Youth Soccer Coaching Player Development Podcast

🔥 Get my Developing the Game Changer masterclass: https://mypersonalfootballcoach.com/mpfc-developing-the-game-changer/

Inside the Crystal Palace Academy

South London is one of the best talent hotbeds in world football, and Crystal Palace sit right in the middle of it.

Nathan Thomas, Head of Coaching at the Crystal Palace Academy, joins Saul to talk about his work there and how the academy makes the most of one of the richest recruitment areas in the game.

Nathan has worked across the academy system, as Foundation Phase Lead at Sunderland and MK Dons, with spells at Arsenal and Brentford too.

We get into:

The role of Head of Coaching at Crystal Palace

Why South London produces so much talent

How Palace recruit and develop players from their area

Lessons from Sunderland, MK Dons, Arsenal and Brentford

What coaches at every level can take from academy football

Whether you coach grassroots, run 1-2-1 sessions, or work in an academy, this one is not to be missed.

Master the ball. Master the game.

🔥 Get my Developing the Game Changer masterclass: https://mypersonalfootballcoach.com/mpfc-developing-the-game-changer/

Why is there such a lack of quality centre-backs in English football?

Steven Caulker came into academy football late. He was only scouted by Tottenham Hotspur at 15, as a centre-back. He went on to play for Spurs, Liverpool and England, and he's now a coach who specialises in defending.

Steven joins Saul to talk about why defending matters so much, how to coach it through the age groups, and why England is producing so few top-quality centre-backs right now.

We get into:

Being scouted late, at 15, and still making it to the top

Why defending is an under-coached part of the game

How to coach defending at every age group

What makes a top-class centre-back

Why English football is short of quality centre-backs

Whether you coach grassroots, run 1-2-1 sessions, or work in an academy, this one is not to be missed.

Master the ball. Master the game.

🔥 Get my Developing the Game Changer masterclass: https://mypersonalfootballcoach.com/mpfc-developing-the-game-changer/

COACHING FAMILY SPECIAL

What's the best way to develop your players if you only have them for one hour a week?

Whether you're a foundation phase coach or working in the youth development phase, time with your players is limited. So how do you make every minute count, and still develop the players who make the difference in games?

Former Arsenal Academy coach Alex Nichols joins Saul again to look at the best ways to maximise the short time you have with your players and develop the game changers of the future.

We get into:

What to prioritise when you only have one hour a week

Planning a session that makes every minute count

The differences between the foundation phase and the youth development phase

Developing the individual inside a group session

How to develop players who change games

Whether you coach grassroots, run 1-2-1 sessions, or work in an academy, this one is not to be missed.

Master the ball. Master the game.

🔥 Get my Developing the Game Changer masterclass: https://mypersonalfootballcoach.com/mpfc-developing-the-game-changer/

COACHING FAMILY SPECIAL

Why are rondos Barcelona's secret weapon?

For decades, the rondo has sat at the heart of how Barcelona develop players, and it has shaped the way the Spanish national team plays too. But why is it so effective, and how do you get the same outcomes from it with your own players?

Jordi Condom Aulí, formerly a coach at Barcelona's academy, joins Saul to explain why rondos accelerate learning, the best way to set them up, and how to coach them so they deliver real outcomes rather than just keeping the ball.

We get into:

Why rondos became Barcelona's secret weapon

How they shaped the Spanish style of play

Why they accelerate a player's learning

The best way to set up a rondo

How to coach them to get real outcomes

Whether you coach grassroots, run 1-2-1 sessions, or work in an academy, this one is not to be missed.

Master the ball. Master the game.

🔥 Get my Developing the Game Changer masterclass: https://mypersonalfootballcoach.com/mpfc-developing-the-game-changer/

⚽ See Michel live with the Surrey Football Coaches Association in December. Join the SFCA: https://www.surreyfootballcoachesassociation.com

COACHING FAMILY SPECIAL

What does a good ball mastery session look like?

If you only have your players for one hour a week, what's the most effective way to develop them?

Michel Hordijk, formerly of the Ajax Academy, joins Saul to talk about ball mastery: what it actually is, how to do it properly, and how to make it count when time is short. They also challenge some of the biggest misconceptions around this work, including the argument that ball mastery has no context.

We get into:

What ball mastery really is, and what it isn't

How to deliver it properly

The common misconceptions, including whether it has context

How to link ball mastery to the game

Getting the most from one hour a week with your players

Whether you coach grassroots, run 1-2-1 sessions, or work in an academy, this one is not to be missed.

Master the ball. Master the game.

🔥 Get my Developing the Game Changer masterclass: https://mypersonalfootballcoach.com/mpfc-developing-the-game-changer/

COACHING FAMILY SPECIAL

Which academy is best for your child?

