February 1st, 2009 . 12:19 pm . By: Richard Farrer

Preseason is here.  Finally.  The reports on early preseason training are starting to come in.  (Yes!)  And teams are starting to make some moves in the player market, including FCD.

For the players, the preseason is extremely important, even though none of the games actually count in the standings.  In my seven MLS seasons, the preseason always set the tone for the regular season; we never recovered from a bad preseason to go on and have a good year.

Fresh Start

The first step to a good preseason is realizing that everything starts over each year.  The soccer gods hit the giant “reset” button in the sky and everything from last year is gone in a flash.  After the reboot, a player who last year was an under-confident rookie or part-time starter can turn into a regular starter or even a leader.  And a player who was a fixture in the team can stumble in the new year and lose his place entirely.

The preseason also gives players a chance to play without having to carry any injuries.  Players who struggled last year because they were playing through injuries can emerge in a whole new light once they have had a chance to heal.  Avoiding new injuries is also very important.  Everyone, while trying to earn a spot in the first 11, will also be doing their best to make it through this phase of the season without picking up any new injuries.  (It’s worth noting that a player who picks up a muscle injury in preseason, e.g., a strained hamstring or groin, very likely came into preseason out of shape.)

Learn the System

The preseason is also when the team will establish a style of play and implement a system.  This should be priority one for FCD, who in my view never got this entirely sorted out last year.  To that end, we need to get all our players in place as soon as possible.  If even one key player is missing, the system and style of play will be affected and preseason games will not provide a good environment for players to solidify their roles and learn how to play with one another.

Especially down the “spine” of the team, things should get set as soon as possible.  Positions like outside fullback or midfield are easier to adjust, even late in the preseason or into the regular season.  But the central defense and midfield in particular should be sorted out as soon into the preseason as possible.  By the end of the preseason, the team must have had at least 3 or 4 high-level games with all the major pieces in place.  And the team should win those games (or the portions of those games in which all the major pieces are on the field).  It’s never too early to start the winning habit.  And it’s never acceptable to lose.

I should note that some coaches use the preseason as a time to experiment and look at different players.  I can understand why they need to do that, but from a players’ perspective it can be a nightmare, especially if it goes on too long.  A team’s tactics are not a set thing; tactics can and must change with changes in the lineup.  Every player has different strengths and weaknesses, and while the team’s big-picture strategy might not change all that much with different lineups, the in-the-trenches tactics do and must change depending on who is on the field.  There might be one or two guys (the best players) on the team who can play the same way no matter who is in the lineup.  Everyone else needs to be smart enough to see how they fit into the overall scheme, depending on who is in the lineup.  That is only possible once people know who is going to be in the team.  Again, getting things in place early is good.

Leadership

Finally, preseason is where leaders step forward and assume responsibility.  Leaders win fitness drills.  They put rookies and trialists in their place.  They make sure the team wins games, even stupid games that supposedly don’t matter.  They lead by example and set the tone in training.  Lionel Alvarez, in case you are wondering, is the person I am thinking of as I write these words.  He was a leader.

Needless to say, FCD needs some on-field leadership next year.  We have some players on the roster who can do it, and some who have done it in the past, but this is a new year and the team’s new leader, whoever he is, needs to step forward in the preseason and take responsibility for getting things in order.  And for the love of all things good, the coaching staff must recognize the leader in the group and let him lead.  If the players recognize one person as their leader but the coaches think it’s someone else, well, that’s bad.

I’m excited to see how the pieces will fall into place this year and to see how FCD will play.  And I’m excited to see who the team’s leader will be. 

3rd Degree, keep us posted!

Categories: That's Rich.

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