders in his zip code. Instead of slowing down to set up an attack, Jones let a shot fly.
“If there was an American coach on the sidelines last night when that shot was taken, he would’ve been complaining that it’s too far out and don’t
strike it there,” Barr said Wednesday. “You just don’t see American kids trying something like that.
“I think as coaches in this country, we coach the fun out of the game at young ages.”
Jones’ shot curled toward the upper corner, and legendary (but aging) goalkeeper Tim Howard was left flat-footed. Just like that, the Americans were down two, 45 minutes from a loss that should drastically change the game in this country.
There is no real sports analogy to the agony that comes with missing a World Cup. In the world of soccer, especially outside of Europe, there is only one party that matters. And if you don’t get an invitation, you won’t play another meaningful game for at least three years.
There is no single reason for such an abject failure, which began long before Tuesday.
On Wednesday you couldn’t swing a bag of soccer balls without hitting a hot take artist who now seems to know what ails the system. But on a quiet drive to Chester County, Barr was more than happy to share an opinion forged by decades of coaching.
“I’m tremendously disappointed,” Barr said. “I thought their whole approach to World Cup qualifying was disjointed. I felt disappointed that Bruce (Arena) didn’t start some fresher players.
“Short-term, you’ll likely see people getting relieved of their positions within U.S. Soccer. Long-term, they have to come up with a solid plan and they have to follow it through. Not jump from, ‘this year they do this and next year something else.’ They really have to look at the youth soccer setup in this country.”
There is plenty of blame to share for next summer’s suddenly open schedule:
This group of players (outside of Christian Pulisic) wasn’t good enough.
Jurgen Klinsmann left a mess Arena couldn’t clean up.
Arena neglected his usual squad rotation and stuck with the same lineup that beat Panama last Friday, leading to heavy legs.
The Americans took Trinidad lightly, focused more on the quality of the grass than what they were doing on it.
Of course, there are deeper reasons, too.
At its root, youth soccer in this country is too structured and too expensive. We’re only seeing players who can afford to join travel teams, attend camps and jet off to the finest tournaments, with dreams of scholarships and contracts dancing in parents’ heads.
Most fans are familiar with the tale of Clint Dempsey’s humble beginnings in Nacogdoches, Texas. Dempsey grew up in a dusty trailer park, only noticed while juggling a ball on the sideline of a prestigious travel team hours from home. He then had to quit the team to deal with family health issues and a lack of money.
The lesson: It shouldn’t have been that difficult to find a talent like Dempsey.
“I’m going against the grain, but I think we should play that way until at least 10 years old,” Barr said. “I don’t think we should have travel soccer at all until you reach U12s. Local community soccer clubs should be responsible for the training. And U.S. Soccer is coming out with new kinds of licensing in January leaning that way. But when coaches start to become so concerned about winning, they coach the fun out of the game, you don’t see kids who have a flair for playing or enjoy it.”
While U.S. Soccer will take a financial hit by sitting out next summer, the organization is not lacking funds. The money just needs to be put in the right place. (In the shortterm, that includes compensating
the women’s team — which has actually won three World Cups — equally.)
Barr, a national staff coach who holds a USSF “A” coaching license, spends plenty of time on perfectly manicured fields all around the Delaware Valley. But he sees signs of the problem when he looks outside the perfect green turf at Kennett.
“In Kennett, there’s a sizable hispanic population in their 20s,” Barr said. “And if there’s a parking lot with a working street light, they’re out there playing soccer. We have all these beautiful fields in this country, but for the most part they’re unused unless there’s an adult standing nearby. Kids never just play for the sake of playing.”
Maybe the pain of watching a World Cup on television is the wakeup call U.S. Soccer needs. Maybe it will inject fresh ideas into a structure in desperate need of a shakeup.
The most eye-opening moment of Barr’s critique is a perfect example.
“My last goal before I retire would be to coach a team at Chester High School,” said Barr, noting that the school, which hasn’t had a soccer team since the 1970s, sits just down the street from the Union’s soccer palace. “MLS has to step up too. The Union in particular. I don’t think they’re meeting the needs of kids and clubs who are disenfranchised. They should be running clinics in North Philly, West Philly, Chester.”
The United States is the favorite to host the 2026 World Cup in a joint bid with Mexico and Canada. Maybe by then, Barr will have the Clippers up and running. And having fun.
To contact Steven Moore, email smoore@21stcenturymedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @smoore1117.