Welcome to the "Best of the GP Soccer Podcast!" (S13 E1)

                    Welcome to the Best of the GP Soccer Podcast!

While the show takes its seasonal hiatus, you can still enjoy some of the best episodes of the GP Soccer Podcast! Host Giovanni Pacini has dug deep into the show archives to bring his worldwide audience some great interviews, coaching tips, and opinions. The GP Soccer Podcast is proud to be a member of the Sports History Network, and the show has earned some outstanding accolades such as-

* #1 on Top Podcast's "independently produced soccer podcasts".

* #2 on Feedspot Media's list of "Best Soccer Coaching Podcasts".

* #5 on Feedspot Media's list "Top 20 Soccer Podcasts" that are a "must listen".

* #6 on Skill Shark's "Top 10 Soccer Coaching Podcasts".

* Million Podcast's "Top 30 Soccer Coaching Podcasts"

* Million Podcast's "Top 10 Goalkeeper Podcasts".

* Noted as one of the "Best Soccer Coaching Podcasts of 2025" on Player FM.

The GP Soccer Podcast will return for Season 15 on September 9th with new shows airing every Wednesday. Those interested in advertising on the show can contact host Giovanni Pacini at gp4soccer@yahoo.com. Every episode of the show from Season 1 to 14 can be found wherever you tune into your podcasts!

Enoy this "Best of the GP Soccer Podcast" episode!  

Be sure to pick up Giovanni Pacini's new book- "The Importance of Unstructured Free Play: Coaching with a Street Soccer Mentality" available now on Amazon!

Transcript

SPEAKER_05 1:21

Well, hey there, everyone. Giovanni Piccini here, your host of the GP Soccer Podcast, Season 13 Kickoff Show. Hopefully it's Lucky 13. I I I I think it'll be a Lucky 13. But it's great to be with you, particularly on the kickoff shows. If you're a regular listener to the show, and there are a lot of you out there, you know that I take a little bit of a hiatus twice a year, usually in the summertime and then uh you know a couple of months in the in the late winter. But uh it's always great to come back. I always look forward to heck, I look forward to all the shows. Let me be frank with all of you, but I really look forward to the kickoff show because a lot of time, effort, work, focus goes into prep preparing for a new season. Now, during the hiatus, I don't sit on my tushy and do nothing. I'm down here in the studio quite a bit, uh, updating a lot of things. And there are a lot of updates here in season 13, uh, not the least of which was the opening of the show. Hopefully you like it. I I happen to love it, if I do say so myself, and it is courtesy of Music Meets Sports. And uh I I I learned of Music Meets Sports through the Sports History Network, which the GP Soccer Podcast is proudly a member. And uh gentleman who runs it, um, you know, brings uh sports together along with music. He's a pretty significant uh uh music producer and uh customizes uh uh music for for sports, and he customized this opening for the GP Soccer Podcast. So uh music meets sports, definitely check it out, definitely check it out. Um you know if for those of you who who don't know me, you let's just say you were you were you know going through the internet, you're scrolling, you're scrolling, you're looking for you know something new in the soccer world, and you stumble upon the GP Soccer podcast, and this guy, Giovanni Piccini, who the heck is this guy? Well, I've been at this a long time uh in terms of coaching the game of soccer. I've coached the high school level, I've coached club, I've coached collegiate. I'm currently the goalkeeper coach of uh Regis College in Weston, Massachusetts. I've done a lot of work for United Soccer coaches as a coach educator, member of the national staff, national goalkeeper staff. Um well, basically, folks, if it's round and uh someone's kicking it, I'm not too far away. I'm not too far away. Um soccer has been a very, very important part of my life. And uh way, way, way back when when I was uh a kid growing up, uh I had a fascination with the radio. I really did. I used to love getting the transistor radio, and I'm showing my age a little bit, and I used to love slowly uh rotating the dial and seeing how many different radio stations I could find, if I could find something, um, say something from New York, because I live in Boston, I found that to be so cool. Or even more cool than that, something from say from Montreal. It all came out of this little box, this little thing called a transistor radio. Well, fast forward a lot of years, I put my expertise in the uh sport of soccer, along with some expertise that I had uh as a voiceover artist, and um lo and behold, the GP Soccer Podcast uh was born. So the soccer stuff, the radio stuff, my voiceover stuff uh, you know, was woven together kind of nicely, and and here I am. Um you know the the premise of the show is boils down into three words. I want to educate, I want to inform, and I want to entertain. Uh for the for the hour, an hour and a half or so uh we we we spend together, I I want to have a nice time and walk away like you really learned something um in the sport of soccer. And over the course of my the 13 seasons, I've been I'm very proud to share with all of you that the show has earned some very, very nice accolades. Uh and I'm not gonna share them all. There's a whole bunch, but a couple of that I'm kind of proud of. Uh, I am number one with the GP Soccer Podcast is number one on Top Podcasts, independently produced soccer podcasts. Now, that one is a particular note to me because I am a one-man show. Uh I'm an independent uh podcaster. Everything you hear that that goes into the show, I do. Every aspect of it. I don't have a team like some of the big boys have, like if you're at iHeartRadio or you're at you know uh Spotify or anything like that. No, I'm it's a one-man show. Everything is done by me, and I and I'm very, very proud to earn something like that. Uh number two, on FeedSpot Media's list of best soccer coaching podcasts. Uh on these the new platform, Million Podcasts, we are amongst the top 30 soccer coaching podcasts, and on the same million podcasts, top 10, one of the top 10 goalkeeping podcasts. And there are more, and there are more. Uh also proud to share with you that we're uh we've gotten some great support and endorsement for the National Soccer Coach Association of Canada. So, you folks up in Canada, if you're scrolling through the NSCAC website, uh you will stumble upon or you will find the GP Soccer Podcast. And I'm very, very proud to be part of the NSCAC, my good friends and colleagues to the north of the United States, up in the great country of Canada. Um, we've got some great returning sponsors, the Beautiful Games Soccer Academy, Soccer Foundation's training program. I mentioned Music Meet Sports, GP VoiceOver Services uh is a sponsor, and another new sponsor, supporter, United Goalkeeper Alliance. Super happy to have Eric Eisenhutt, uh, who's the founder of United Goalkeeper Alliance on board. And uh when you hear that get to the Coach's Corner segment of today's show, you will get a coach's corner uh tip from United Goalkeeper Alliance. So a lot of stuff has happened over the course of these uh you know of these uh these 13 seasons. Ralph Rigno of the who does a European soccer report is back again. I'm so happy. Ralph does an outstanding job in reporting all things European soccer, so you're gonna certainly going to enjoy all of that. So if you're if you're new to the show, welcome. If you're a regular listener, welcome as well. Um so let's have that. I know we've the conversation with the coach segment today. It will be featuring my dear friend Renato Capobianco. And Renato is the head men's soccer coach at Regis College, where as I noted earlier, I am the goalkeeper coach. Uh he's also the strength and conditioning coach at Regis, and he's a former assistant with the 1994 U.S. men's national team. And his topic is going to uh revolve around strength and conditioning, but in particular some of the fads, shall we call them, that that coincide with strength and conditioning. And like anything else, there's there's fads in soccer too, you know, tactical fads and you know, uh different things that the coaches like to do. They think it's sexy or modern or new. Uh sometimes it is, and sometimes it isn't. So Ronaldo and I are gonna have a nice conversation about the role of um of strength and conditioning uh in soccer and in general. As I noted, in the coach's corner, Eric Eisenhout from United Goalkeeper Alliance. Uh, we'll be talking about the importance of communication for the goalkeeper. Super important. Soccer news and analysis will be with yours truly, Giovanni Pacini. I'm gonna offer all of you two disturbing stories. Uh as I put together my show script, and I'm looking at it now. I I try to come up with a word for these two stories, and disturbing just just came forward. So uh I'll share with you the details on those and a little bit of commentary as as well. I mentioned Ralph Rigno uh will be featured uh for the European Soccer Report, and he was gonna be talking about the 25-26 European season has kicked off. In the American Soccer Revolution, uh I received some uh an email, isn't it and I get a lot of emails. I I get a lot of texts, a lot of uh communication from folks asking me questions and providing some thoughts about the show, things I'd like to bring up. But this one this one kind of jumped out at me just a little bit. And it was an individual who uh uh share with shared with me some concern they have for a high school coach um and what my thoughts were. Well, we had a little bit of back and forth, and I I thought it was worthy of uh some conversation, some worthy of of some uh some uh sharing, if you will, here on the show. I will not, I will not, I never do, but we'll call out a coach, call out a school, call out a community, be very, very generic in that part. But this is an actual situation that he wanted me to react to, and I thought I would I thought I would share that all with you. So, as I like to say, checking boxes, checking boxes, we had quite a summer, didn't we? Uh the summer of soccer. The summer of soccer. There was no shortage uh of soccer taking place across the uh across the landscape uh than this summer. Uh not the least of which was the uh FIFA Club World Cup, where we saw Chelsea uh score a 3-0 win over Paris Saint-Germain. Nobody expected that. Paris Saint Germain was you know on a on a roll, but um Chelsea came out on top of that uh three-nil the Cocky Calf Gold Cup, uh where there was a lot of talk uh uh for the United States because they were expected to, well, heck they were expected to at least win it. Uh but that was not the case. It was Mexico that uh did beat the United States two to one. And there was a lot of controversy with this uh situation with the U.S. men's national team, and some people called it the U.S. men's JV team, the second team, uh, because it lacked a lot of the top players uh that we typically see with the U.S. mash US men's national team when a major tournament of this magnitude uh is in play. I don't care how you know where you fall on on either side of it, but we put together a team. Um Mauricio Pochettino uh was is responsible and was responsible in this tournament here for putting together a team that uh could be competitive, whether it was or not. Well, that's up to you. That's up to you. But uh Mexico proved the fact once again that they are the cream of the crop in CONCACAP by defeating the United States. Um women's euro, I thoroughly enjoyed the women's euros. I thoroughly enjoyed it. We saw England uh uh uh beat Spain and um three to one on penalties. Fantastic, fantastic matches. Uh I'll have some commentary on all of these, but I'll touch kind of touch base on this one just a little bit. The attendance in Europe was phenomenal. Absolutely phenomenal. They broke a record for the number of of uh uh sold-out uh matches and and the the level of play was was wonderful, absolutely wonderful to see. I also was enjoyed the Copa America Feminina uh down in in South America, where Brazil was the uh was their champions over uh Colombia, five to four on penalties. And uh you know, a lot of that's a lot of great stuff. The Conquer Calf Champions Cup final back in June, Cruz Azul, once again on Mexican side, um uh gave the Vancouver White Caps a beaten five to five nil. So lots of great soccer, lots of great soccer that took place. But I want to offer some highlights, you know, some things that are that I thought were fine kind of thought provoking uh regarding all of these tournaments and soccer in general here in the United States, given the fact that we're we're hosting tournaments and those other ones that were taking place in different parts of the planet. Um the surge in women's football. You know, both the UEFA Women's Euro and the Copa America Feminina, they set new attendance and broadcast records. If the people weren't there, they were tuning in. The regional powerhouses. Mexico, Brazil, Spain, and Japan, you know, all reinforced their dominance in their respective regions. The club versus country balance, the expanded uh FIFA Club World Cup, it kind of bridged the gap between the end of the European club season and the start of the international tournaments, which kept folks engaged all somebody it it had me engaged all somebody. That that's uh that's for sure. But let's talk about the youth impact. There were several U-20 and U-23 competitions, um and it showcased the next generation of stars. There's some great, great, great uh young, dynamic players on both the men's and the women's side that are that are that are going to be uh the next stars of of um the upcoming generation. How about the how about the economic uh uh aspects of all of this? There was a massive GDP boost boost. Now the expanded FIFA Club World Cup alone was projected to generate up to $21.1 billion in global GDP and supported around 105,000 jobs in the U.S. cities alone. That is a major, major economic impact uh that can that is strictly tied to the sport of soccer. Now in tourism and infrastructure, host nations saw spikes, which is great, and tourism, hotel occupancy, local business uh revenue, and it really prompted cities to invest in stadium upgrades, in transportation links, and fan zones, and infrastructure that will outlast the tournaments, the corporate investment. Listen, corporations love this stuff. When you see that kind of money being thrown around, yes indeed, corporations are gonna get involved, like it or not. Uh sponsorship deals, uh broadcast broadcast rights, they hit they hit record highs uh and with in brands leveraging the global reach of a back-to-back tournaments. Now, how about grassroots and participation growth? Um there was an inspiration to action effect. So the visibility of these elite competitions, people seeing these games either live or on television or on a social media platform, especially especially the UAE from Women's Euro and Copa America Feminina inspired a a super surge in youth registrations, particularly amongst the young ladies, which is great. The infrastructure push national federations and local clubs began to expand access to fields, coaching programs, and community leaks to capture this momentum. Equity, uh the women's football start increased funding commitments with federations pledging to close to close research gaps ahead of the 2031 FIFA Women's World Cup cycle. So so much, so much happening as a direct result of the summer of soccer. If you want to call it a downside, there was always an argument, a discussion uh about too much soccer for the athletes, for the players themselves. Uh a lot of these players, many of these players come off their domestic domestic leagues and uh and they go right into these major tournaments, and there's a short turnaround from a major tournament to going back into the domestic league. Um is there just too much soccer uh you know being played and and is there too much of a wear and tear on athletes' bodies? That's something that's gonna be you know open for conversation for for my goodness, years to come. And I hate to say this, but when there's so much money, and I and I threw a couple of numbers at you, when there's so much money to be had uh in this sport, um you know the powers that be are gonna want to make more. Want to make more. And in order to do that, you gotta have tournaments as such as the ones I had mentioned. You're gonna have tournaments, players are gonna have to shoulder the burden of getting out there and playing. And you you might say, well, you know, maybe we could throw a a second level team, a second level tier, if you will, uh, some of these tournaments. Well, we saw that we saw what at the outside the uh what uh what happened to the U.S. men's national team when they threw a JV team out there. You know, yeah, they're okay, but people wanted to see the top stars. They want to see Christian Politic out there. You know, they want to see Weston McKinney, they want to see Gio Reynold and players like that out there. We we didn't get to see that. Um remains to be seen, you know, how that plays itself out going forward. So there you have it, folks. Uh the opening of the GP Soccer Podcast, season 13. I'm so excited to be back with you again. Let's break for a commercial message or two aside. Giovanni Pacini here. So excited. So excited to be back here with you. Uh GP Soccer Podcast. Don't you dare go anywhere.

