Friday morning was supposed to offer Australian football fans a slight reprieve. A positive news story to soften the constant blows handed out since the close of the 2014-15 A-League season. Yet the Joeys’ round of 16 clash against Nigeria ended in disaster.
A 6-0 defeat is unacceptable no matter who the opposition or what the age level.
However, considering the Joeys managed to gain four points from an extremely tough group including Germany, Mexico and Argentina, and qualify for the knockouts, the tournament could be deemed a relative success.
Yet the tournament raised a few questions about the future of youth development in Australia, and comments from FFA Under-17 technical director Peter de Roo following the Nigeria loss were slightly concerning.
“We didn’t come here with expectations of reaching a certain stage of the competition. Our goal was to play the football we wanted to play, regardless of who we took on, and I think we’ve done that,” de Roo said.
“Our expectation was that we wanted to play positive, aggressive football. We have matched four world class teams in possession statistics.”
Matching world-class teams in possession statistics does not represent progression. The German Under-17s allowed the Joeys to hold possession, safe in the knowledge that they had the organisation and quality to prevent their opposition creating clearcut chances.
And these German boys could no doubt have matched the Joeys in keeping the ball, yet their awareness of the situation and ability to expose weaknesses was impressive. They were a class above not only technically, but also in their decision-making and execution.
Similarly, Nigeria, once 2-0 up, allowed the Joeys to hold onto the ball and ruthlessly hit four goals in the second half largely from counter attacks. The Joeys’ naivety prevalent in the Germany game returned, a weakness that had been partly eradicated in a fantastic 2-1 win over Argentina.
Holding possession is one thing, using the ball effectively is another. Against Germany and Nigeria there was little penetration in the final third, and there is no point dominating the possession stats if you find yourself caught out at the back.
The first goal against Nigeria arrived with Australia losing possession just over the halfway line, with the whole team pushed high up the pitch. A quick ball down the left wing exposed right-back Jonathan Vakirtzis’s high position, and Kye Rowles was left to defend Victor Osimhen one-on-one.
The 16-year-old Nigerian completely bamboozled Rowles and sent a perfect curled finish past goalkeeper Duro Dragicevic.
The second goal arrived from the penalty spot, after Rowles and Vakirtzis combined to tumble over Funsho Bambogye, who was going nowhere. Nigeria captain Kelechi Nwakali converted.
Against Nigeria, the Joeys may have held a lot of the ball, but the 18-8 shot differential was damning. They only managed one shot on target from those eight efforts.
The view that results don’t matter in youth football is bollocks. It should not be the overriding objective, but it should play a huge role in these youngsters’ development. It is an important component of creating future stars.
That said, success does not guarantee future prosperity, that much becomes clear when comparing Nigeria Under-17’s immaculate record – four World Cup titles, three runners-up – with their men’s side. But a happy medium must be found.
Again, 6-0 is not acceptable at any level, and you can be sure the Joeys won’t be pleased with the result. That is what we want – hunger and passion to improve. They will learn a vital lesson from this loss.
The obsession with a 4-3-3 possession-based game looks good on paper. We want to play good football, we want to entertain, regardless of the opposition. It is the blueprint Ange Postecoglou uses for the Socceroos, and so having all our teams play a similar style theoretically make sense.
But will it actually improve our players?
Flexibility is just as important in football, the ability to switch tactics to suit opposition. We don’t want to go back to dire, defensive mindsets, but we should aim to implement clever decision-making and execution; and that includes adjustable gameplans.
When Germany implemented their renowned youth overhaul following the 2000 European Championship they focused on developing academies. Top-class facilities, ensuring every professional team (starting with the Bundesliga clubs before trickling down) had a youth academy, and offering regular DFB (German Football Association) programs were the main objectives.
Yet there was no set directive for the installation of a particular playing philosophy, no insistence that all youth levels played a certain way. They have developed a more holistic approach, and it has worked.
Exposing youngsters to different tactics is arguably more fruitful than training them in just one structured formation. If you’re interested to read about Frank Wormuth’s work with the German Under-20s, using the “intentional stray pass”, journalist Uli Hesse offers a fantastic introduction.
