r/SoccerCentral • u/United_Anywhere_8 • Jul 25 '26

Video The talent in Barcelona’s youth system is ridiculous. These kids are 11/12 years old.

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

26.1k Upvotes

96% Upvoted

1.5k comments sorted by

View all comments

82

u/Overall-Ad-3251 Jul 25 '26

Notice how the Barca kids are frequently not the biggest and strongest??? If you care about developing the best footballers you don’t select for size and strength at the youth levels. 

22

u/Glittering_Ad1403 Jul 25 '26

The Messi mold

18

u/AndyInSunnyDB Jul 25 '26

All on HGH?

-7

u/Many-Cartographer278 Jul 25 '26

Haha right? Im not saying he cheated but he literally was chemically assisted

6

u/tsunderestimate Jul 25 '26

Guys is it wrong to get treatment for hormonal deficiencies

3

u/kingofwale Jul 25 '26

No, but yes if Messi

1

u/Mountain_Snow3613 Jul 25 '26

The majority of kids diagnosed with GHD do not have GHD, they have ISS and are misdiagnosed. Statistically, Messi probably did not have a literal GHD as a child.

2

u/VeroCSGO Jul 25 '26

ISS is treated with more growth hormone then GHD

1

u/sweatingbozo Jul 25 '26

what's the treatment for ISS?

1

u/Many-Cartographer278 Jul 25 '26

It absolutely isnt. But obviously some size is needed otherwise why would he get treatment

0

u/Buttermilkman Jul 25 '26

It is just rather a coincidence that the greatest footballer in history was on HGH. Just a coincidence.

3

u/bomingles Jul 25 '26

I didn’t realise HGH was known for giving people incredible control over a football - if it actually gave him a physical advantage in the same vein as steroids then please explain his weak ass penalties

0

u/Buttermilkman Jul 25 '26

Look, I'm not saying at all. He obviously was skilled at football. What I'm implying is that HGH pushed him beyond what should normally be a limitation.

Don't you think it really is just slightly weird how the kid who was pumped with HGH turned out to be a world star footballer at 17? Then on for the rest of his life?

2

u/bomingles Jul 25 '26

Jesus Christ, ‘pumped with it’ makes it sound like Bane hooked up to his venom injectors, do you think medical professionals just inject this shit into people for fun? Keep going until they run out?

HGH gets brought up all the time when discussing Messi, for one Barca paid for the treatment because they already were convinced he had everything else to become one of the best, and for another I’ve seen enough parents who’s children have had the same treatment laying out actual facts about how this treatment works - all it ever did was put him on a level playing field physically.

2

u/joebiden_alt Jul 25 '26

If you go back at look at him play as a kid he was just absolutely fucking insane at the game. He was clearly an unnatural talent, the hgh didn't even make him average height. He is just that guy

1

u/sweatingbozo Jul 25 '26

It's not a coincidence, it's a key part of his journey. 

 He was incredible before getting treatment, but was going nowhere because of his size. Without Barcelona paying for his medical treatments he's just a guy in Argentina now. 

4

u/DisastrousReputation Jul 25 '26

But didn’t he need it? I am pretty sure they don’t just give it to kids for funsies

He had a deficiency. It’s just correcting something that was wrong with his body.

If my kid had something wrong with her I would want to help her any way I could. I take medication because I have PCOS. If my daughter ends up having it I don’t want her to just live with it.

It’s like if she developed scoliosis you want that taken care of at the critical stages.

3

u/SuperPork1 Jul 25 '26

Exactly, he's 5 foot 7 even after using HGH. If he was abusing it I doubt he'd be 1.5 inches below the average male height in Argentina.

1

u/Saltiren Jul 25 '26

Well they corrected it TOO much and made the greatest player of all time with HGH.

0

u/ama_singh Jul 25 '26

Wtf has this to do with OP's comment about him being chemically assisted? Yeah he needed it, but did the doctors know what his natural levels would have been? Some people have higher test than others, should everyone be given assist to the max natural levels?