SPEAKER_03 17:34

The United Goalkeeping Alliance is the world's number one virtual educational platform for goalkeepers. The UGKA emphasizes a goalkeeper culture while supporting goalkeepers around the world through every stage of their development. The United Goalkeeping Alliance is an ever-growing network of goalkeeper coaches with agreed-upon goals of educating generations of goalkeepers around the five elements of a goalkeeper's development: tactical development, technical knowledge, physical growth, psychological balance, and social connections. If you'd like to learn more about our memberships for goalkeepers, for goalkeeper coaches, and for clubs, please reach out anytime at 781-424-3028, or you can email us at info at United GKAlliance.com.

SPEAKER_06 18:22

Hey, this is David McKay, Assistant Coach of Rhode Island FC. You're listening to the GP Soccer podcast with host Giovanni Pacini.

SPEAKER_05 19:10

Now, if there's any one person that gets the award from most appearances on the GP Soccer Podcast, well, it's today's guest. Uh today's guest is Renato Capabianco. Uh Renato is not only a good friend and colleague, but he's one of my dearest friends in the whole wide world. Uh I have the honor, and I do mean that in all sincerity, uh, of being the goalkeeper coach for Renato over at Regis College, which is just outside of Boston, Massachusetts. And uh Renato and I are going to chat a little bit today about uh modern approaches, modern techniques when it comes to strength and conditioning. But a little bit of background of Renato before we get rockin' and rolling here, for those of you who might not know who he is. Uh he's entering his uh 15th year at uh at Regis College uh in 2016. He was coach of the year, and he's the winningest coach in program history. Now, prior to his uh arriving at Regis, he served as the boys' head varsity soccer coach at Weston High School for 10 seasons, uh, leading the team to the 2009 MIAA Division III State Championship. In that same year, he was honored as the Boston Globe Coach of the Year. Now, from 1989 to 1994, he was the headman soccer coach at Cuyamaka College in California and got to the program for five seasons. And in 1991, he was named the Pacific Coast Conference Coach of the Year. He worked as team administrator for the U.S. men's national soccer team from 1991 to 1994, managing team logistics and operations in the lead up to the 1994 FIFA World Cup. Now, during that time, he supported over 80 international matches across 24 countries. In 1995, he served as deputy competition manager for the South Florida venue of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games, overseeing soccer event operations and logistics. Now, his major league soccer experience spans several roles from 1996 to 2001. He was an assistant coach with both Tampa Bay Mutiny and our very own New England Revolution, and later served as director of soccer for the San Jose Earthquakes and again for the New England Revolution. He was also an assistant coach for the East team in the 1996 MLS All-Star game. In 2002 to 2003, he worked as a strength and conditioning coach at Harvard University, designing performance programs for multiple sports. He is a certified strength and conditioning specialist in the youth and club space. He recently got coached extensively. He is currently the UA team's boys coach at Lexington United and a staff coach for Massachusetts Olympic Development Program, where he also served as head coach for the U-15 boys team. My goodness, Renato, what haven't you done?

SPEAKER_09 21:44

Uh uh just I haven't I haven't raised a uh a high school daughter who's just about to go into high school. So that's that's the next challenge I have.

SPEAKER_05 21:54

I think that might be the that might be the tougher challenge than all the things I just described for the audience.

SPEAKER_09 21:58

Yeah, thank you so much for having me. Appreciate it.

SPEAKER_05 22:01

Renato, it's always a pleasure. For my listening audience, again, Renato and I are really good friends, and we on a very regular basis, typically every other week, we get together face to face for the proverbial cup of coffee. And over the course of what could be an hour, an hour plus, sometimes close to two hours, we we chat about all things soccer. And uh I'd like to think that Ronaldo and I have uh we've solved all of the uh world soccer problems uh during the course of our conversation. But essentially today, folks, this is gonna be Renato and I with without a without the cup of coffee. So uh our our topic today, Renato, as I noted there in the opening, is kind of a modern approach, modern techniques to strength and conditioning. For my listening audience, and there's a lot of people out there who might not know what strength and conditioning really means, how would one define strength and conditioning?