Instead of steadfastly sticking to 4-3-3, perhaps we should trust our coaches to be innovative and develop their own ideas. Unfortunately, that comes down to coaching quality, something that needs a lot of work and deserves its own article. Relying on former players without proper appraisal is not the way forward.
Possession-based football is not as hot as it was five years ago under Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona.
Indeed, we saw Arsene Wenger recently reject his own love for possession against Bayern Munich and come away with a fantastic 2-0 victory. It was a superb performance, and one which took into account the opponent’s abilities. And it was not dull football, either.
It is worrying that ‘attacking’ football appears to be defined by possession. This belief that possession football equals attractive football is a myth. You need to have the skills to push forward in the final third – the third that matters – and punish your opponent’s weaknesses.
In that sense, the Joeys struggled, particularly against Germany and Nigeria.
If we want to use Germany as a role model – and it makes sense – then the most important aspect is developing technical skills, but at an earlier age.
The DFB hold talent development programs for players aged 8 to 14, providing technical skills and knowledge, after which they remain full-time at their clubs or are signed by clubs. Freiburg, who are renowned for their youth development, go a step further and work with amateur feeder clubs, sending coaches twice a week to work with 8- to 11-year-olds
At the moment, A-League clubs are at times getting players when they are 17-18 from National Premier League clubs and the FFA Centre of Excellence, too late in the development cycle. Only eight of the 21 Joeys who travelled to the World Cup have clubs, the others are involved with the FFA CoE.
The FFA’s National Curriculum identifies the 10-13 year age bracket as the opportune time to develop core skills such as first touch, passing, shooting and dribbling. The 13-17 year group is then exposed to positional awareness and tactics.
The next step is to get these kids involved in club football at the start of this second phase, so they can be exposed to a quality and professional environment. The Joeys can still play 4-3-3 in Tony Vidmar wishes, but having more players emerging from different youth programs – and possibly different tactics – at A-League clubs will give them more edge.
Making it compulsory for A-League clubs to maintain academies has been a good initiative, but perhaps the most important development will be the changes made to the National Youth League, which kicks off in its new format next month.
The NYL has been reduced from an 18-round home-and-away season to just eight rounds, excluding a finals series. The nine A-League clubs and FFA CoE side are split into two conferences – Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne City and Victory, Perth in one group, and Central Coast, Newcastle, Sydney FC and Western Sydney together with the FFA CoE.
Following the competition’s grand final in January, the NYL sides will join the 26-week NPL structure.
The best young players will remain with their A-League clubs for longer periods, and will play against adult opposition. The new changes will also also A-League clubs to enter teams from Under-13s into the NPL junior structure; it’s a promising and necessary development. Increased competitive action will provide that winning mentality.
In fear of being accused of adopting an overly negative reflection, the positives from the Joeys’ World Cup campaign should be highlighted as well.
Some of these young boys offered a lot of promise; there were a few passengers, but individually there is much to get excited about.
Joe Caletti was the standout, dictating play in midfield, sometimes singlehandedly. Liverpool’s Jake Brimmer was impressive in bouts, but was mostly eye-catching through his set piece delivery. Jackson Bandiera was another to show a lot of promise, though you get the feeling the left-back may eventually find himself playing higher up the field.
Cameron Joice performed admirably up front, holding up the ball and trying to involve teammates in a thankless job, Nicholas Panetta shone against Argentina, having a hand in both goals, and despite his blunder for Nigeria’s third goal, Dragicevic was also solid.
Then there was Panos Armenakas, Australia’s next big hope. The 16-year-old only started one game but his quick feet under pressure was highly impressive. There is a still a lack of decision-making in his game, yet that will only improve as he matures. This kid will only get better.
The next step is to get these youngsters playing more regular competitive fixtures, Nigeria’s Osimhen reportedly has more than 70 caps for his country. The new structure should help in that quest, at least at domestic level.
The experience they have obtained from playing nations such as Germany, Mexico, Argentina and Nigeria will be invaluable. Unfortunately the World Cup only comes around once every two years. The next step is to get these youngsters
Hopefully the introduction of A-League teams in the NPL junior structure will help our youngsters develop a competitive streak and become exposed to different systems and tactics. The future is promising, but the FFA cannot afford to stand idle.
