Interview About Jurgen Klinsmann & US Football

I was asked recently to answer a few quetions about Jurgen Klinsmann, the new Head Coach for the US mens national team and how it relates to football in Washington. Below is my response:

1. Was this the right hire for the USA? Why/why not?

Jurgen Klinsmann: US Men's National Team Head Coach

I think this was absolutely the right choice of Head Coach for the US for two main reasons. As Klinsmann stated on his appointment, US soccer needs a clear, defined identity – a philosophy in which the nation’s fans, coaches, parents and players can appreciate, understand and ultimately follow. The US now has someone with a vast amount of experience within different ‘football’ cultures such as Germany, Italy, England and club level and national levels of the game in which to develop such a philosophy and identity. I’m sure that he will use this experience to develop the game over here because not only does he have this experience from Europe, he actually knows and understands the US culture and wants to develop it also – the second reason why I believe he will be successful.

Klinsmann has lived on the west coast in California for about 15 years now and understands that the culture is so different to anywhere else in the world. It might be difficult for most Americans to understand but the US collegiate sports culture is so unique here and I’m not so sure that it works for developing soccer players –to develop well rounded student athletes the system is great and works well for American football, basketball and baseball etc but to compete with the rest of the world at soccer where players all around the world are already being placed into reserve teams and 1^st teams at 16-18 years of age (where in the US, players go on to represent colleges with players of a similar age/ability for another 3-4 years) it can prove to create a disadvantage for potential US national team players. They miss a good 3 years of being in an environment with older, better and more experienced professional players.

I believe Klinsmann understands this and whether he works out alternatives to the development system or just adapts to it, I am sure he will get the most out of what he can. The main thing now though is the entire nation to understand that Klinsmann has been brought in to succeed over a long term period. If fans think that his appointment is going to help the current group of US players go to Brazil in 2014 and bring back the World Cup then they may need to have a rethink….!

2. Do you agree with him that MLS must lengthen its season to build US players?

http://www.mlssoccer.com/news/article/2011/10/10/klinsmann-says-extra-work-required-mls-based-players

In all honesty I think that this is just one of several elements that Klinsmann has identified which needs altering in order to compete with the rest of the world and the media just decided to place the spotlight on this one.

Klinsmann discusses the physical elements that are affected by a shorter season compared with other leading nations in the world but the mental elements are also vital here. A longer season means more time that the players have to be focused on the game which has to be good. A quick change to this would be to make the US Open Cup a larger competition by making it longer by having MLS teams placed in the early rounds with more USL/NASL and USL PDL teams.

 

The Lamar US Open Cup: Could it be a longer competition?

More PDL teams added to the completion would create more ‘David & Goliath’ scenarios similar to those that make the English FA Cup so intriguing each yea. This would be great over here – I know that Americans love this kind of situation, where there is a massive underdog against a massive favorite. This would be great for players to compete in, make the season longer and improve the game’s attraction quality if marketed well.

I understand that in the states the soccer season has to try and fit into a schedule dominated by American Football, basketball and baseball but if the game is to grow there has to be more games that the fans can watch in the stadiums as opposed to watching their own team once every couple of weeks and games overseas on the television.

3. What do you make of these comments?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-01/new-coach-klinsmann-says-u-s-soccer-needs-identity-youth-development.html

Klinsmann: Former Head Coach of Bayern Munich

I think that everything he says makes complete sense but I that’s because I share the same kind of philosophies as him regarding youth development. I have always been a student of Dutch and Spanish football which is very technically oriented. The German way is very similar although there is slightly more focus placed on the organization and tactical elements that are typical of the entire German culture, one of organization, discipline and industry. The German belief in detail and precision has done much to help define the soccer philosophies of that nation ever since the forming of many of its clubs from simple gymnastic organizations over a hundred years ago.

Klinsmann is clearly a very intelligent individual with a desire to improve the game in this country yet as I have spent a lot of time at the kind of level in which he outlines needs to be influenced in order to produce more technical players I have to say I am quite pessimistic of his chances of seeing this happen in any great volume– at least in my lifetime anyway. It means influencing an entire culture and that will take generations really – a culture that is built on believing that bigger is better, built on fighting to be the biggest in business, fighting to be the biggest and most powerful military force in the world, the biggest and most powerful athletes who hit the biggest, throw the biggest, run the fastest in the world based on win, win, win and clearly it has helped to create quite a nation with quite a wonderful sporting culture – but just not a soccer culture.

