Live The Pitch

With the poor showing recently at the U-17 World Cup, should the residency program be blamed?  The U.S. U-17′s went 2-2 in the tournament, getting ousted in the round of 16 by Italy 2-1.  Overall the performance of the squad has been up and down.  In the USA’s defense, they were facing players who are training day-to-day with some of the top clubs in Europe.

The residency program has been around since 1999 and has a roster of 40 players in the program throughout each year.  The team studies, trains, eats and does everyday activities with each other throughout the year at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.  They usually split into two teams with each playing in a good amount of matches throughout the year.

This U-17 World Cup was supposed to be a breakout event for the youth program, with the U.S. coasting through qualifying.  After a dismal opening match where they fell 2-1 to a Spain, who played a man down most of the match.  The U.S. had an extra man on the field but you would have never noticed, as Spain was better in every facet of the game.

In the second match of the tournament the U.S. rebounded with a 1-0 win over Malawi.  It was great to get a victory but was very hard fought and honestly could have gone either way.

In our final match of group play we defeated UAE 1-0.  Again, this match was not very well played by the U.S.  For U.S. fans to get excited about this sport we need to send a statement in games like this.  Don’t get me wrong, a win is a win, but with the size of the the United States we should be able to field a team that can EASILY take care of these teams.

The match against Italy in the round of 16 could have been a signature win for the residency program.  Italy would win the match 2-1, but this was by far the best we played in the tournament.  The U.S. missed chance after chance allowing Italy to win and move on to the next round.

So with the U.S. being eliminated once again early in an international competition to a country who is established on the international stage the question is,”How do we compete with the best?”  Yes, in theory the residency program is a great idea.  Are these young men happy in the residency program?  Are they getting the right training?  Are they really becoming better players?

With this early exit, It really doesn’t seem to be benefiting the best players the U.S. has to offer.  With the USSF Academy program in its third year, it would be just as beneficial for these boys to stay in their comfort zone at home, and play for their local Academy program.  Yes, our best players should be in Europe training, but ONLY the best.  Watching this team I can see a few that really look like they have very bright futures in the game.