Peter Cotton
Guest
Great post Steven. Agree wholeheartedly. Brisbane Roar have been a prime example of mindless possession football. Too many players afraid to attack, with the resultant back pass, or series thereof, often moving the ball from the vicinity of their opponent's penalty area back to half way, or even further. And the football gurus cannot understand why such a successful team as The Roar are unable to attract larger crowds to Suncorp. Not sure about this season, as I am overseas, but in previous seasons The Roar has played boring football, even when they were winning minor and major premierships. Only the purists enjoy that type of success, but not your average prospective fan.
Stevenqoz
Guest
Two points in your article are spot on. The NC obsession with 433 is a problem that the converts don't see. Formations are tools to be used as the need arises and ought to be taylored to the particular needs / abilities of the squad not the other way around. The other you made about mindless possession based football comes up when sides 'get down there' and come away with nothing...no shot incisive pass header or cross. This comes down to attitude and intention. Players have to take risks in that final third. Earlier this year my NSWCIS side won the All Schools in spite of being clear underdogs against the other 3 associations. We did this by getting those NYL players to do something outside the 433 pattern and to never go down there without 'something' at the end of it?
Ben of Phnom Penh
Roar Guru
Junior youth development in Nigeria has rather enthusiastic (and sometimes unsavoury) commercial interests from agents, parents and others resulting in a concentration of resources in this side of the game. Resources for the continued development of older youth and senior players is far lower as the option of a cheap pay day for middlemen declines. It is quite a business and many of these players find themselves out in the back blocks of Asia, some with no clubs at all as they have been scammed. The prisons in parts of SE Asia have a number of Nigerians in them who arrived as part of a football scam or who came as legitimate footballers but never made it an turned to crime. It is quite a sad tale of exploitation and neglect.
Barca4life
Guest
The question is what our expectations for our youth teams? Ask another country and if they can make the second round out of some tough teams regardless of the first and last games and they would be satisfied, they did quite well in context of results. We have done worse in the past like not getting a point or not qualifying for the whole thing like the young socceroos/joeys have done. We have made a final in 1999, and a couple of quater finals appearance when it was 16 teams before the tournament expanded to 24 teams We have to ask ourselves when trying to improve what our expectations? And are they realistic given where we sit in the pecking order of world football? Do we expect to make the semifinals all the time? i think its a bit unrealistic sorry.
Bondy
Guest
j binnie It is nice to track the behaviour or philosophies of the likes of LVG now at Man Utd after the World Cup, also there just simply aren't that many good centre half's around to actually purchase ... Just also when you flood the midfield in general you also receive schoolboy defending errors I.E Barcelona at times, Pique being the main protagonist. Three at the back can look and sound pretty but it can look calamitous or can put grave pressure on a gaffa .. .
marron
Roar Guru
Nice one smell! Not as good as the one above though. Fiddlesticks liked that one too. You two know each other?
Peter Cotton
Guest
Not sure if mikiell is on the same page jb. Apparently he does not watch international news. Most of us Aussies would have great difficulty surviving in Nigeria. From my uncle's experiences as the British Civil Service Deputy Treasurer of Nigeria in the 1940's, the country was, and probably still is, to a certain extent, a malaria ridden tropical hell hole. Oil wealth for a few does not translate to a "wealthy nation". By our standards, the average Nigerian .lives in poverty. Hence the production of good youth footballers. Their only identifiable "way out".
j binnie
Guest
Bondy .It is not a state secret that LVG was trying to introduce a 3 centre back structure into the Dutch team at the time of the World Cup.,in fact after his tenure there finished (with much criticism I may add) he moved to Man Utd where again it is no secret he was again showing a penchant for the system which actually calls for total domination (numerically and possession wise) of the midfield hence we have seen most of his expensive signings (and discards) being highly talented midfielders.Has the system been successful?.There are those who will venture the opinion that until he goes out and procures some highly effective and talented centre-backs we will never know just how successful his system could be. Cheers jb
Steve
Guest
Love Guardiola Bar a, but also love Lucho Barca. A lot of other Culos don't like that we don't have 70% possession every game, but I like the tactical flexibility Lucho plays with (this season not so good, although once Messi comes back and Turan and Vidal we should improve). Lucho tactical flexibility is one of the reasons why he has a better away record in Europe than Pep. For pure aesthetics, the 2010-11 team was...wow. That manita given to Mourinho Real was magical.
