There were some very interesting and positive responses to our recent article surrounding Clint Dempsey. I pointed out that the success we had with the Canadian Olympic team (1984) and the World Cup team (Mexico 86) came as a direct result of the fact that most of the Canadian players had learned the ropes – the subtleties and nuances of the game – by playing in men’s soccer from 15 years of age onwards. Clint did the same in Texas.
Protecting players by age grouping is not (in the majority of cases) going to help their development. Did you see Neymar Jr last week? He was playing in the top Brazilian pro leagues from age 17.
I’d like to focus this week on perhaps the best goalkeeper to play in the EPL – American Brad Friedel. His has been a story of persistence and determination – coupled with great skills, excellent decision-making and many more first-class qualities.
In the 90’s, when I was back as the Canada national coach, we played the United States in the Olympic qualifications, which meant me seeing Brad Friedel twice at close quarters and a couple of other times when scouting the opposition.
Based on what I saw, I made a strong recommendation to my former colleagues at Liverpool FC. Brad went to Liverpool, but for a combination of reasons was unable to impress sufficiently for Liverpool to persevere with him.
That started a journey for Brad that culminated – eventually – in becoming the longest serving goalkeeper in the EPL. Read about Brad’s incredible journey on Wikipedia
Click here to access Mike Woitalla of Soccer America’s interview of Brad. Incidentally, if you are not subscribing to Soccer America, you are missing out on a lot of top class soccer articles.