I first saw Andes Deza's De Anza Force team play this past April and I was instantly drawn to the players' comfort level with the ball, along with their movement off of it. Had tiki-taka arrived in youth soccer in America? On the girls side no less? I have been fortunate to watch the team a few more times while also getting to know their coach, Andres Deza. Each time I came away more impressed with the team's style of play and their coach's demeanor. The quietest coach on the sidelines of the ECNL National Championships this past summer, he also oversaw the team playing the best soccer. Their reward? Champions of the U14 age group.
Soccer Banter: First, for those that haven't seen your De Anza Force U15 ECNL team play, how would you describe their style of play when they are playing at their best?
Andres Deza: I would summarize it by saying we try to enjoy keeping the ball away from the opponent with an intention to constantly look for the right opportunity to attack.
SB: Describe your philosophy and mindset when coaching/developing your current U15 ECNL team, starting from when they were u10/u11?
AD: At the beginning, the focus was on the technical skills, but without missing an opportunity to teach the players how to look, how to move, how to position themselves and how to decide, from a very young age. How to execute would be a result of their individual technical skills development. We tried to emphasize clean touches on the ball and pay as much attention as possible to the details.
As far as the evolution of the concept of play, we started with focusing on the 'Build Up' Phase of the game (ages 10 through 12), then on 'Possession' (ages 11 through 13), then focus shifted towards what we call movements of 'Preparation' (ages 13 through 15), and we have recently started spending much more time on 'Generation of Attacking Play' and 'Scoring'. I am afraid we are going to run out of years before we can start focusing on what we do when we don't have the ball (defensive concepts)...
Soccer Banter: First, for those that haven't seen your De Anza Force U15 ECNL team play, how would you describe their style of play when they are playing at their best?
Andres Deza: I would summarize it by saying we try to enjoy keeping the ball away from the opponent with an intention to constantly look for the right opportunity to attack.
SB: Describe your philosophy and mindset when coaching/developing your current U15 ECNL team, starting from when they were u10/u11?
AD: At the beginning, the focus was on the technical skills, but without missing an opportunity to teach the players how to look, how to move, how to position themselves and how to decide, from a very young age. How to execute would be a result of their individual technical skills development. We tried to emphasize clean touches on the ball and pay as much attention as possible to the details.
As far as the evolution of the concept of play, we started with focusing on the 'Build Up' Phase of the game (ages 10 through 12), then on 'Possession' (ages 11 through 13), then focus shifted towards what we call movements of 'Preparation' (ages 13 through 15), and we have recently started spending much more time on 'Generation of Attacking Play' and 'Scoring'. I am afraid we are going to run out of years before we can start focusing on what we do when we don't have the ball (defensive concepts)...
SB: What do you believe are the most important concepts (technical/tactical) when focusing on developing players at the U10-U14 age?
AD: It really depends on what kind of game you want to play. In our case we did and we still do a lot of 1v1, 2v1, 3v2, 4v3 to goal... and lots of positional possession games always with neutral players involved. We tried to get the player to feel the enjoyment of keeping the ball away from the opponent and treat the ball like something very precious that you do not want to give away easily. We encourage players to take risks with the ball, but at the right time, in the right situations, within the right context, with responsibility.
The most important and a critical aspect of our concept of play has been to teach the players to understand and respect the moments and the phases of the game. To learn when to slow down the game to then accelerate, to learn to manage the tempo and the different rhythms of the game, regardless of the score, regardless of the opponent, regardless of whether we are playing a scrimmage game or in an ECNL Finals event.
Another important aspect of our philosophy has always been, and it still is, giving priority to the enjoyment of the game and how we played the game as opposed to the result. Too much importance is placed upon rankings and the W-L-T record...
AD: It really depends on what kind of game you want to play. In our case we did and we still do a lot of 1v1, 2v1, 3v2, 4v3 to goal... and lots of positional possession games always with neutral players involved. We tried to get the player to feel the enjoyment of keeping the ball away from the opponent and treat the ball like something very precious that you do not want to give away easily. We encourage players to take risks with the ball, but at the right time, in the right situations, within the right context, with responsibility.
The most important and a critical aspect of our concept of play has been to teach the players to understand and respect the moments and the phases of the game. To learn when to slow down the game to then accelerate, to learn to manage the tempo and the different rhythms of the game, regardless of the score, regardless of the opponent, regardless of whether we are playing a scrimmage game or in an ECNL Finals event.
Another important aspect of our philosophy has always been, and it still is, giving priority to the enjoyment of the game and how we played the game as opposed to the result. Too much importance is placed upon rankings and the W-L-T record...