j binnie
Guest
mikiell .When one describes Nigeria as a "poor" country one is tending to talk in ideology terms not purely economic.Like a lot of other African countries Nigeria is still emerging from years of colonial style governance,and as we are constantly reminded in the press and media,this does not happen overnight so it stands that in places like Nigeria there will be a huge "lower" standard of living at the bottom end of the population and this is what is meant in this instance by the word "poor" Cheers jb
j binnie
Guest
MF - The original time frame that came with the introduction of the idea of small sided games on small fields did not have a base age (what age one started) but it was suggested that the change to larger fields and teams should happen around the ages 11-13. This was dependent on the findings of a psychological assessment done in junior sport at a university in England where it was found that up to that age the individual was motivated by a desire to ""kick a ball" or "score a goal" but began to realise at around that age he was playing with another 10 kids, all with the one purpose,trying to win a game.This idea was first floated in coaching circles in Australia around 1975 not by the establishment of our "National Curriculum"' in 2008. At the time there was much confusion re.why this was being introduced for as was usual at that time any revolutionary idea that was "tabled" was usually dis-regarded by an upper football management ,that to be honest was more guided by self interest than it was in innovation.Cheers jb
Bondy
Guest
j binnie What also should be taken into consideration is the Dutch beat the current World Champ's 5 days prior 6 or 7 - 1 and LVG appears to me to have drawn to the conclusion Australia cannot score a goal hence the three at the back ...
Mister Football
Roar Guru
My personal experience at junior level in may local area, as both a dad and junior coach, is that up to about the age of 8 or 9, it's all small-sided games to varying degrees.
j binnie
Guest
RBB - As you say this is not a "new" concept we have all had experience of Sunday games played on a farmer's vacant field when 20 -a-side games were not unusual and your opponent was just as likely to be a local player who actually played with a first division team. If you think about it enough you will realise this was just a learning experience out of which evolved the emergence of small sided teams playing on small pitches as an improvement in making sure you had a much better numerical chance of getting a touch at a ball.Another example of football evolving. Cheers jb
j binnie
Guest
Punter - Just to clarify I did not say EVERY young Australian player showed weaknesses in the basic skills,what I meant was that when a poor skill is demonstrated in our HAL it is invariably a young Aussie who makes it. As against that I have just watched a Newcastle Jets team who all around the field were demonstrating excellent use of the ball and space.Is it Miller's coaching which has in the main been learned overseas?,Who knows? but I would not hesitate to say he may well deserve credit if his team continues to play as they did for 40 minutes tonight. Cheers jb
j binnie
Guest
Fuss- What I said was that YOU should not always base your thinking on results but should consider the big picture,that being what you see occurring on the field. What I said later was that HISTORY,not in this instance you or me, will in the future judge how Australia did in that WC based on the results that they read. Although Australia did play well in the first 45 minutes of the game it was just as obvious to me that the Dutch had made changes to their structure at half time, lifted their game , and went out winners 3-2. That fact has nothing to do with how I assess a football team or match.I am not guided by sentiment but am by reality,and if in your mind that denigrates me as a fan of the Socceroos then so be it,but let me finish by saying I wish our boys had thrashed Holland ,Chile and Spain in that WC,I would have been extremely happy.Cheers jb.
Realfootball
Guest
You really do have a lot of time on your hands, don't you Fussball.
Realfootball
Guest
Try something other than "huh", Fussball. It makes you sound both trivial and unintelligent. Oh, wait...
Realfootball
Guest
I'll say it again - gratuitous and uninformed. You are, without doubt, a remarkably unpleasant online presence. You seem to take a perverse pride in your obnoxiousness. You must be a desperately inadequate person.
Peter Cotton
Guest
Very interesting discussion. No one has, however, addressed the issue of why an U/17 WC is conducted. Surely it is so that participant nations can guage their own progress, and that of others. Surely it is not cause for handwringing, and predictions of doom and gloom. If our coaching staffs are up to the job, they will identify and attempt to rectify the team's, and the individual's shortcomings. To what extent this is necessary is debatable for, as an earlier poster has commented, very few of these players will progress to the professional ranks, never mind their national team. More imortant, I would have thought, is that the next crop of U/17 NT players are better prepared. Cheers