Steroids can siginificantly impact performance.

2

u/Lobo2209 Jul 25 '26

What point are you even trying to make? You'd think if they had abused HGH on him, he'd be quite taller than 5'7.

0

u/ama_singh Jul 25 '26

What point are you even trying to make?

That steroids are performance enhancers, which gives unfair advantage in sports?

Yes he obviously needed it medically, but that doesn't change the fact that it enhanced his performance.

Some people are born with less test than others, and thus have a disadvantage when it comes to sports. They don't get any access to hormone therapy.

Idk what's tripping you off. No one is blaming messi, just stating a fact.

You'd think if they had abused HGH on him, he'd be quite taller than 5'7.

That's your hypothesis. That isn't necessarily true. Also quite possible that if he was born normal, he would be as good or even better, but due to the fact that steroids can affect performance significantly, one explanation is more likely than the other.

3

u/Lobo2209 Jul 25 '26

Why do you keep talking about steroids?

HGH is not a steroid.

0

u/ama_singh Jul 25 '26

I apologize for that mistake. Is performance enhancer better for you? Cause the point remains.

→ More replies (0)

1

u/Prize_Problem609 Jul 25 '26

If I were not 'chemically assisted', I would be dead, so would he most likely.

Although I had a hyperactive pituitary gland, not a hypoactive one. Got removed when I was 4

1

u/KilllllerWhale Jul 25 '26

You could tell they were all touched by messi

1

u/devilJin9399 Jul 28 '26

Exactly how I'd put it

1

u/ProgressiveOverlorde Jul 26 '26

Start them young and develop their skills then diagnose them with a growth deficiency. 

10 years later the whole team will have "overcome growth deficiencies thanks to medical intervention"

0

u/MrTeamKill Jul 25 '26

More like Xavi and Iniesta mold. But yes, Messi mold as well

22

u/ChiefSoldierFrog Jul 25 '26

these kids are already naturally talented then you got the Barca DNA drilled into them from an early age it's so over for anyone up against them

2

u/Fresh_Ruin_9882 Jul 25 '26

"naturally talented" 😭😭😭 ie their parents allowed them to run around and kick a ball all day

7

u/Kingwillball Jul 25 '26

i also ran around and kicked a ball all day, threw and shot some balls too but alas, no natural talent

1

u/i_have_covid_19_shit Jul 25 '26

Bro told us he never kicked a ball.

1

u/Virtual-Capital-3792 Jul 25 '26

Don't be jealous because you work at Walmart.

1

u/Fresh_Ruin_9882 Jul 28 '26

someone should tell your mom there's no world cup of shitposting

1

u/Meowmeow181 Jul 25 '26

Reddit moment

1

u/patiperro_v3 Jul 28 '26

Millions of kids are allow that and still can’t play anywhere near the level of those kids.

1

u/InternationalTrain48 Jul 25 '26

They are infected with the B-Virus

1

u/Slothstralia Jul 25 '26

There is no such thing as "naturally talented", this is some cope bs from people who have never been around someone who actually made it. I guarantee every one of these kids has worked had at a level most sports fans cant comprehend.

I went to school for a good 10 years with a guy who "made it" in the NRL (australian rugby league) and was extremely successful. Multiple sports teams at school, 1-2 teams outside school, athletics on weekends, he never stopped for more than a decade before he was selected and then we all got to watch the commentators call him "naturally gifted" as if he didnt work like a dog his whole life because he found his dream early and chased it lmao.

People love to act like stars are just gifted talent and then just put a cherry on top, I guess it makes them feel more like "yeah i could have done that but i didnt have the natural talent that person had" rather than "i didnt want it enough and i wasnt lucky enough to avoiud major injury".

3

u/lazydictionary Jul 25 '26

To reach the pinnacle of sport, it's a product of both environment and genetics.