Messi: Arguably the worlds greatest player

You only have to look at the best players and some of the best teams in the world currently to see players from Barcelona, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Corinthians and the Spanish, Dutch and Brazilian national teams. These players are more ‘piano player’ than ‘piano movers’ - players who are more likely to create images of a swift and agile sword-fighting musketeer than a GI Joe. You can imagine how much longer it takes to become the former in each of these comparisons than the latter. The game at the top level of the world is being dominated by teams and players that dominate possession and to do that, delicate, intricate mastery of the ball in 1v1 situations and an acute awareness within the moment are prerequisites for survival.

To develop the technical masters of the ball that Klinsmann is referring to, time must be spent on practicing the technical fundamental elements of the game with precise, intelligent instruction yet with encouragement to express the ‘inner-artist’.To do that means mistakes will most certainly be made before attaining mastery. Goals will be conceded and in all honesty, from direct experience from working within the US youth soccer culture here in Washington I believe that families and other coaches will most likely prevent that from happening. Families will often take their child to the club next door that is ‘winning’ games by smashing the ball forward at the earliest opportunity rather than allow their child to experience the ‘failures’ that are so vital in learning to succeed. Why would parents want their child to risk losing the ball and conceding a goal by consistently passing out from the back when they can simply kick it out of bounds and avoid that risk? Why would they want their kids to be told to try and beat the defender again when they have failed once and may risk doing so again if they try it again?

Families believe so much that the best way to help their child is to have them be in the team that wins the most so coaches will recruit the biggest, fastest kids because at the youth level when there is often so much physical difference between some kids as they grow, this will most likely deliver the easiest way to achieve ‘wins’ which is what the majority of people perceive youth success to be based on….still……in 2011.

Klinsmann has an extreme winning mentality without doubt but he understands youth development and knows there is a clear difference in which there does not have to be sacrifice in having a desire to win – everyone wants to win as that is the aim of the game. He was raised by good development programs in Germany, he has seen them and influenced them at the excellent Bayern Munich Academy and he understands that developing excellent individuals at the youngest age groups is the priority over developing winning youth teams.

Ultimately, to define a US ‘style’ the men’s team must adopt Klinsmann’s vision immediately so that people can see it for themselves at the top level of US soccer. I believe Klinsmann has begun to do that already and it can be seen in the recent games. It is going to be very hard as he is working with ingredients that have not been grown in this way so fans must understand that the ‘results’ for the men’s national team will not be great immediately. Patience is needed.

To help accelerate this process I believe that there should be a modification or even complete overhaul of the national development centers on the east coast and west coast of the country and to undertake a massive identification process at starting with the U13 level if not a little younger and create a couple of long term national centers where these players are based, trained and attend school. At these centers coaches that Klinsmann knows would develop players in the way that he wants. They would be assisted by US coaches that are being developed also for the future. These young players must be immersed in Klinsmann’s new philosophies in order to enhance their chances of improving the national team for the World Cup AFTER the one in Brazil (2018) and certainly for the World Cup in Qatar in 2022. I am sure though that Klinsmann is already planning for this.

4. What can the state of Washington do/change to fall in line with Klinsmann's ideas

I know that Gary (White - Washington State Technical Director) is on the right track in terms of trying to deliver the US curriculum and development philosophies unveiled not too long ago by Claudio Reyna. He has a tough task of trying to influence mindsets regarding development over winning though. He is already delivering seminars and clinics for the associations within the state but he has to be supported by the clubs who in turn must try and educate families and its coaches regarding this kind of philosophy. They also must hold their staff to high standards in coaching.



Rinus Michels: Teaching Principles

It is extremely tough as people don’t understand why anyone would not be concerned about winning. England certainly has the same kind of problem as do other nations in the world where I have worked. I found out recently from a recent visit to Spain that even some clubs and coaches there still focus heavily on winning games at the youth level– not Barcelona, Manchester United, Ajax or PSV Eindhoven however. Such clubs with some of the best youth development programs in the world and a history of developing some of the world’s best players to prove it.As I discovered from several visits to the Netherlands the best development programs have been created by formed coaches with a beleif in teaching principles, such as Rinus Michels who helped to create the KNVB National School for Dutch players in the 1960s. 

These clubs understand that child development in football should not be viewed as any different to child development in the education system where kids are not simply given sample test papers every day so they are able to pass the test at the end of the week or year. They are taught a variety of things year by year with patience and care. They are tested of course but the aim of the system is to get them onto college and good jobs after that and every test along the way is simply part of a process. They make mistakes and are taught how to correct them for themselves without teachers and parents standing over them giving them the answers.

The state, as with Jurgen Klinsmann can only do so much – it is up to the clubs, coaches, families and players to take on the responsibility of improving the game in this nation. I’m glad to say that the Highline Premier FC coaches and players understand this but whether it is ultimately appreciated by everyone remains to be seen.