SPEAKER_09 22:49

Well, it it depends kind of on the sport. Um, you know, in some sports, the strength part is more important than the conditioning, although strength is a function of conditioning, and which I, you know, I've I've heard people say that you know that the title is kind of repetitive, but you're you're looking at essentially how to improve human, you know, physiological performance based on the needs of the sport, um, and and trying to increase the the overall performance of the athlete by making them, you know, the the old saying stronger, bigger, faster, but also injury prevention, uh making them more uh having you know working on their flexibility, working on their mobility, you know, uh uh addressing weaknesses and uh and and muscular imbalances. So it can be a lot of things. And and in some sports, working on the flexibility may take a little bit more of the you know the the pie, the the time pie than the pure strength part. So I think it's really, really important to look at each sport or each activity and say, okay, which one of these do we emphasize more without you know necessarily ignoring other parts?

SPEAKER_05 24:09

So and I've got I'm not a strength and conditioning coach. I've got a very, very limited background and I was a former health and physical education teacher, but I I know this I I've heard this question, I want to pose it to you as a true expert. An appropriate age when we should start to consider you know strength and conditioning. Now, I think it's safe to say we don't want to see six-year-olds, you know, uh, you know, being exposed to strength and conditioning per se. Uh, but in your opinion, what what is an appropriate age or what are some of the factor contributing factors that go into you know uh the thought process of beginning a strength and conditioning program for an athlete?

SPEAKER_09 24:43

Well, I I think it's it I've heard as early as 11. And and I think also you have to take into consideration two things. Number one, the sport, because let's be honest, gymnasts, right? You see little girls and and they're working on pull-ups and they're working on uh you know uh hip flexor strength uh at very early ages. Um so it depends on the sport. You know, if if we talk about soccer, uh, you know, I've heard as early as 11. Uh, but there's two things you need to take into consideration. We have to remember, because we always kind of forget that well, s when we talk about strength training, that means the weight room. Your players, your 11-year-olds, your 10-year-olds, your 12-year-olds are doing a ton of lower body strength exercises and core work when they're just playing soccer. You know, the the amount of force that a that a kid puts into the ground when he plants and turns repeatedly, when they're playing in the street. You know, that's why the old saying, you know, you used to look at European kids when they were 13 years old and they had or or hockey kids and you'd see their quads, and you're like, do you lift? And like, no, I've just been playing hockey all my life. So the strength training per se is going to come from the sport regardless. But in terms of an organized program, I think that if you start to address basic principles, um, you can start as early as 11, and and and by that I mean you know, twice a week uh type of organized program. So that way uh we start to introduce uh general fitness, general conditioning, general flexibility, basically movement, uh movement strength patterns to get them coordinated. But that also falls under the the umbrella of strength training.

SPEAKER_05 26:39

And and you know, and you know as well as I do, the the the the program you you might devise for for Johnny might be uh entirely different than you do for Billy, um, because of you know where they're at in terms of their their development as as young athletes. Talk more in specific terms the the specificity, if you will, of of formulating a strength and conditioning program for one athlete versus another. And heck, I'll even go as far as uh you know male versus female.

SPEAKER_09 27:07

Well, and and that's the challenge because you're looking at age groups as well, and and as we know, you know, from age 11 to 16, kids are changing, you know, every four to six months. So you have to be aware of that. Uh, you obviously have to be aware that you know younger girls you know mature earlier and they go through uh different changes earlier. Um there are some very good people out there um talking about uh women's fitness that uh really are trying to push strength training, it is more important for for young girls than it is young boys, and and and if you think about the logic of that, it makes a lot of sense. Um but you really have to be careful that you don't do a one-size fits all. And more importantly, you have to recognize that uh, like I said, between the ages of 11 to 16, every 46 months your your group is going to change. And we've all had that situation where we left our you know our U12 team or U13 or even a U14 player in June and caught up with them again in September, and they're a completely different person. They may have grown three inches. You know, I talk about you know, I use the phrase, they look like a baby horse. You know, they're all elbows and knees, and and so you have to be really cognizant of between the ages of 11 and 16, there's gonna be a lot of change. Um, you don't want to be uh you don't want to be training a young person the way you do an adult, because an adult is for the most part fully formed, uh a young person is not. You have to be aware of the fact that they are gonna change, and you have to be aware of what's important in their sport. And we're talking about soccer, so obviously, you know, move you know, exercises that are gonna make their movement patterns more efficient and stronger, you know, stop and go, change of direction, things of that nature, um, mixed in with a little upper body strength, so we start to introduce that type of training to a young athlete.

SPEAKER_05 29:18

You know, I as a coach developer, coach educator with the United Soccer Coach, over the years I've I've had the opportunity to teach uh sports science in a very, very basic, uh basic manner. Uh most of the coaches who are, you know, who are taking courses or in the you know uh in the audience, so to speak, listening to it, they don't have a background in strength and conditioning. They might have a background in in physical education. And and the key of all the things that I present, and again, it's it's very basic, not to the degree that you're capable of, the one thing I try to uh get across to folks, and I'd love for you to elaborate on it, is the idea of safety and having being aware of the safety aspects of of what you're doing with these athletes. Uh, because to the untrained eye or the untrained person, their their intentions may be the maybe above the best of intentions, but not having the knowledge or the expertise you know uh you know available to them to avoid putting an athlete at risk. Elaborate on the idea of of safety awareness when when implementing or trying to implement a strength and conditioning program for an athlete or athletes.

SPEAKER_09 30:22

Um I I uh a very uh successful strength coach out here in in Boston, uh Mike Boyle always always says, always ask yourself, why are you doing what you're doing? And I don't know that everybody does that all the time. You know, you you just can't the answer just can't be, because I saw it on TikTok, number one. Um but you ask to ask yourself, why are we doing what we're doing? Number one, you have to ask yourself, um, is the risk reward definitely in the reward column much greater? Um you never want to put a uh an athlete, especially a young athlete, at physical risk at the you know, because well, I want to see if they can jump higher. That that's just not smart. Um we have to remember that these are growing bodies. You know, a lot of kids don't have, you know, may not have uh motor patterns down yet. The and and we want to be aware of that. Um, but safety always has to come forward and and and understand, okay, why why are we doing this? Uh is is the risk reward worth it? Um and and and remember that especially with knees and shoulders, you you're gonna have very sensitive, very undeveloped areas, and you have to take that into consideration in terms of the load that you're doing with a kid. Remember, kids, kids maybe sometimes won't tell you they're tired, and sometimes they'll tell you immediately. There's no gradual, hey, I'm getting fatigued with a child. They just they'll go 100 miles an hour and then all of a sudden they'll just look at you and go, Yeah, I'm done. So, as professionals, you have to recognize that uh you have to be smart in terms of uh load, how frequent and how long your your fitness session, whether it be with you know strength or movement patterns or conditioning, and and the conditioning should be at a very, very minimal amount for young athletes. And by young, I mean 11 to 13 year olds shouldn't be out going, you know, doing two, three mile runs or you know, repetitive um shuttle runs at that age. They should be getting the conditioning of their sport by playing their sport for the most part. Um, but you never want to put uh a young athlete at risk. If if if there's a risk in doing an exercise, I guarantee you there's five other exercises that you can do that are not going to present the same risk.

SPEAKER_05 32:55

Yeah, those are all great points. And as I share with folks, you know, when I'm doing these types of presentations, seek out you know, the an available expert. Um, you know, every school system has a is a health and physical education teacher. You know, granted, they may not they may not be strength and conditioning coaches. They might, but they might not. But at least they have uh a level of expertise to knowledge that that they can be an available resource to coaches out there to so that they can put uh put forth a nice strength and conditioning program that is absolutely safe. You know, one of the questions I get a lot, Renato, is uh uh how do how do I integrate strength and conditioning during the season? What is your advice to that coach? Maybe it's a high school coach, maybe even a college coach for that matter, but you know, uh, or maybe a senior level player that might be playing for a club. So what are some of the advice you might give to a coach about integrating strength and conditioning whilst in the season?

SPEAKER_09 33:48

Well, let's split that into two. Let's talk about what we would do off field. So let's assume for a moment it is uh there's actually three areas. There's uh off field, where you know, whether it's foam rolling or movement activities, and that you can do three, four times a week, whether you know it's foam rolling, whether it's uh mobility activities, uh, so just keep the body loose. Because as we know, as during the course of the season, regardless of the age of the athlete, bodies get tighter and and and and bodies tend to wear down. So those type of things you can do three, four times a week, and and they're recommended. Um weight room, so we're just talking about strength type activities, um, in season you should be fine with twice a week, and the volume should be very low. Uh, we just want to keep uh general, you know, general strength uh as as part of the season. You can do it twice a week, that's not a problem. Shouldn't take you more than 20 minutes, two times 20 minutes, and you know, now I'm talking about high school, talking about uh, you know, maybe some college in season. 20-25 minutes should be enough for what you need to try to get done. Um and then one thing we're talking about uh fitness on the field. And I just started doing this because of an article I read um about three years ago, and it made sense to me. And the article talked about that once your season starts, your conditioning, you should try to minimize the amount of cutting and turning you do because you get enough cutting and turning. And remember, that's a huge strain on internal and external rotators of your of your of your legs, your hip flexors. Um, everything you do in terms of your fitness, or the vast majority of your fitness in season, should pretty much be straight ahead running just to keep the cardiovascular system where you want it to keep. Um, you know, I used to be, you know, Mondays used to be our fitness day, and and there was a lot of cutting and turning. And I realized, wait a minute, they're already getting a lot of that in in small-sided games and 1v1 activities and two-on-two. That's probably the last thing they need in the middle of the season. Um so, you know, twice a week in terms of strength training, if we're talking about mobility training and and foam rolling, you can do that three, four times a week. Um, you know, and just recognize, you know, where our games are and am I getting our players enough rest? Uh, I think, you know, young coaches, we always want to be uh putting our foot on the on the gas. And you have to realize that sometimes a day of rest is better than another day of work.