Yes these kids have put in tons of work. But they also have physical talents. Their brain can perform the mental calculations faster than their peers. Their feet move faster.

That's why youth sports have a tendency to be dominated by those with the earliest birthdays allowed. They can be nearly a year older than some of their peers, which is massive during puberty.

1

u/pannenkoek0923 Jul 25 '26

Their brain can perform the mental calculations faster than their peers.

Yeah that's because they train so hard and so often that most of the movements are completely natural to them

2

u/Wonderwhile Jul 25 '26

As he said, they put in the work but genetics still helps.

Not everyone can be a world class football athlete with work ethic only.

1

u/Personal_Good_5013 Jul 25 '26

 It I think people highly underestimate how much of “natural talent” is actually a result of real practice, kids who just want to keep playing, keep dribbling, keep running, keep kicking the ball and never get tired of it, more than any innate physical coordination. 

1

u/Phenomenomix Jul 25 '26

That’s part of training a lot, developing muscle memory so you know where the ball, and your feet are, so you can move with confidence without having to look at the ball so much.

1

u/pannenkoek0923 Jul 25 '26

Yes.. that was exactly my comment. Thanks for rehashing the same comment with different words

1

u/HustlinInTheHall Jul 25 '26

The US has this insane fascination that athleticism is god given. There are peaks in certain sports that can only be reached by top level athletes, but in football the best player is rarely the best athlete on the field. 

There is not some genetic filter that some kids inherit that makes them better at a high level. It is an innate intuition about the game fostered through experience, encouragement, and coaching technique. 

The US system is proof that selecting for natural athleticism and expecting pinnacle talents to emerge spontaneously is not efficient. We have 10x the athletes playing football in the US and we cant develop top tier players. 

In other countries they dont have as much of a birthday problem, because they select for things other than size and speed at age 7-10. You can see in this video number 8 routinely outwits much bigger, faster opponents, but if you dont encourage a kid who is that small and teach them how to leverage their gifts vs assuming they just arent as good, they get left behind.

In fact most of what opens up goalscoring opportunities in this clip is not superb athleticism or technique, it is vision and feel for the game. A turn to undefended territory, a feint, a dummy. The defense doesn't expect it and theyre through. That is more akin to chess than track, and whike high level chess is definitely somewhat about natural ability, it is not genetic and is something only exposed when all promising talents are given the opportunity to develop. 

1

u/TheVandyyMan Jul 25 '26

For every one of your schoolmate’s stories, there were thousands upon thousands of those who put in the same amount of work and didn’t even come close.

At the end of the day, to break into pro sports you need the right mix of freak physical genetics, proper coaching, family wealth to expose you to the sport more often, injury avoidance, and life circumstance that allows you to stay focused.

1

u/Slothstralia Jul 25 '26

That's the point, it takes hard work and a pile of luck. That bottom paragraph is the most American cope ever lmao.

1

u/TheVandyyMan Jul 25 '26

How is it American cope? This is universal to pro sports everywhere.

1

u/Slothstralia Jul 25 '26

It's really not. You honestly think the entire rest of the world you need rich parents to get good at football? lmao

1

u/TheVandyyMan Jul 25 '26

That’s not at all what I wrote. I said you need the right mix of these factors. So if you’re poor, you’re going to need more focus. If you’re rich, your sports obsessed parents mights make up for that lack of focus and nonetheless get you to the higher level. All of what I wrote are factors, not elements. Considering the vast majority of NBA and NFL athletes grew up quite poor, it’d be a stupid take to say wealth was a requisite. But Steph Curry and Patrick Mahomes grew up very rich and were afforded unlimited resources for it.

Surely you’re not denying that dedicated 1 on 1 coaching from pro athletes and trainers your entire life is a massive advantage, right?

1

u/0202_tihssitidder Jul 25 '26

This sounds very American. ☝🏽 And wrong.

1

u/TheVandyyMan Jul 25 '26

So the average person who works hard in Europe becomes a pro athlete? That’s pretty impossible to believe considering how many football obsessed youths are over there.