For parents lucky enough to have a choice, it's the million-dollar question. Which academy should they join? Which one will help them fulfil their potential? And how do you even begin to compare them?

Former Arsenal Academy coach Alex Nichols joins Saul to talk about the academy environment from the inside, and to help parents answer one of the toughest decisions they'll ever face.

We get into:

What really makes one academy better than another

Why the "biggest" club isn't always the best choice

What to look for in the coaching, the environment and the pathway

The questions every parent should ask before signing

How to choose the academy that's right for your child

Whether you're a parent facing this decision, a player weighing up your options, or a coach advising families, this is one you need to hear.

Master the ball. Master the game.

🔥 The 121 Coaching Course is £399 until 31 October: https://mypersonalfootballcoach.com/mpfc-121-coaching-course/

Are English players as good as the French and Spanish?

For years, France and Spain have been held up as the gold standard of player development. Technically sharper, tactically smarter, better prepared for the top level. But has England caught up?

Alex Nichols, formerly of Arsenal's Academy, joins Saul to debate it. They look at how English players compare with their French and Spanish counterparts, what each country does differently in its academies, and where England still has work to do.

We get into:

How English players compare technically and tactically

What France and Spain do differently in development

The strengths English academies have that others don't

What still needs to change in the English system

What coaches at every level can take from all three countries

Whether you coach grassroots, run 1-2-1 sessions, or work in an academy, this is a debate every coach will have an opinion on.

Master the ball. Master the game.

Get 20% off the 121 Coaches Course now: https://mypersonalfootballcoach.com/mpfc-121-coaching-course/

🎙️ NEW PODCAST

What really goes on behind the scenes at one of the best academies in European football?

Feyenoord U21 coach David Toxopeus joins Saul to take you inside. Feyenoord has a long history of developing players who go on to play in Europe's top five leagues, and David has worked through the academy, including winning the national championship with the U15s.

They talk about how Feyenoord identifies and develops players, what the pathway from academy to first team really looks like, and what young players have to do to make it at the top level.

We get into:

The Feyenoord way of developing players

What happens day to day behind the scenes at the academy

Technical and Tactical Periodisation

How they set up on game day

Whether you coach grassroots, run 1-2-1 sessions, or work in an academy, this is a rare look inside one of Europe's top player development factories.

Master the ball. Master the game.

Get 20% off the 121 Coaches Course now

https://mypersonalfootballcoach.com/mpfc-121-coaching-course/

Episode 150. And who better to celebrate it with than Michael Beale.

Michael returns to the show to talk about his new role as Head Coach of Zulte Waregem in the Belgian Pro League, and about the topic every coach wrestles with: planning.

Whether you're working in a first-team environment or at grassroots, and whether you see your players every day or only for one or two hours a week, how you plan decides how much your players improve. Michael explains how he approaches it, and what changes when time is short.

Few coaches have seen the game from as many angles. Michael came through the academy system at Chelsea and Liverpool, and has since worked in first-team football as both an assistant and a head coach, managing QPR, Rangers and Sunderland before taking on his new challenge in Belgium.

We get into:

Life and coaching in Belgian football

How to plan a week, a month and a season

Getting the most out of one or two hours a week with your players

What stays the same from academy to first team, and what doesn't

The lessons from working at every level of the game

Whether you coach grassroots, run 1-2-1 sessions, work in an academy or in the first-team game, this is one not to be missed.

Develop The Individual. Not The System.

Join the Surrey Football Coaches Association now: https://www.surreyfootballcoachesassociation.com

What if you only get your players for one or two hours a week?

That's the reality for most coaches. One session. Sixty minutes. And every one of those minutes has to count.

In this Coaching Family Special, I'm joined by Keith Boanas to talk about planning and effective session design. How do you maximise your time on the pitch when time is the one thing you don't have?

Keith has spent decades in the game. He's been an FA coach developer, he's coached in the women's professional game, and he's worked at international level. He's also one of the biggest influences on Saul's coaching methodology and his career. A lot of what he does today with players at academy and professional level started with conversations with Keith.

We get into:

How to plan a session so nothing is wasted

Why ball rolling time matters more than the drill itself

Designing practices that transfer into the game

What to prioritise when you only have one hour

The lessons that shaped both of our careers

We also talk about the Surrey Football Coaches Association, which has been developing coaches of every level since 1965. If you coach in Surrey or nearby, their demo sessions are one of the best ways to learn from experienced coaches and meet others doing the same job. The link is at the top.

Whether you coach grassroots, run 1-2-1 sessions, or work in an academy, this one will change how you plan your week.

Develop The Individual. Not The System.