SPEAKER_05 36:38

Indeed. When I when I was a a head coach for well, 8,000 years, I used to tell my athletes when I gave them time off that rest is part of training. You know, you you need to your body needs to just rest and recover. Um, you know, and and oftentimes I see them trying to sneak on the field to knock the ball around a little bit and like, no, no, no, stay off. Get off the get off the field. So that's super important. Rest is rest is part of training, and the human body needs to needs time to recover. And and you know, athletes recover at different rates. They just can recover at different rates. You know, little Johnny or you know, or Janie may take a couple of days to recover from a match, or someone else can rebound physiologically that much quicker. So correct me if I'm wrong, I think a coach has to be really hypersensitive to the uh recovery capacity of their athletes, knowing that they don't all recover at the same time. Is that is that a safe statement? Oh, absolutely.

SPEAKER_09 37:32

And and um actually, you know what? I actually love that statement. I'm gonna start using it more. Rest is a training it is. Rest rest is part of training. You know, that that is a great that is a great uh way to look at that. And um uh I I like that a lot. In terms of your your your your question, absolutely, you know, some some players need more rest. Some players are naturally cardiovascular more um gifted than others. Uh older players need a lot more rest. You know, your your 33-year-old versus your 28-year-old, your 26-year-old is probably going to benefit more from another day of rest than another day of training. Um, so you really have to look at the individuals. And I I think that professional soccer, and it's and it's it's trickling down to the, you know, for lack of a better word, the collegiate ranks, they're doing a better job of um uh because of all the monitoring systems they have now and all the wearables that they have, of personalizing and customizing uh recovery and training and training uh cycles.

SPEAKER_05 38:41

Of all the things that are that are uh important and integral to strength and conditioning, the one thing that's kind of been around for a while is plyometrics. Share with my audience what what is plometrics and its application regarding strength and conditioning.

SPEAKER_09 38:58

You know, the easiest I think the easiest way to talk about plyometrics is it's it's the variable that takes your strength and kind of turns it into power. Um so you can be really strong, but you have to be able to turn that strength into power. So you look at you know, jumping, you know, that's the easiest one. Or although believe it or not, uh jump roping is one of the most basic ways of of uh introducing plyometrics um into a lower body workout. But um plyometrics is like I said, it's it's the way I've always explained it is you know taking strength and turn it into power and how quickly you can you can you know your explosiveness uh sort of speak. Um and and that has to be periodized. You know, you see a lot of young young coaches go, okay, let's start jumping, let's start bounding. And and rule number one is we have to learn how to land and absorb energy before we start being explosive. And young athletes, if you've ever seen young athletes land, sometimes it looks like a ton of bricks. So it is important when we are deciding, hey, we are going to do a plyometric program to not run into it, rush into it rather, and just start jumping and bounding. And and uh let's let's let's take two, three weeks and and teach them how to absorb energy and teach them how to stop before we we start doing repetitive jumping. That's really, really important.

SPEAKER_05 40:29

And you touched upon in your answer there a word that's you must be looking at my show notes here. Periodization. That's a hot topic. Uh, we talked about tactical periodization, and obviously there's periodization relative to uh you know strengthing and strength and conditioning. Share with my audience what the idea of periodization is all about.

SPEAKER_09 40:46

Periodization, in my opinion, is just a fancy word for planning. You know, you look at your week and you say, okay, where when are we playing? When are we getting our rest? When are we getting the heavy training met uh sessions? And and let's plan them accordingly. You can do that uh a week, you can actually do it within a day, but let's, you know, the you can do a week of periodization, you can do two weeks, you can do a month, you can do the entire year. So you start to look at okay, when when are our games? When are we gonna get our rest? When are we gonna get our training stimulation? When is there gonna be a light training session? When is there gonna be a heavy training session? And planning that based on when you need the player to be at their performance best. You know, obviously you don't want to do too heavy, and the easiest way to explain it is you don't want to do two heavy fitness sessions, you know, the day, you know, two days before a game. You know, if you're playing Saturday, Thursday, and Friday, you're not, you know, you're you're tapering off. That's a part of periodization, that's a part of planning. Um I think for professional athletes and even college, it's getting tougher and tougher because you know they're playing games every three days. So, okay, when do you train? Well, you gotta fit it in, and when you do, it's gonna be a shorter version of what you maybe did early in the season, because now rest and recovery become more and more important uh in the periodization plan and the periodization cycle. Uh, but that is very important to look at a week, two weeks, three weeks at a time. I like to kind of look at 21 days at a time and see, okay, what are we doing here over the next 21 days? Because sometimes we forget. We may work our athlete really hard and go, wow, they're still going. They may not bonk today. They're gonna bonk three weeks from now, and it's gonna take you two weeks to get them back. So you really have to be smart about rest, recovery, um, intensity of sessions, uh, and when you want them at their best uh to perform.

SPEAKER_05 42:57

You know, when when I was a head coach those those many years, uh there were often times I'd pull a player off the field, you know, as I used to say, to save him for the end of the season, you know, a play would come off, and and I always explain to a player why I took him off the field, it was always always got to be a method to my madness. And I would say to them, I'm like, you may be thinking about what's happening right now in the match. I'm thinking about October as we approach the playoffs. And every time I can save you from the wear and tear of playing, the rigors of playing, and I can get you some additional minutes of rest sitting here in the bench, I'm gonna do it. It's not it's like you know, uh, you know, saving, put it in the bank. I'm I'm I'm putting time in the bank so that come October we're we're facing, you know, conference playoffs and hopefully, you know, a postseason. Uh, you know, you're not toast. You're not toast. Um I think all too often coaches um, you know, they they keep all those players out for every minute of every game and not thinking of the long term and the potential that, you know, I I need them available when it might matter going into uh you know going into Into playoff time at the at the end of the year. Um Ronaldo, the last thing I want to uh I want to uh have you talk about before we move on, there's so much we could talk about regarding strength and condition, but talk a little bit about biomechanics. Um that's something that uh I kind of lashed on a number of years ago. I had the great opportunity to travel overseas. I was in Italy, uh, did some stuff with the Italian Soccer Federation, and I was blown away by their grassroots uh attention to biomechanics and the importance of biomechanics uh relative to the development of the young player into a senior level player. Share with my audience what what biomechanics is all about.

SPEAKER_09 44:37

Well, the the biomechanics is is you know, again, it's a fancy word for you know uh movement development, so to speak. And and and if we look at young kids, you know, they have to develop movement patterns. And so if you're looking at biomechanically, what does that mean? Okay, uh they have to have flexible flexibility, they have to have good range of motion in in their hips for you know internal and external rotation. You know, biomechanically are they sound? So if if you look at young players, you know, you have to train movement patterns and and you have to develop the muscles that are involved in those movement patterns so that biomechanically they are moving efficiently so that they are not doing something that is just a wear and tear movement that eventually is going to lead to an injury. So if they're biomechanically moving efficiently and moving correctly, we're probably going to reduce the risk of injury. And so I think if we look at young kids, and by young kids, I'm working, you know, again, let's just talk about 9 to 14-year-olds. You know, let's make sure our movement patterns are proper and that the movement patterns are strong so that we're not doing things that may lead to an injury. You know, my my daughters play hockey, and every now and then I see some 10 and 11-year-old girls skate as if they were in the NHL. Their movement patterns are amazing. You know, they're they're they're skating very well. Um, you know, you you're starting to see more and more young girls starting to do ball work in soccer, and you can go online and see some girls on Instagram that have incredible technical skills, but you look at the way they're moving, and they're also moving very efficiently. So if if we look at biomechanics and think about okay, how can we make their movement patterns efficient, strong, and applicable to the activities we're gonna ask them to perform in a game, then we're we're headed down the right path.

SPEAKER_05 46:49

Is it safe to say Ronaldo relative to that that we're talking about going from gross motor skills to fine motor skills? Is that is that accurate?

SPEAKER_09 46:55

Yeah, I mean, but you gotta remember young kids, and you don't you don't see it until you actually ask them, you know, kids run around like crazy. And then you ask them to do, can you just do a body, a body squat properly? And then all of a sudden their knees will cave in. And you're like, but you look so good playing soccer. How is it that this this movement is so difficult? So we have to remember that you know, kids and the human body kind of get good at what we do a lot. It's kind of like the piano, right? It's kind of like a musical instrument. If all of a sudden you introduce a different way of playing, um, you're gonna have to practice that. You know, there's muscle memory involved. Um, so yeah, I mean, you just want to you want to keep it as simple as possible and then introduce, you know, as they get older, the fine motor skills. You can't have fine motor skills if if the gross motor skills are not where they need to be. Um, because the gross motor skills are going to be the foundation of the fine motor skills. So again, it's let look at your sport, don't complicate it, keep it simple, recognize what age group you are dealing with, and and and remember that uh, you know, the the more repetitions they get within reason to strengthen and develop movement patterns, the best, the better off they're gonna be biomechanically.