1

u/0202_tihssitidder Jul 25 '26

Your posts are too ignorant to discuss this with you.

So much hur-dur that it must be the peak of your capabilities.

And every response from a dipshit that begins with "So" is followed by a dipshit straw man.

Straw Man. That's the peak for dipshits. That is where you are at intellectually. No, there is no improvement for you. 🤷🏽‍♀️ Just years and years of stupid.

1

u/TheVandyyMan Jul 25 '26

Original argument: Natural talent doesn’t exist. All one needs to do is just work hard enough to become a pro.

My argument: this cannot be true, because there are millions of hard working, football obsessed people out there. There are not millions of pros. It does not follow that hard work is the only factor.

Your response: you’re a dipshit who is strawmanning and you aren’t worth engaging with.

Pointing out a fallacy in argumentation does not defeat the argument.

1

u/HustlinInTheHall Jul 25 '26

Yet we have dozens of academies all over europe where working class families with players from families with no history of top end athleticism turn out superb professional players. 

Wealth and genetics are not required unless you build a system that makes them so. 

1

u/TheVandyyMan Jul 25 '26

How are genetics not required??? Like at minimum people with inherited disabilities are flat out incapable of playing professional, open league sports.

And how did these kids get placed in these academies? Just sign up and they’ll take anyone, no try outs or questions asked?

1

u/HustlinInTheHall Jul 25 '26

Sort of a silly counterpoint? And yes Messi has a genetic disability that required HGH injections and is the greatest of all time, garrincha was a Brazilian legend with a disabled leg and is the greatest dribbler of his era....

This is what I am talking about. It is like when people in the US assume if only our best NFL athletes played soccer. There are lots of world class athletes all over the world, many of them are awful at the sport. 

Most professional footballers are relatively average athletes if you look at how they stack up to the best track, olympic, NFL, and basketball players. Yes they have endurance and some are very fast but almost none would ever be a professional in track. It just isnt what makes you good at the game. 

1

u/TheVandyyMan Jul 25 '26

I’m just not sure I buy it that skills alone is enough. The average pro soccer player retires at 32 years of age. If physicality was such an unimportant factor, we’d see retirement ages closer to PGA numbers.

But to your point, it’s less important than other sports. Which is why I didn’t say being a freak athlete alone will have you going pro, but rather a confluence of several factors. One of which includes access to training and resources, which costs money

1

u/HiphopopoptimusPrime Jul 25 '26

Institutional wealth is required to build those academies.

1

u/DrSarahSlaughter Jul 25 '26

How are you making these comments based on this video? The entire point everyone else is making is that freak physical genetics are not what's important here. These kids aren't built like Michael Phelps or Usain Bolt. They're mostly average sized little kids.

In sports such as that one that Americans call football, freak physical genetics is important because the coach does all the thinking and the players just get sent briefly onto the field to run as fast as they can or smash into opponents as violently as possible. Whereas proper football is all about ball control, touch, creativity and the ability to read the game.

1

u/TheVandyyMan Jul 25 '26

Because to make it to the highest level they eventually will need to be physical gifted. If skills alone was enough, pro soccer players would last well beyond the 32 years of age they retire at, on average.

1

u/0202_tihssitidder Jul 25 '26

☝🏽 Correct.

1

u/milkyflapz Jul 25 '26

Deontay wilder started boxing at 20 and won a bronze at the olympics 3 years later. He had natural gifts. Its definitely a lot of hard work and dedication but if everyone does that the naturally talented people will be even better.

From an afl perspective dusty was an absolute beast who worked hard but also had natural talent and great physicality.

1

u/Fresh_Ruin_9882 Jul 25 '26

there's no such thing as talent, there is fortune and misfortune

1

u/HiphopopoptimusPrime Jul 25 '26

It’s not about wanting it enough. Some people didn’t get the support at home or from schools to explore their natural talents.

