By 3four3
Soccer Education for the Serious
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110110 ratings
The following episode features Ted Westervelt, regarded by many, including myself, as one of the originals who have been advocating and educating about promotion and relegation, both in the United States and abroad, for well over a decade. As you’ll...
Before the start of our weekly business meeting, John Kokkoris and I had some soccer small talk regarding this misguided notion of “let the kids play”. It was stimulated by the following comments made by the Argentine National Team manager,...
Don (@Don_K_Williams) and I touch on a number of topics, including: There’s Nothing New in Soccer. Stats and Video Don’t Capture the Quality of a Player. Coaches Aren’t the Main Problem in Development. Personal Experience in Helping Latinos Have a...
Truly knowing the landscape at all scales, helps you successfully navigate it. On Clubs A crucial concept often overlooked in discussions about soccer is the absence of what we commonly refer to as “clubs” at the MLS level. Moreover, this...
Contrary to what many in the States will tell you: A National Team manager does not have to conform to the proverbial “player pool.” By selecting and elevating players that conform to it, they absolutely can impose their preferred style...
Today, I’ve got a multi-decade long practitioner based out of Japan, Tom Byer. He’s American, but Japan has been his home for 38 years. As I was writing this intro, which is the only thing I ever script, it occurred...
Lifelong American soccer practitioner and entrepreneur, Kephern Fuller, joins me again from Holland. On September 15, news came out that an MLS owner, Arthur Blank, who operates the Atlanta franchise, was going to fund US Soccer with $50 million in...
Player attributes are compartmentalized in 4 general attributes: Technical Tactical Physical Psychological They’re all critical. But that 4th one, man that 4th one is quite a bit different from the others. It’s tough to put your finger on it. One...
The following is a conversation with longtime friend and colleague, Paul Holocher, a former professional player with experience in MLS, pre-MLS, and in Europe when Americans overseas was barely conceivable. After his playing days, he turned to coaching, starting with...
I am joined today from Holland by a long-time soccer friend, colleague, and fellow builder who continues to push the envelope of what’s possible: Kephern Fuller. After founding a club named Joga SC on the east coast of the United...
Today I’m joined once again by Joey Cascio. One of the extremely rare exceptional American coaches He wanted us to discuss what are likely the 2 most critical components (of the 5) to player development: The parent, family, household influence....
I’m joined today by professional footballer and former youth player of Brian Kleiban, Taylor Davila. Taylor’s doing really well in the USL Championship as a 22-year-old central midfielder. Playing for the RGV Toros, he’s leading the league in chances created....
I am joined today by Kirk Kinsey, soccer coach, soccer parent, doing the remarkable within the confines of American soccer. Within what is deemed “rec soccer” of all places. Ok, ok. Why on earth would 3four3 be talking about AYSO?...
Are American Soccer Broadcasters: Doing a good job? Raising the collective soccer iq of the audience, OR, are they doing more harm than good? As you might suspect, I had quite a few things to say about this. A critical...
What does competition actually mean? And more specifically, what does it mean for coaches to create a competitive environment within their teams? There’s a lot to dissect here because it’s not just about: The level of your opponents. The level...
This episode dives into the following topics: Mentorship. And I must admit, things get a bit heated. But in a good way, as I was just trying to dig deeper into the topic and extract the most from our guest....
The topic today is regarding an identity for the US men’s national team. Do we have one? Do we not have one? If we do have one, what is it exactly? If we don’t have one, why not? And what...
Today, I have a unique guest, 22-year-old professional player Taylor Davila. He grew up in Southern California, where he played most of his youth soccer at a well-known club, Real So Cal. My brother, Brian Kleiban, had known him from...
In this episode, I was joined once again by exceptional coach Joey Cascio to discuss what in Spanish parlance is called, “Cambios de Ritmo”. In English, that translates to “Changes of Rhythm”. Interestingly, that’s something you don’t hear much of...
I received a cold email from a coach in Chicago, Jonathan Cummings. In that email he introduced himself as a long-time 3four3 premium member who was now seeking guidance, thoughts, information, on what to do next with a talented 11...
In this episode, I’m joined by John Kokkoris – a colleague out in New York who has had quite a bit of success with the youth there. It’s his second time on the pod, the first being way back in...
Kephern Fuller joins us in a discussion that takes us through a bunch of topics: The US vs Netherlands Match On the “We’re a Young Team” Excuse The US being in the weakest group Did Holland choose to give the...
Today, Kephern Fuller joins us once again from Holland to have a chat regarding the US Mens National team, their World Cup campaign, and whether or not it’s a good thing they have advanced out of the group stage. Yes,...
This episode touches on the evergreen topic of Winning versus Development. Here again we find ourselves having to work upstream against the misguiding currents of American soccer media and culture. In the States, the narrative being pushed is that winning...