SB: As the influence of athleticism creeps more into the women's game at U15 and above, does that change your philosophy in coaching your current team?
AD: This is a very good question. I have been advised by several very highly regarded coaches to 'better start recruiting some athletes..." Time will only tell if this team will be able to cope with what you refer to as the influence of athleticism creeping into U15 and above...
My view is that the definition of an athlete is very complicated. I am not really qualified to enter this discussion. What I can tell you is that I believe the athletic (physical), but also technical, tactical and psychosocial player profile should be different based on the roles and responsibilities within the different positional functional groupings in a given system and style of play.
SB: Which coaches and teams have helped shape your own coaching style and how have they helped influence you?
AD: Born and raised in Barcelona, Spain, my main influence as a kid in terms of understanding what I should value as important in this game was my uncle and the Nou Camp Stadium crowd, as well as several of my youth coaches... As I started working as a Coach, the main influences have come from many different schools.
Professor Vergine from ACF Fiorentina helped me understand the importance of the coordination components and their direct relationship with the development of specific soccer technical skills. Coach Franz Hoek from Ajax initially introduced me to the methodology around the Moments and Phases of the game, and finally several coaches from the FC Barcelona system have been a continuous source of inspiration and insights, with special mention to an absolute genious, Paco Seirul-lo.
AD: This is a very good question. I have been advised by several very highly regarded coaches to 'better start recruiting some athletes..." Time will only tell if this team will be able to cope with what you refer to as the influence of athleticism creeping into U15 and above...
My view is that the definition of an athlete is very complicated. I am not really qualified to enter this discussion. What I can tell you is that I believe the athletic (physical), but also technical, tactical and psychosocial player profile should be different based on the roles and responsibilities within the different positional functional groupings in a given system and style of play.
SB: Which coaches and teams have helped shape your own coaching style and how have they helped influence you?
AD: Born and raised in Barcelona, Spain, my main influence as a kid in terms of understanding what I should value as important in this game was my uncle and the Nou Camp Stadium crowd, as well as several of my youth coaches... As I started working as a Coach, the main influences have come from many different schools.
Professor Vergine from ACF Fiorentina helped me understand the importance of the coordination components and their direct relationship with the development of specific soccer technical skills. Coach Franz Hoek from Ajax initially introduced me to the methodology around the Moments and Phases of the game, and finally several coaches from the FC Barcelona system have been a continuous source of inspiration and insights, with special mention to an absolute genious, Paco Seirul-lo.
SB: With American youth sports putting such an emphasis on winning - how have you been able to find balance between teaching, developing. winning, and keeping parents happy?
AD: Not easy. But we have been very lucky to have a group of parents that have trusted the process and for the most part given us the opportunity to prioritize on the development aspects.
SB: Changing topics slightly. Barcelona has had so much success in recent years with players graduating from their youth academy to their full team. Why aren't other clubs able to replicate similar success with their own academy programs - turning academy players into full-time starters on the senior team?
AD: Because it is not easy. Because it requires a full, unconditional commitment to a concept and style of play, and a set of very clear values and principles, in soccer and in life. It requires a prioritization process that puts the club and the concept of the game first, then the player. It is not about let's see what kind of players we have and how can we optimize the style and the system of play to make the best of it, it is quite the opposite...
SB: On the international side, Spain has been been dominant over the course of the last seven years - will they be able to win the World Cup in Brazil?
AD: It is going to be tough to win a World Cup again. I just wish that Spain keeps entertaining us who enjoy their style of play for a while, and hope they keep making me smile when I watch them play.
AD: Not easy. But we have been very lucky to have a group of parents that have trusted the process and for the most part given us the opportunity to prioritize on the development aspects.
SB: Changing topics slightly. Barcelona has had so much success in recent years with players graduating from their youth academy to their full team. Why aren't other clubs able to replicate similar success with their own academy programs - turning academy players into full-time starters on the senior team?
AD: Because it is not easy. Because it requires a full, unconditional commitment to a concept and style of play, and a set of very clear values and principles, in soccer and in life. It requires a prioritization process that puts the club and the concept of the game first, then the player. It is not about let's see what kind of players we have and how can we optimize the style and the system of play to make the best of it, it is quite the opposite...
SB: On the international side, Spain has been been dominant over the course of the last seven years - will they be able to win the World Cup in Brazil?
AD: It is going to be tough to win a World Cup again. I just wish that Spain keeps entertaining us who enjoy their style of play for a while, and hope they keep making me smile when I watch them play.
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