SPEAKER_05 48:16

Shifting gears just a little bit. Um, how has strength and conditioning evolved over the course of time that you've been in in the profession? What what what are the in your opinion, what are some of the most significant changes we've seen when we talk about strength and conditioning?

SPEAKER_09 48:30

Um, I think obviously science has really played a part in it. Number one, number two, um countries are much more open to hearing what everybody else has to say. What do I mean by that? Um it used to be that in Europe they didn't want to know from anybody, right? You know, how how could a non-soccer country tell a soccer country what to do when it came to fitness, right? You know, it it would and in in some ways that makes sense, but you know, sport movement is sport movement regardless of the sport. Um and and uh I think now uh countries and strength coaches are much more open to to listening from each other. Uh and I think of mm, thirty years now, um a Mexican first division club decided we want to uh we want to have a big strength, uh we want to have a gym. And they spent over $200,000, which 30 years ago, that was a lot of money. And their gym looked exactly like a goals gym. Right? They didn't do their homework, you know, they spent a lot of money on on something that looked like a goals gym. Um we're we're that those days are they're over, and I think some of that really um started to happen. There's a gentleman named Mark Verstagan who used to handle athletes, uh, now is the president of Exos, or Exos, if I'm saying that correctly. Uh, and he was with uh he was uh his company was also run by Adidas, and they started making inroads in Europe uh with uh pro teams. Uh and then he started working with Jurgen Kleinsmann, and Jurgen Kleinsman took him to Germany, and this was the first American kind of and and if you look at Mark, you know, he looks like a football coach. He's a big guy, he's got a crew cut, and here they may have played in high school, I'm not sure. And he was trying to tell, you know, Bayern Munich and the German national team, you know, how to be fit. And at first, you know, they didn't want any part of him, but when they started to realize that, you know, he had he was, you know, he looked at their sports and the need of their sport and the requirement of their sport and was making them healthier, was it was preventing, you know, reduce the risk of injury. And next thing you know, for like 15 years, uh, you know, uh the the Mark Verstagen fitness tree was all over the world. I mean, everybody was hiring someone from from the exos facility, which is in uh Arizona and in Los Angeles. So that was really where you started to see, wow, you know, we can learn from others. Uh and and and uh you know a lot of American strength coaches were used all over the world um because of what the introduction of what Mark did with with um with uh with the German national team and Byron Munich. You look at in the United States, uh uh a guy by the name of Jim Liston, who's now with the Galaxy. But he's been involved in MLS since since I think year one. And he was very uh very scientific, very smart, uh, and and a lot of people have taken what he does and and have run with it uh into colleges and youth systems. Um so I think the biggest change is that we are much more open to listen to a lot a lot more different people. We're we're interested in sharing from different countries and different uh methodologies. Uh science and the ability to measure almost everything has really helped a lot because we can measure a lot more than just you know winging it. So that's helped uh that's helped all levels because it used to be that science um was only available to you know elite professional teams. Well, now pretty much almost every college has access to a wearable that can measure metrics and and and and and and and those type of things. So I'm I'm really excited that we have so much at our disposal. Um now with that now has to come the intelligent uh saying, okay, is this appropriate for my group? You know, you don't want to just do something because the national team did it. You have to be smart about what what population you're working with, and and obviously use that. Uh use the appropriate um uh methodologies and modalities for the population you're working with. But I think now it's it's so much easier to find two or three experts that can give you that opinion. You know, it used to be, well, how do I get a hold of somebody? Well, now everybody has a website, everybody has an Instagram account, and it's so much easier to try to inform yourself and and do more good than harm, so to speak.

SPEAKER_05 53:36

So I'm gonna pull back the curtain for my audience uh in the world of Giovanni and Renato, as I noted we get together rather frequently uh over a cup of coffee. Uh we also trade back and forth, things we we find online and we ask each other our our respective opinions. Hey, what do you think about this? What do you think about that? And of late, my good friend Renato here has been sending me um some uh Instagram uh videos regarding the use of elastic bands. Um and I think recently, and Ronaldo can correct me if I'm wrong, we've seen a surge in the use of elastic bands, sometimes incorporated with some very basic movement. And then there are those that are let's just call them more elaborate uh you know uh uses, if if we will. Um Ronaldo, share with my audience your take on this method of strength and condition. And I'm and I'm gonna add a little caveat here. I know that it's difficult to do this audio. We don't have a video what we're talking about here, but I think per your your your uh explanation here, people will get an idea of of what we're talking about here and can certainly via the internet find very specific uh examples of the elaborate, and I'm putting that in big quotes, elaborate use of of um elasticity, shall we say. What are you what are your thoughts on all that?

SPEAKER_08 54:45

Well, I I'm not gonna uh uh I know exactly what you're talking about, and and I'm not gonna use uh there are two very enormous clubs right now um that are using bands in their preseason.

SPEAKER_09 54:59

Uh I'm sure there's a lot more, but because they're so popular, these two clubs, uh they're all over the internet. And needless to say, my guess is it it's it's just you know, sports, sports uh is like a lot of industries, a copycat organization. So, you know, if somebody successful is doing something, then I should do it too. Um, and that's where you have to try to figure out is this really useful? And and bands, and I'll be the first one to tell you, a couple years ago I saw Real Madrid using these bands for some of their activities, and I went, wow, I like those two activities they're doing. I think those other three are just what I consider a circus act. Um, and a friend of mine, a strength coach, once said, and I and I spot on, he says, if what they're doing looks like it belongs in Cirque de Soleil, you probably shouldn't be doing it. And I was like, wow, that's a great way to think about it. Not necessarily everything, but if it if it looks like you could just dim the lights and and have that activity be in cirque de Soleil, then it's probably a little bit contrived and shouldn't be part of it. Bands have their place, but you have to remember that doesn't mean you have to use it for everything. And I think sometimes strength coaches get in trouble when they try to use a modality for everything, number one, and when they try to replicate soccer movements. Some soccer movements should not be replicated with a resistance. It's simple as that. It sounds like they should, but they shouldn't, especially a band which uh is is opposite of the strength curve that maybe the activity you're performing under. So I like strength bands, I think they're good, but I don't think that um there, you know, everything should be done with this uh uh a band. And I and I the best way I can give you the best example I can give you, about 25 years ago, the Swiss ball or the stability ball became all the rage. And the problem with that was for the next two years, everybody did everything while either kneeling or pressed up against a stability ball. Which is you know, literally I've seen people try to do squats while standing on a stability ball. Oh goodness. All right, because they're like, well, why not? Why can't I just do all my activities on a stability ball, right? And so a stability ball has its purpose. That doesn't mean you do everything on it. Medicine uh medicine balls, a fantastic tool, but that doesn't mean you'd use it for everything. And what do I mean by that? You know, you don't want to grab a soccer player and say, okay, I want you to throw the medicine ball and then immediately, you know, do a half volley. Well, what does that have to do with soccer? Nothing. Oh, but we're using the medicine ball, we're making it, you know, soccer specific. No, you're not, you're just auditioning for circuit, is what you're doing. Um, and and again, I'm not saying all of the exercises, but you have to be you have to be discerning about what you use these modalities for. There's a great term in the strength and conditioning uh field. To a hammer, everything looks like a nail. And I love that one because you got to remember the the people that are selling products, they don't want to sell a hammer. And what do I mean by that? A hammer has one function, as much as men want to use it for everything. A hammer has one function. So these people that are selling elastic bands or stability balls or or you know, whatever thing may exist, they want to try to sell their product and say, you know, this has you know unlimited use. Well, maybe, but it probably has maybe a handful of really applicable uses to your sport based on the movements that your sports require. So, you know, right now it's bands, and I have no doubt that the company that is supplying these two clubs with the bands are are probably gonna be uh swimming in money here in the next six months because everybody's gonna do what I did. Um, you know, I saw Real Madrid use these long bands, and I actually made a phone call to a person that was at the Real Madrid training site, and I said, Can you get me the name of the of the bands? Because I can't make it can't make it out on the video. He gave me the name, and three days later those bands were in my house. And I was trying to figure out, you know, okay, what do I want to use these for? I'm not just gonna do what I saw Real Madrid do. I'm gonna try to use my own brain and and and and and do research and say, okay, what's the best way to apply this to soccer? How can I apply this to basketball? How can I apply this to m uh to sports that have a lot of lateral movement and and then be smart about the use of these modalities?

SPEAKER_05 1:00:04

You know, what you're talking about here, Renato, is it's what's the the the the uh the current sexy thing. You know, what what's sexy out there? Sometimes it's sometimes has nothing to do with uh an elastic man. Sometimes it's a it's a tactic. Yeah. Um and you and I could have we have talked about this. Building out of the back. You know, when the when the when the rule changed, uh the ball didn't have to come out of the out of the penalty area, and you could literally just play it, you know, from from a goal kick. Everything changed. Uh and building out of the back every single bloody time was the sexy thing to do. Now they still do it, but it's changed a little bit, thankfully. Thankfully. Um, I think they've become a little bit more tactically aware when to, you know, uh utilize pilling out of the back versus lumping it upfield because that's the appropriate thing to do. But that's a sexy thing. Uh and I think you're right. I think it's spot on with it with the elastic bands. It's it's the thing that's sexy, and everyone's got to do it. And it's, you know, it I think over time, you know, things kind of um, you know, wither a little bit and they kind of find their own little place, like elastic bands. Now it looks like surface delay, but it might over time find its place where it's actual application. Oh, absolutely. That is that is beneficial.