In this episode, Joey Cascio and I chat a bit about team development versus individual development. This is an ever-present framing in many soccer circles. That’s to say, the narratives out there pit these two against each other – as...
This episode takes us through the player identification, scouting, and recruiting process associated with college soccer. San Diego State assistant coach, Carlos Aguilar, gives us an insider’s perspective. One of the interesting things with any profession is the depth associated...
Kephern Fuller, an American soccer pioneer who left the US and established roots in Holland, joins me for a chat which touched a variety of topics: The Categories within Player Development. Culture vs Infrastructure – which is most important? Is...
This was an off the cuff chat on perhaps one of the most neglected, but fundamental skills in football. Specifically, what we like to call “losing your man”. Sure, we all know in theory that creating and finding space while...
Transcript I imagine if you’re listening to the 3four3 podcast, you also watch the Champions League. And so you are well aware that one of the semi-finalists is Villarreal, from Spain. Being a semi-finalist in the Champions League is usually...
Today I’m joined by longtime friend, colleague, and exceptional coach with a ton of experience, Joey Cascio. This episode is a technical one – a zooming in on one particular training exercise. Namely, the 4v1 Rondo. So coaches, this is...
Have you ever heard the criticism that football leagues around the world are boring, or non-competitive, because they always have the same two or three clubs that win the title? I’m sure you have. And this is usually heard from...
The following is a brief chat I had with Terry on one of the many misguided notions out there surrounding why American soccer doesn’t need promotion and relegation. Specifically, the argument goes something like this. “Gary, the other team sports...
The following is a chat I had with Joey Cascio on what it’s like for a youth coach in the States to change clubs. Actually, you know what, that’s not exactly right. It’s more an episode on the decision-making process...
The following is a brief chat I had with Terry on objections to promotion and relegation in American soccer. For the uninitiated, American soccer is polarized. It’s polarized between those who subscribe to American exceptionalism when it comes to soccer,...
The following is a pretty lively chat I had with Nick on joystick parents. You heard that right, I didn’t mean to say “joystick coaches”. That one we already covered in episode #293. Which, by the way, if you haven’t...
The following is a free flowing discussion I had with Terry on virtuous and vicious cycles. Now if you haven’t heard of these terms before, let me provide a quick rundown of the concept. Generally, these cycles referred to a...
The following contains a 10 minute side chat between my co-host Terry and myself, discussing at what age player development starts diverging between the US and the standard bearers across the world. This has been the subject of much debate...
The following was a chat I had with my cohost, Nick Rogers, on whether criticizing pro players is a good or bad, right or wrong, or perhaps less black and white than that, how to go about levying criticism. While...
The following is a discussion stimulated by some commentary between former men’s national team player, Herculez Gomez, and a pundit that I actually have some respect for, Sebastian Salazar. What’s the topic? Well, the topic is why the “rivalry”, between...
The following episode is on the topic of burnout. Nick and I touch on whether burnout is a real thing, or yet another artifact of a particular culture where everything needs to be soft, where competition is a bad thing,...
Is promotion and relegation coming to the United States, is it ever coming to the United States? Ah, the eternal question, isn’t it? A question really, though, that should be framed more like: Is opportunity and inclusion in the soccer...
The following is a discussion on so-called joystick coaching. Kaboom! Already right there, for everyone in the soccer community here, the neurons fired and in a microsecond that equation “joystick coaching = bad”. Yeah, that one, that one became top...
The following is a free flow discussion Terry Ransbury and I had on monopolies. The context is first set through the lens that Peter Thiel offers in his book, Zero to One. If you haven’t read it, it’s a good...
The following is a micro episode on mentality. It’s just a five minute rant I went on with Nick during one of our recordings, a tangent really. I thought I would clip it and publish it since a few days...
The following is an episode on players “playing up” in age. While it might seem this isn’t a new notion, and it’s simply a matter of whether the player is good enough, there is quite a bit to consider. Nick...
The following is a discussion on scouting. Now obviously, this is a huge topic that entire courses and careers are built around. So it’s not like we’re going to cover this in 30 minutes. Rather, Terry and I are just...
Portland vs Seattle, NY Red Bulls vs New York City FC, LAFC vs Galaxy, please … those aren’t rivalries, those are scrimmages, those are friendly play dates among buddies who are all on the same boat rowing in the same...
The following is on the topic of players with dual nationalities. Specifically, dual-nationals as it relates to the US Mens National Team. Even more specific, dual-nationals as it relates to Mexican-Americans first, and Latino-Americans generally. It s become a hot...
The following is a conversation on the notion of the cream rises to the top . I first publicly touched on this subject, albeit from a different angle, in 2009. It would seem many – if not most –...