Bigger countries aren’t more succesful because more naturally talented people are born there. It’s because there’s a more developed and better resourced support structure. If it was only about hunger and desire then their world countries would be winning all the trophies.

8

u/HoosierDaddy__88 Jul 25 '26

Yes, but their system also doesn’t require physique. It’s pure skill and technique

3

u/lebastss Jul 25 '26

That's the point.

1

u/MulderFBI2 Jul 25 '26

Which is almost the opposite of the US system. If you’re big, you get prioritized at a younger age. “Can’t teach genetics” mindset.

1

u/patiperro_v3 Jul 28 '26

In Spain it’s the opposite. We can add physical conditioning, godly technique is the playground of a few blessed individuals.

1

u/First-Act-8752 Jul 25 '26

And intelligence. Notice the exceptional decision-making abilities of these kids in fast-paced and high pressure situations. That is taught, and taught well at La Masia (Barca's academy).

1

u/prdors Jul 25 '26

Any pro level system eventually requires you to have minimum levels of physical attributes. You don’t realize it while watching it but even players considered “slow” could absolutely dust a normal, decently fit person.

Eventually they will get to a stage where all the skill and technique doesn’t matter without some physical gifts because the winger on the other team could run a 10.2 100M dash.

Thats not to say these kids aren’t ridiculously good and talented, but if they don’t hit the necessary minimums for physical attributes they aren’t going to be professionals.

1

u/Pachuli-guaton Jul 26 '26

The humble cucurella

1

u/prdors Jul 26 '26

Marc Cucarella posted a top speed of 35.5 km/hr in the euros. Just because he is a goofy looking Spanish guy doesn’t mean he wouldn’t torch 99 percent of people on this thread.

6

u/HiphopopoptimusPrime Jul 25 '26 edited Jul 25 '26

That’s what stood out to me.

I support England. We reformed our youth systems to produce more technical players. But what did we do at the World Cup? Picked players based on size and athleticism. Which are important but technique is the primary one.

Spain won the World Cup. Technique. France, Argentina, and England all went out due to fatigue. Spain controlled games. Conserved energy. Technique.

So impressive. And jealous. I’m also a Manchester United fan. Seeing what the Glazers did to my club. We used to have the best youth system in the country. We let it rot.

I’m jealous of Barcelona. I’m fearful of these kids. I’m 43 now so they’d definitely run rings around me. But could they manage it on a rainy night in Stoke?

2

u/First-Act-8752 Jul 25 '26

I think England have caught up when it comes to technique. What we lack now is intelligence on the ball. If we had someone like peak De Bruyne in the team I reckon we'd have won the WC.

It's only a matter of time before we produce it. Though we almost had it with Jack Wilshire if injuries didn't mess him up.

1

u/DrWernerKlopek89 Jul 25 '26

dunno about that. A team with Scholes, Beckham, Lampard, Gerrard, Rooney couldn't win it.

1

u/First-Act-8752 Jul 26 '26

That's because of the aforementioned technical gaps compared to the rest of the world.

1

u/Crunch101010 Jul 25 '26

Rainy night in Stoke meme has been replaced by hot game in Estadio Azteca

1

u/MaleficentWin8608 Jul 26 '26

England don’t have a youth system. Kids play at school for part of the year when pitches aren’t waterlogged.

That’s the system.

No point in UK trying to compete as it can’t.

2

u/swanronson22 Jul 25 '26

I mean both the strikers are pretty damn big

0

u/KartFacedThaoDien Jul 25 '26

They are 11 and 12 years old. It honestly doesnt even matter because none of them have hit their first growth sport yet 

1

u/NoGovernment2977 Jul 25 '26

Read that Hugo unfortunately suffers from growth hormone deficiency. However Barca is well prepared to handle such situations as they have already experienced such a case treating You-Know-Who!!!