SPEAKER_09 1:01:16

I I I and and and to your point, I think when a new product or a new modality um hits the market, for lack of a better word, there is that let's try to use this for everything. And and that's true about, you know, I'm I'm I'm a drummer, and I when I used to get a new, you know, a cowbell or a new cymbal or a new Tom Tom, guess what? All of a sudden I used it in every song. And after about you know, two two gigs, I realized, yeah, maybe I shouldn't use that that much. But I was excited because I had a new toy. And so there has to be the okay, let's let's let's bring this back down and really uh assess what we want to use this for and and and and and and not get carried away with using it for everything. And so it's I think it's normal and and it's just part of it's just part of the process.

SPEAKER_05 1:02:12

Indeed it is. Well, Renato, uh I you know, for those people who are not really aware or were not really aware of what strength and conditioning was all about, I think you just gave a masterclass um, you know, relative to uh what it's all about and its application and how people can become a little bit more educated uh and and use it in a responsible and safe manner. So uh I think you've done a a world of good for uh for my listening audience. Um let me ask you, uh how the boy how are the boys looking uh for this fall? Uh as you and I chat here, I think preseason's not too far away, and you'll be entering uh uh the uh upcoming season here, the 25 season for Ed Regis College. How are things shaping up?

SPEAKER_09 1:02:52

You know how what every coach says in in July, uh, you know, hope springs eternal. And you know, on paper, I have a a lot of uh a lot of kids that are very excited, uh very passionate, a lot of talent. Um so we'll hope that we can take that into the season. Um, you know, everybody, especially look at the summer, right? Every summer coaches all we do is watch tournaments and watch tournaments, we get all these great ideas, right? And and this kind of has a parallel to the strength and conditioning, right? We just finished watching the the the the um the uh club world championship, and we just finished watching Champions League. So I have a funny feeling that we are gonna see a lot of super high press because you know PSG just did it, so let's all do it, right? We just talked about that, the copycat. So I have no doubt that everybody's gonna do what they just saw this summer, and then they're realizing, okay, but maybe that's not what I need for my team. I'm really excited. You know, I I love preseason, it's my favorite part of the year. Um, if I can just finish the the fitness just by giving this one piece of advice to all coaches, don't be afraid to follow multiple people. Um, you know, you don't want to just sit there and say, well, everything this person does, I do. You know, you can get a lot of good ideas from a lot of different people. You can get a lot of good ideas from people that you necessarily don't agree with. Um, we live in a time right now where you know people are sharing ideas and sharing information. And when it comes to strength and conditioning, there's all sorts of ideas. Uh, and you, as the individual coach or uh soccer coach or strength coach has to say, okay, what best fits my philosophy and and the population that I'm working with, but don't be afraid to do research and follow multiple people, much like you do when you coach, right? There's a lot of people out there used to be uh Pep Guardiola disciples, they used to be Klopp disciples. You know what? You can take a little bit from everybody and develop your own your own ideas and and and don't be afraid to to um follow multiple sources of information.

SPEAKER_05 1:05:05

That is absolutely great advice. Uh great advice. Ronaldo, thank you so much for taking some time out of your busy schedule to come on the GP Soccer Podcast. Uh it's uh it's always a pleasure to uh chat with you, whether it's formally here on the air and informally when we have coffee. Um so our guest today has been the terrific Ronaldo Capabianco. He's the head men's soccer coach at uh Regent's College in Weston. He's also the strength and condition coach for the Regent's College Athletic Department. This is Giovanni Piccini. This is the GP Soccer Podcast. We're gonna break for a commercial message. Don't you dare go anywhere, we'll re-engage on the other side. Don't you dare go anywhere. Soccer is known around the world as both a sport and an art with players of all ages and abilities enjoying the game. Now, the art of the game is only realized after hours of mastering ball skills, learning to communicate with your teammates, and receiving support and instruction from From the right coaches. With over 100 years of coaching experience, Director John Barrata and the coaching staff at the Beautiful Games Soccer Academy are pleased to offer their expertise to players and their parents. Coach Barada is one of the most decorated and accomplished soccer coaches in the Northeast with a proven track record of developing both talented players and coaches. The Beautiful Games Soccer Academy believes that success on the soccer field reads success elsewhere in a young adult's life. Players who attend the kit learn the importance of forming good habits, attempting new challenges without the fear of failure, and seeking out support and advice from others. The program fosters the creativity within each player and encourages them to experiment, improvise, and problem solve on the fly. At the Beautiful Game Soccer Academy, every day starts with a smile on our face and a ball at our feet. To learn more about the Beautiful Game Soccer Academy, visit www.beautifulgamesa.com.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:41

Hello, this is Eric Eisenhutt of the United Goalkeeping Alliance. I'm here today to present the GP Soccer Podcast Coach's Corner for Goalkeepers. Today's topic, Goalkeeper Communications. First, let's talk about a non-negotiable regarding goalkeeping communications. All goalkeepers need to be comfortable communicating, organizing, and holding their teammates accountable. Again, this is a non-negotiable for the position. The first thing you want to say when speaking to a specific teammate is who, or the name of the teammate you are speaking to. In this example, we're going to use John as our teammate today. What you are saying is important. You want to speak in three to four word commands. Keep it simple, yet keep it specific. Example, John, mark number three, go aside. How you say it to your teammate is also very important. You may need to use tone when showing urgency of the situation. The louder you are, the more urgent the command to your teammate. You also want to make sure your emotions are in control, and you want to stay consistent when using a loud tone to show urgency when speaking to your teammates. You want to speak very proactively and not reactively when communicating to your teammates. Simply put, if you see it, say it. Where the ball is on the field will have an impact as to how and what you say to your teammates. When the ball is in the attacking third, you'll probably be speaking less frequently to your teammates. However, you will want to speak to your teammates about being proactive with how the opposition can get out of their end. Compared to when the ball's in your defensive third, the frequency and the tone you use will be a lot more frequent and the tone will be a lot higher as the ball is in a very important part of the field. To summarize, the first thing you must say is the name of the teammate you're speaking to. You must speak in simple, specific commands. You want to use tone to show urgency, yet stay in control of your emotions. The earlier you can speak to your teammates, the better, and you obviously want to speak more frequently and with a higher tone when the ball is in your defensive third. By following these communication tips, you'll have team success and trustworthy relationships with your teammates through these goalkeeping communications. Once again, this is Eric Eisenhutt of the United Goalkeeping Alliance. If you'd like to learn more about the United Goalkeeping Alliance, please email info at United GKAlliance.com or DM at United GK Alliance. Thank you for listening to this Coach's Corner for GKs on the GP Soccer Podcast.

SPEAKER_04 1:10:48

This is Soccer News and Analysis with Giovanni Puccini.

SPEAKER_05 1:11:00

Well, as I noticed all of you at the opening of the show, um I pulled a couple of stories that uh I I could only uh categorize as disturbing. As disturbing. Um there's just two that I'll offer I'll offer some analysis, not that any analysis is really necessary. The first one is a kind of a PG-13. Um but nonetheless, uh it is in the news, and um I'm gonna share with you an article or or an editorial piece from the great Renee Graham from the from the Boston Globe this past summer. And it is entitled Throwing Sex Toys During WNBA Games Isn't a Joke. It's sexual harassment. And again, I'm not gonna read the whole thing, but I'm gonna read just enough for you to kind of get a feel for what um you know this issue is all about. So don't call it a prank. Pranks are supposed to be funny. And there's nothing funny about the fake phalluses being thrown at WNBA players. At six WNBA games in recent weeks, people in the stands have tossed green sex toys toward the core. One seemed to strike Sophie Cunningham on her uh on the leg as her team, the Indiana Fever, to play the Los Angeles Sparks. At a New York Liberty Dallas Wings game last month, a 12-year-old girl was struck in the leg by a very identifiable flying object. At a Phoenix Mercury game, a man and his nine-year-old niece were both hit. So far, two men, Caden Lopez, age 18, and Delbert Carver, age 23, in separate incidences, have been arrested and charged with various crimes ranging from disorderly conduct to assault to assault to public indecency for allegedly throwing a sex toy at WNBA games. According to arrest documents, Lopez told the police that, quote, it was just a stupid prank, and that was that was trending on social media. Lopez reportedly called it, quote, a joke. But no one in the WNBA seems to be laughing. Quote, it's super disrespectful. Elizabeth Williams of the Chicago Sky told reporters last week. I don't really get the point of it, but it's really immature. Whoever is doing it needs to grow up. The point, of course, is to demean women. Cheryl Reeve, head coach of the Minnesota Lynx, called it, quote, the latest version of what's been going on for centuries. She goes on to say the sexualization of women is is what used to hold women down. And this is no different. This is just the latest form. And we should write about it in that way, she told reporters last week. And these people that are doing this should be held accountable. And we're not the butt-end of a joke. They're the problem, and we need to take action. Calling it off for exactly what it is, misogyny, is the most immediate way to take action. Writing an off is a dumb joke or a pathetic attempt at TikTok fame gives the perpetrators undeserved cover. In an exclusive interview last week with USA USA Today, a group of crypto bros claimed they started the stupid idea for publicity for their name for their meme coin, but was disavowed any connection to the men arrested. Quote, we didn't do this like because we were we dislike women's sports or like some of the narratives that are trending right now are ridiculous, the group spokesman said. But the so-called group's prank specifically targeted women's basketball with items shake like a male sex organ. It's that it's it's that not a dislike of women's sports, but it certainly seems clear, a clear sign, the group's disrespect for them. Now, uh the the article goes on more detail, but uh I sh I wanted to share just enough of it for you to get a taste for for what has been transpiring, sadly, uh with the WNBA. The second story comes out of uh Elizabeth, uh Kentucky, and um it goes as follows. A Lexington man is facing an assault charge after parents say he shoved their child during a soccer game. Robert McGuinness says his 13-year-old son, Joseph, has been playing soccer since he was four years old. Quote, it's the only sport he's played, it's the only sport he wants to play. Totally in love with the game, said McGuinness. Joseph, who goes by the game by the by JK, has spent countless hours in the field, many of those moments captured by Robert's camera. Quote, I've got thousands of pictures of him, said McGuinness. Sunday's game in Elizabeth Town was like any other. Robert had his camera camera out, taking photos of JK on the field as his team faced a visiting team, Ty Duronis FC from Lexington. However, it was a moment captured by another parent's camera that made the game different. Robert says a coach from the opposing team shoved JK to the ground. I hear a bunch, I hear a bunch of yelling, and then I realize that's my kid, says McGuinness. He's sitting on the ground. He's crying, and he's holding the back of his neck. I go up to it and I said, Did he hit you? And he says, Yes, Dad. Robert and the others who are at the game have identified the man in the video as Tim Jenkins, the head coach of the opposing team. An article on the Lexington Sporting Club's website from 2022 announced Jenkins' hiring as one of their youth phase directors. WKYT reached out to Lexington SC to ask about Jenkins. They said Jenkins no longer works there, but they did not have any information about this departure. Quote, I started screaming, don't let him, don't let him leave because I'm calling the cops at McGuinness. Elizabethtown police told WKYT Tim Jenkins was charged with fourth degree assault at the game, and he was later, he was accused of assaulting a child at the soccer complex. Jenkins was cited but was not arrested. I hope that it was I hope that just never happens to any other kids at McGuinness. WKYT has attempted to reach out to Tim Jenkins for a comment on this story as of this publishing, but we have not heard back. So, ladies and gentlemen, um you know, maybe you now understand why I use the term disturbing uh for these two stories. Um you know, I I guess I guess I could go on for for the longest time in trying to address this, but we're at a point, and I'll kind of leave it at this, we're at a point in in youth sports, in sports in general, where the line of decency has been well heck or erased, erased. I think people you know if it feels like you know they they they have the right to act any way they want. They pay for a ticket, it's a WNB game, I have the right to say whatever I want and do whatever I want, because I paid for this cedar. And in the youth soccer department, no, you're not paying for a ticket, but there are other uh you know issues here regarding parental behavior. But the bottom line here, folks, the bottom line here, folks, is that we have to find a way back to civility. Not just in sports, not just in sports. It's a it's a good place to start, you know, in sports. But we have to find that that that line of civility where we treat everyone with respect. We treat everyone, you know, uh as a as a decent human being. And this type of behavior has to come to some type of end. Now, this show never gets into politics. Politics, you know, uh uh you know is a is a is a tough place to go. But politics and sports do bump heads. And if necessary, you know, I as a as a broadcaster here or a podcaster, I gotta make, you know, put put my two cents out there. I think, and this is just one man's opinion, ladies and gentlemen, the the the discourse that we see at our highest levels in this country, and maybe even globally for that matter, but we'll stay in this country has has been so denigrated, has gone to such a low that it has has found a trickle-down effect to youth sports, and in in talking in terms of the of the soccer story that I share with you. Um and you know, we have to find a way to to to get back to civility, to kindness, being able to agree to disagree, and and be able to shake hands after it's all said and done, and and not think any less or uh of a person you may have disagreements with. Um that that's a that's a a national must. It's a global must. Uh if not, we're gonna be hearing and reading more about these stories. More of these stories. Sports is sports, uh call me call me idealistic. Go ahead. It's supposed to be this wonderful oasis where we as escape to enjoy whether it's a youth soccer game in Kentucky or it's a WNBA in in any city that that they have a franchise. It's supposed to be an oasis. It's a it's a it's a place we go to find joy and happiness and passion and camaraderie and fun. Um but it's been tarnished. It's been tarnished. We need to uh bring back that oasis of joy that sports had has given us in the past and need to be given back to us again. So that's today's soccer news and analysis. Next up, the European Soccer Report with the great, and I do mean great, or Alfarigno, don't you dare go anywhere. This is the GP Soccer Podcast, English Premier League, and European Soccer Report with your host, Alpha Rigma.

SPEAKER_00 1:20:25

Welcome to the 2025-26 soccer season in Europe. It's already kicked off and we are a couple of weeks in. From a player's perspective, there's a World Cup a year ahead, and the transfer window is about to close, so players are moving around to ensure that they get sufficient game time to catch the eye of their national team coach. Meantime, the Champions League draw has taken place last week as the top clubs on the continent prepare to see whether or not they can take the crown away from first-time winners Paris-Saint-Germain. So let's take a look around the leading European leagues to see what the prospects are for a new season and whether any shocks may be in the pipeline. Bayern Munich dominates the German Bundesliga. Only once in the last 13 seasons have the Bavarians failed to claim the title. With the season only two games old, Bayern stands joint top with Eintracht, Frankfurt and FC Cologne. And truly it's hard to see anyone challenging them, as they have made some key additions this summer. Winger Lewis Diaz from Liverpool and defender Jonathan Tarr from Bayer Leverkusen will each play vital roles for the team, while at the same time Tom Bischoff from TSG Hoffenheim continues their tradition of signing the best players from their rivals. A couple of historic German clubs, Hamburg SV and Cologne, have returned to the top flights, with the former dropping a 2-0 verdict in a passionate intercity derby with FC St. Pauli. Liga 1 in France is similarly dominated by one club, Paris Saint-Germain. The current European champions have lifted the title in 11 of the past 13 seasons, although they were upset in the World Club final by Chelsea. Like Bayern Munich, a serious challenger for the title is highly unlikely. Three games in, and already PSG stands top of the table on goal difference from Leon. The Spanish top flight, La Liga, however, is not dominated by a single club, but is generally contested by two powerhouses, Real Madrid and Barcelona. The clubs have traded titles over the past 13 years, with only Atletico Madrid providing a serious challenge, Atletico having two titles to their name. Three games into the season, Real Madrid has a 100% record, edging out Atletico Bilbao on goal difference. Last year, Barcelona were the champions. Will it be Rails' turn in 25-26, led by Killian Mbape? On another note, there's one romantic return to La Liga concerning Real Oviedo, a very historic club in Spanish football who were relegated far back in 2002. They had some hard years and subsequently fell all the way down to the fourth tier in Spain, but gradually over time have fought their way back up to the summit in Spain's Premier Division. They will be fighting hard this season to keep their place with the big boys and rivalries with all the teams they have enjoyed over the years. Italy's Serie A has been more unpredictable than the aforementioned leagues. There was a period of dominance by Juventus in the last decade. However, since then Napoli, the current champions, AC and Inter Milan have all shared the Italian crown. Napoli have already made a start strong and shart to the season and shared the lead with Juventus, Cremonese and Roma. Predicting a champion isn't as straightforward as the other major European leagues. Should they hit form, the Milan clubs are expended to be in contention, although Napoli's acquisition of Kevin De Bruyne should be considered a statement of intent that Napoli will not be relinquishing their title easily. The English Premier League is Europe's most premier and prominent league worldwide, and it looks set for another thrilling season. Last year, Liverpool were surprised champions after years of unparalleled domination by one club, Manchester City. The Reds have spent huge this summer, over £400 million, landing the three biggest deals of the summer transfer window, with Issack, Verds and Akatiki all coming to Anfield. Clearly, Liverpool will be in the running again, with Arsenal and Manchester City expected to be their biggest rivals, with each of those clubs also having invested heavily. The Premier League is perhaps the most competitive league in Europe from top to bottom. However, the financial power of the top teams makes it unlikely for a new club to break in and finish top of the table. Arsenal was my preseason forecast to be champions, however, the Gunners have just lost 1-0 at Liverpool. There's still a long way to go and many games to be played, so let's see how it all figures out. Whilst predicting the champions of the major European leagues has been comparatively straightforward for years, domestic cup competitions last year proved to be a different story. Unfancy clubs won domestic cups in England, Italy and Germany. In England it was Crystal Palace lifting the English FA Cup. Bologna claimed the Copper Italia, while in Germany F VFP Stuttgart lifted the DFB Pokal in Germany. Might this suggest that the top clubs are more focused in other directions and that domestic cups really have little value to them. Basically securing league titles and qualifying for the Champions League is of much greater importance now than the domestic cup competitions. European Cup competitions lead to big bucks, which cements their ability to dominate nationally within their own leagues and also attract the top players. And surely it must be only a matter of time before the most prominent clubs in Europe outgrow the leagues that they compete in. In the coming weeks we will take a look at the Champions League as well as the domestic leagues of Europe. European football is often running for another season, and fans throughout the continent will be tracking their teams, dreaming of titles and a chance to dine at Europe's top table. The passion and anticipation of football fans across the continent has already been ignited. So let's hope there is much football for them to enjoy and remember in 25-26.