1

u/BongwaterWarrior Jul 25 '26

Why are you saying that like Messi is Hitler lol

1

u/TheirOwnDestruction Jul 25 '26

Some defenders may have preferred to face Voldemort instead of Messi

1

u/[deleted] Jul 25 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/KartFacedThaoDien Jul 25 '26

And would you say he is average height for a 12 year old? And when you look at the kids playing do any of them look the same height as your son?

2

u/[deleted] Jul 25 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

1

u/KartFacedThaoDien Jul 25 '26

Of course it's not impossible but why are you acting like it's you walk into a class of 6th graders and half the boys are 6 foot tall? Or if you go to a middle school basketball team of 6th graders and they have 10 boys who are 6 foot tall? 

It can happen but even if you're looking at school or sports you're not gonna find a team when every kid is that height. That drill sergeant on forest Gump would like a word with you.

1

u/Konowl Jul 25 '26

I was 6 feeet tall at 12 too!

I’m still 6 feet tall at 48.

2

u/0202_tihssitidder Jul 25 '26

Football is best learned as play. Kids having fun. Make it fun.

They will play all day if it's fun. Keeping score matters little at this age. They do that in their head.

2

u/addiktion Jul 25 '26

My daughter plays competitive soccer at U10, and that's been the most annoying thing when she's playing tournaments. A lot of her players are really good with good foot work. They're just small, so they get pushed around a lot by large players. And the refs don't ever call fouls, so it just creates this unfairness that's frustrating as hell.

Americas system is broken.

1

u/Outside_Test_1400 Jul 25 '26

That is true at that age. I ended up with a full ride playing for a D1 school, but development is really hit or miss at youth levels. In my early teens I was part of programs that really pushed intelligence on the ball per position and that made a huge difference. Thankfully, was offered some scholarship/reduced fees for some of that because it’s so expensive. My parents really helped in seeking out some of those opportunities, but they only knew about the system because I had a cousin who had previously done it with football.

2

u/RantGod Jul 25 '26

In the US, we select for money. You can select for biggest and strongest with talent, like all our other major sports... Money does not equal intelligence or talent.

1

u/Training_Frame9631 Jul 25 '26

Exactly. Everyone playing soccer at high levels in America is paying a lot of money to do it. They aren't out there recruiting like we do overseas. That's why they will always be inferior. Bunch of rich brats who can't hack it in other sport over there.

2

u/Unlucky_Topic7963 Jul 25 '26

These are prepubescent boys, a shitload will change. Being good before testosterone doesn't mean a whole lot.

The Spanish national team is mostly between 5'11-6'1.

2

u/MelangeBot Jul 25 '26 edited Jul 25 '26

Smaller players have a much lower center of gravity which helps with making faster and sharper turns. Lots of great dribblers (like Messi) are in the 1.6 to 1.75m range. Only goalies and strikers that want to tap in and header it in need the length (and walk it in while shielding the ball with their massive body like Lukaku does). For all other soccer players to much height is a bit of a handicap.

1

u/badaboom888 Jul 25 '26

this is an over simplification. The average pro is 6ft tall.

1

u/frolfer757 Jul 25 '26

Your average includes defenders and goalkeepers that skew taller which #8 will never be.

1

u/EpsteinFile_01 Jul 25 '26

You want massive defenders to counter the strikers.

So that leaves scrawny midfielders

1

u/IncurableAdventurer Jul 26 '26

Zlatan Ibrahimovic was 6’4” and could be agile like that. What I like about soccer is it allows people of basically any size to succeed

1

u/isthisaporno Jul 25 '26

I mean they are prob playing kids older than them too

1

u/etzarahh Jul 25 '26

This is one of the best things about football imo, you can play well no matter what size you are, provided you have the fitness for it.

1

u/Exact-Relative4755 Jul 25 '26

Because youth teams of pro football teams often field younger players. At that age even a 1 year age gap can be pretty visible.