SPEAKER_05 1:27:23

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SPEAKER_07 1:28:36

Hey listeners, this is Nico Roros, goalkeeper coach at UMBC University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and director of goalkeeping at Pipeline Soccer Club. This is a GP Soccer Podcast with host Giovanni Paccini. Thanks for listening.

SPEAKER_05 1:28:51

And welcome back to the GP Soccer Podcast. Always great to hear Ralph Ferrigno's terrific European soccer reports. But here we are, folks, the American Soccer Revolution. Typically the last uh block of the show. And for those of you who are new to the broadcast, the American Soccer Revolution, it's a it's a segment where I try to highlight things that uh need to be shaken up, need to be changed, need to be done away with, need to be addressed uh in the world of soccer here in the United States of America. And that goes from the youth level all the way up to the full international level of play. Um, you know, in my number of years on this planet, and there's quite a bit, um, we've made some great strides. Uh uh, there's there's no arguing about that. But uh, you know, there are still some significant things that need to be addressed, and this is the uh segment of the show where I usually do that. So, with that said, uh, as I noted to you in the opening of the show, um, I always get emails and texts and people reaching out to me to, you know, talk about an issue that they may have a concern about. And, you know, most are are pretty good, and you know, some are some really jump out and at me. And this one, this one jumped out at me quite a quite a bit to the point where I had a conversation with the person who's who sent me this uh this text, and it has to do with a high school coach. Now, as I noted to you earlier in the show, uh I I am not gonna name the school, I'm not gonna name the coach, anything like that. I keep it very generic. You're gonna hear me say, you know, XYZ high school and coach XYZ, that type of thing there. I I'm not in the business of burying people or making their lives miserable, but uh I try to bring uh bring forth uh information and concerns and thoughts uh that I think are worthy of sharing with you, my listening audience. So, with that said, this is uh an email I got uh during the during the summer break. And it goes to uh dear Mr. Pacini, I'm writing to you as a concerned parent within the XYZ high school soccer community and a dedicated listener to the GP Soccer Podcast. Well, thank you very much for that. Uh your focus on player and coach development and your platform for professionals to share their insights is precisely why I'm reaching out. We are facing a persistent and deeply troubling issue with the head soccer coach, and I'm not going to say boys or girls, okay, the head soccer coach, uh, at XYZ High School. And this person's name is XYZ. Despite numerous complaints and investigations, a pattern of uh abusive behavior continues, severely impact our players' development and well-being. This includes documented instances of verbal abuse and bullying, derogatory remarks, screaming and public humiliation, exclusion and unequal treatment, ostracizing players, blatant favoritism, and inconsistent application of rules, body shaming, and intimidation, direct comments about the appearance in weight, even uh through surveys, and threats like I control your soccer career or you're all a bunch of losers and failures, fostering a toxic environment, pitting players against each other, leading to a loss of confidence and love for the sport and causing many to quit. The systematic nature of this problem, coupled with the coach's proven reputation for retaliating against players whose parents speak out, has created an environment of fear and silence. This directly contradicts the principles of healthy player development and positive coaching that your podcast champions. We have gathered extensive documentation, including anonymous letters from numerous parents detailing these experiences. We believe this widespread issue in you soccer deserves a spotlight, and your podcast is uniquely positioned to address the challenges of abusive coaching that opposes to player growth and the integrity of the game. We should be open to learning more about our situation and perhaps considering an episode dedicated to the far-reaching consequence of such coaching practices on young athletes. We can provide these letters and further context if it'd be worth uh helpful to your research. Sign XYZ. Um obviously, you know, uh I reach out, got some more details, um, and then I did the you know the obligatory. Well, you know, what who is this person they're talking about? Um and um again, this is all XYZ stuff. And uh coach XYZ has uh been uh the uh soccer coach at this school for over 14 years, and according to a recent accolade that this individual got from the Army National Guard uh in their coach's circle uh segment or off their their uh their website, goes on to say, uh winning games on the field is only one way to measure success. And the XYZ High School XYZ Soccer program has succeeded both on and off the field in countless ways under the leadership of Coach XYZ. During this person's tenure, XYZ's tenure, the XYZ program has had an impressive record of 159 wins, 83 losses, and 30 ties, has qualified for the state tournament every year, has been recognized twice by the XYZ Soccer Officials Association with their sportsmanship award. And this person has been recognized multiple times by the XYZ conference uh as the XYZ coach of the year. This person's uh teams have played in these state tournaments five times, including a trip to the state championships in 2014. Beyond the impressive run of success this person's teams uh have had on the field, the impact off the field with this person's players is equally impressive. Here is what a couple of of the this person's student athletes shared about Coach XYZ. Quote, Coach XYZ leads with immense respect for players, both on and off the field. This person constantly teaches us lessons that go far beyond soccer and help us shape us into strong moral individuals. From team bonding during uh during uh beach training and preseason to showing consistent appreciation for referees with him carries meaning. This person's guidance has truly shaped who we are, and we're all incredibly grateful to have him. We're most see mostly the scoreboard, Coach XYZ sees the journey uh we we took to get there. This person's discipline sharpens us, his leadership drives us, and the dedication of this person inspires us to always keep fighting no matter what the game throws in our direction. Uh the athletic department from this school talks about we're excited to spotlight Coach XYZ as the head uh coach of XYZ uh high school. And for the past 14 years, this coach has guided our program to outstanding success both on and off the field. So you see here, ladies and gentlemen, we've got two very different uh views uh of an individual. Now, I'm an outsider looking in. I'm an outsider looking in, and I got all this information and I did practice due diligence with a with a a phone message from the concerned parent, and they did some research online relative to this coach. And uh the advice, the advice I would give to the parents who are have issues with this individual is the word communication. Ummunication. You've got to sit down uh with the coach, with the principal of the school, with the athletic director, um, and have a civil, and this is difficult because we're talking about emotional things here. We talk about your kids, it can get emotional, but I think the the most significant way to rectify or to offer clarity uh as to the discrepancies of what the parents are viewing and what has been viewed by uh the school and other organizations uh can only be sorted out through civil conversation. And I I would suspect it it might not be just one conversation, it might take a couple, might take a couple here. Um, misinterpretation oftentimes can be the case. Um, you know, a coach says something and it can be misinterpreted, misinterpreted uh by a parent, and oftentimes, oftentimes it's misinterpreted by the athlete. Let's keep in mind here, we're talking about high school players here, and they're not, you know, they still lack the requisite um, you know, uh socio-emotional, in uh intellectual, intellectual phase of their lives. They're not quite developed there yet to really kind of sort out what's, you know, what's being said to them and what what the coach is trying to say to them. Uh, because they're kids. They're they're kids. It takes a little while for them to grow and to develop, you know, to the point where they kind of understand, you know, what the message is coming from the coach. So you've got to always kind of keep that in mind. Kids will say things to best, you know, defend uh what they might feel is right, because they're kids. I'm not knocking them right, I'm not knocking them bad. Um you know, kids will do that. I I was I was a high school physical education teacher for 24 years. And believe me when I tell you, I, you know, kids have an amazing way of interpreting a set of circumstances that that uh counter reality. And that could be the case here. I don't know. I I really don't know. But I'd like to see it rectified. Uh and I know the the individual, individuals who who said this to me, they are listening, and I will share with you uh the the advice that I share with you privately uh via the phone conversation. Sit down, have a civil conversation, because at the end of the day, at the end of the day, the the people who are really affected by all of this are the kids, are the children. And we must do what's in our in their best interest. We must do everything in our our adult power to ensure that their participation in youth sports or high school sports or heck, even college sports for that matter, is a joyous one. Joyous Does that happen all the time? No, of course not. But if we work together, uh, because it does take it, it does take a village, it does take a village, uh, we can help to ensure that the majority of of uh situations out there, the majority of experiences that these kids have is a good one, is a positive one, it is fun, it is joyous, it is joyous. So, thought I would share that with all of you. I'd love to hear your feedback. I'd love to hear your feedback. GP4Socker at yahoo.com. I'm always looking uh, you know, to get feedback from folks and uh what you might think about this particular story and stories that you might have as well. Whew! My goodness gracious me, I did that all in one breath. No, not really. That's our show for today, season 13 kickoff show. If you like what you hear, please tell everyone. And remember, folks, those likes matter. When you see that little thumbs up like thing, please click on that. Please subscribe to the show. It helps the GP Soccer Podcast, it helps my advertisers, my supporters, it helps uh broaden my audience. And the audience can never get big enough. So make sure that you click those likes. You can follow the GP Soccer Podcast all over social media, and new episodes are available every Wednesday morning. Don't forget to check out my website at GPSoccerpodcast.com. And if you're interested in advertising on the show, then email me at GP4Soccer, and that's the number four at Yahoo.com. This is your host, Giovanni Picini, and I will catch you later.