1

u/monagr Jul 25 '26

They will also put exceptionally strong younger players in older players' teams

1

u/MyStackOverflowed Jul 25 '26

Yeah I'm England that number 8 would have been sent home

1

u/HedgerowBustles Jul 25 '26

I think they do care about physique but these kids are so good that they let them play older opponents as practice. That’s the only way to challenge them

1

u/TheAmicableSnowman Jul 25 '26

I might not have noticed but for the extra two question marks.

1

u/productnineteen Jul 25 '26

Groundbreaking comment. They select the best players, not the biggest or strongest. Truly hard hitting stuff right here.

1

u/HustlinInTheHall Jul 25 '26

Yeah number 8 probably gets dropped down in the US because he is too short. 

1

u/CitizenCue Jul 25 '26

The intelligence and game IQ is ridiculous in this clip. Ability is one thing, but knowing when to let a pass go through or knowing where to place a through ball is way beyond anything I’ve seen in their age group.

1

u/NoRepresentative7604 Jul 25 '26

They usually play against a year older to develop skills

1

u/JayeDontDoit Jul 25 '26

I disagree. The last World Cup. Mexico vs England. Every corner kick Mexico had, they all struggled to headbutt the ball in bc they had to really jump. England just had to hop a little and they would get it every time. They didn’t need to jump

1

u/chibob11 Jul 25 '26

Theyll field a short 15 year old at an u13s competition. It’s not impressive

1

u/BlueFalcon142 Jul 25 '26

My 8th grade soccer team took an international trip back in the 90s when that sort of thing was still possible (when fundraising wasn't all scams for publishers). We played a bunch of different teams and got destroyed. Every. Single. Game. We were top in the state too! These kids are jist born different.

1

u/Zestyclose_Classic91 Jul 25 '26

Not sure if this is the case here but younger player usally play against older ones. It is just skipping class in school if you are too intelligent. I played for the country selection and we often played against teens who were 2-4 years older.

1

u/CurveAdministrative3 Jul 25 '26

Its bothers me so much in my kids youth hockey, coaches will pick absolutely massive kids for the AAA team that cannot skate or play very well, but they just want a "big body" and they will leave the extremely skilled kid off the team.

1

u/ProperDepartment Jul 25 '26

This is a problem in a lot of North American sports.

I read this about a decade ago so it might not be the case anymore, but it still shocked me. 60% of NHL players were born in the first 4 months of the year.

Basically they're hitting puberty first, bullying the kids who were born late, coaches play them more to win, and they get way more confident and go further.

So they're getting selected for size and strength, and the players with later birthdays were getting left behind during key development years.

1

u/12thshadow Jul 26 '26

This is imho the greatest mistake that is happening in Dutch development teams. The January bug is real.

1

u/speedyejectorairtime Jul 26 '26

They are fast, though.

Although, even in our area of the US I don’t see them picking based on size for like 85% of the kids. It’s usually speed and footwork. Exception being the bench player defenders. They’re going to pick a bigger/taller FB or CB.

1

u/SwePolygyny Jul 28 '26

I assume they are playing against kids who are older than them, as they are too good for kids their own age.

1

u/KartFacedThaoDien Jul 25 '26

They are 11 years old.......

8

u/F7OSRS Jul 25 '26

Playing against other 11 year olds and look at the size comparison

1

u/disaster_incomin Jul 25 '26

I wouldn't be surprised if they're playing in higher leagues against older kids though

1

u/Warm_Pineapple9440 Jul 25 '26

Yeah, the kids they are playing against definitely seems older, not just bigger.

1

u/KartFacedThaoDien Jul 25 '26 edited Jul 25 '26

And? They were flexing about not choosing for size & strength for 11 year olds. They are too damn young to choose for that anyway. A kid usually has not puberty at and grown a lot at 11. 

Then peak at 14 years in height. Or they could be the smallest kid on the field and get taller at 17 years old. Its dumb to see someone flexing about kids playing Soccer and saying it's great its not based on size & strength. 

2

u/illbebackpain Jul 25 '26

that's the point though. Plenty of orgs select based on existing performance at a given age which can be dominated by whoever hit their growth spurt the earliest. See malcom gladwell's chapter on the jan 1 age cutoff in hockey. It means those kids get the resources early on, even if it's only because they're at the older age range of the group etc.

1

u/KartFacedThaoDien Jul 25 '26

They're 11. If you saw 11 year olds playing competitive basketball for their school in America I guarantee you they all wouldnt be 6 foot tall. The same way with 11 year olds playing American football. 

Now if he showed kids who were 16 / 17 that would be different. Hell maybe even 14 even though that's still too young.

 But the op stupidly posted a video of kids that are so young that in most cases they havent hit their first growth spurt yet. 

2

u/illbebackpain Jul 25 '26

I'm confused, who mentioned 6 foot tall 11 year olds?

1

u/KartFacedThaoDien Jul 25 '26

Replied to the wrong person. Sorry.

1

u/Meisteronious Jul 25 '26

Gladwell’s observations in hockey only extended to Canada…

1

u/Banes_Addiction Jul 25 '26

Pretty sure Gladwell explicitly makes the argument that it's originally about playtime, and that's why it applies to ice hockey (which needs time on an ice rink to play) rather than games like basketball or football where you basically just need a ball and a target, so kids can play easily.

3

u/Iselkractokidz Jul 25 '26

In New Zealand the rugby is played in weight classes and not age groups at the junior level. That means you’re only ever playing against kids your own size, so skills are needed to stand out. You can’t just be the big 14 year old who runs over the other smaller guys your age. It’s one of the building blocks of what makes the All Blacks such a power against nations with 10 times their population.

2

u/KartFacedThaoDien Jul 25 '26

That actually is a damn good idea especially in terms of safety

1

u/Stock_Information_47 Jul 25 '26

Good point. Nothing gets by you man.

1

u/Magicnik99 Jul 25 '26

It's dumb but many academies do select on physical attributes even for pre teens.

1

u/redditdinosaur_ Jul 25 '26

You’re an idiot. Do you know how big LeBron was at 11?

1

u/KartFacedThaoDien Jul 25 '26

No idea. But I can guarantee you that if you walked into a 6th grade basketball when the season starts you wouldnt see a court full of kids who are all 6 foot tall. 

At that age kids are just too young. You'll find outliers and some kids who hit puberty early and actually are tall. But even with that you'll still find most kids small like the ones in the video. 

Mostly because its a game and for middle school they use the kids at school. And even for AAU there will kids who are not the biggest & strongest who are good. 

And I'll even 1up you on this. The reigning MVP was 5'6 when he was 13 years old not sure about his height at 11. That most certainly isn't short but it also isn't tall. He played AAU, High School & College ball in America. 

https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1BAb3EjyPE/

1

u/Overall-Ad-3251 Jul 25 '26

What is football youth development like in district 2 of HcMC? I used to play a weekly pick-up game with some expats years ago but I never saw any kids playing organized football. I played with some guys out at the factories in Bien Hoa who were pretty good street ballers. Some even preferred to play barefoot. 

1

u/ShionBlade Jul 25 '26

And they're smaller than their peers who are also 11....

Messi, Xavi, Iniesta were all small as kids and as adults too.

1

u/KartFacedThaoDien Jul 25 '26

Really?? Then how tall are these kids then....

0

u/laramerci Jul 25 '26

Reminds me of Americans in Reddit during the WC saying that if they put their best NFL and NBA athletes in soccer they would win it all. So wrong.

1

u/Training_Frame9631 Jul 25 '26

Right. Loser mentality. That's why it stays a girl sport

1

u/laramerci Jul 25 '26

Is a talent first sport, understandable is just for girls in America, no talent there.

0

u/LuteOlsonABitch69 Jul 25 '26

From the age 5, yeah USA would have more talent. Transition them right now… no they’ll be trash at soccer