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Subject: [NT] Season 11 - Summary
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I still wish tackles were counted like goals & assists in this game :/
Just needed a snow-day to finish things up. :D
I also wasn't that surprised to see most of the players are staying put. IMO it's part of the reason why the Canadian team has been so successful for it's size - our managers have shown a great deal of dedication.
That said, I have the strong feeling our size is catching up to us. I look at the teams around us in the rankings, and my sense is they are improving faster then we are. I don't think we're doing anything wrong - but eventually our numbers will catch up with us.
It shouldn't be a problem this next season. We've got a World Cup group where we have the potential to make some noise. It's certainly feasible (and expected) that we can maintain a top 26 ranking and hence a second seed in the next round of qualifying.
I also wasn't that surprised to see most of the players are staying put. IMO it's part of the reason why the Canadian team has been so successful for it's size - our managers have shown a great deal of dedication.
That said, I have the strong feeling our size is catching up to us. I look at the teams around us in the rankings, and my sense is they are improving faster then we are. I don't think we're doing anything wrong - but eventually our numbers will catch up with us.
It shouldn't be a problem this next season. We've got a World Cup group where we have the potential to make some noise. It's certainly feasible (and expected) that we can maintain a top 26 ranking and hence a second seed in the next round of qualifying.
Thought I may as well tack season 12 on here instead of starting a new thread.
All in all, a rather disappointing season. The losses against Austria and BiH in Season 11 (still some of the goofiest I've ever been a part of) left us in a difficult position as a #4 team in the World Cup. Meant we only had a good chance in 1 of the 3 matches (vs. the Swiss), and we were a little flat that game. Parker did his best to help overcome a weak tactic from me against Germany, and the team did the best it could against Finland, but needed to catch some big breaks and didn't. In the end three close results, but nothing our way.
The unofficial U21 tournament wasn't all that memorable either. The flukey win against the US was offset by a distressing draw against Malaysia. Having an underpowered defense against some of the big boys meant I played some destructive and less-then-entertaining football.
Many of the friendlies carried a similar tone. In many we were arguably the better side, and often played well enough to win, but not that many results came our way. Like I said, disappointing.
Still, the team remains in the second tier, and it's hard to argue we are stronger then any of those teams ranked above us. Given our user-base we are never going to push into the #1 seeds for qualifying. The goal this season was to stay a #2 - which was achieved. I think this should continue to be the target - a #2 generally has an excellent chance of qualifying for the World Cup.
I got behind doing the player stats early on, and it became too big a job to get caught up. My apologies. I may yet throw together some goal and assist totals.
I'm not doing the player by player anecdotal this season, in large part because I would be mostly repeating what I said last season. Instead, I thought I'd look positionally at where we are and where we may be headed.
Striker
Amado has been the talisman for the past several seasons, and may continue to be for the next 1 - perhaps 2. The last 2 adjustments to the ME have hurt his game somewhat, but he still remains an important threat. Coupled with a marksman (Wang, Giacomi, W. Lav) he keeps defenses honest. Giacomi may have a little more to give (he's not got much on W. Lav), but is riding towards the sunset. I never imagined Wang would have the NT career he's managed. He's not spectacular, but his steady all-round game has made him useful. Manohar is somewhat similar - and has become significantly more effective the past season or so. But he's caught between the old guard and the heirs apparent.
The question is how long before W. Lav and Biron assert themselves as the new tandem. Could happen this season or next ... but by the next round of qualifying I expect them to be top options.
Offensive Midfield - Winger
Caron has (IMO) clearly established himself in this position - particularly the wing spot. In fact, his defensive skills have meant he's a little scary anywhere but the wing position. He's progressed to the point where he's got a good chance of beating NT caliber defenders to the corner flag, and has enough passing to get a good % of balls into the box. His finishing skills are also useful - can count on him to chip in with a goal from time to time. Caron's emergence will make it harder for players like O'Hara, Faria and Canizalez to get action.
Iginla is also an excellent wide thread, but with better defending he's more flexible and can be used centrally or pushed back deeper into midfield. Ribeiro, Ferranti and Lorenzo are up and coming options, but each of them may have trouble getting tailored training due to higher profile teammates.
Midfield
Where offensive midfield has long been a team strength, midfield not so much. Omar still has decent skills, but can't have much more gas in the tank. O Lav was supposed to be our rock in the center, but is unfortunately really injury prone, and has also had a fair bit of form trouble. There is light on the horizon. Lemieux and Foster are going to be great. Fluet also looks like he may have staying power. Like the young strikers, it's only a matter of time before these youngsters establish themselves on the senior squad.
Defensive Midfield
Gonzo appears to be the defensive middie the team has long desired. He was thrown into the fire against Finland (WC) and came out un-singed. Against top opposition we're likely still looking at a defender in this role, but it's a great help to have a fairly dependable defender with added creativity.
Defense
A lot of transition here too. I'm not sure how much more icons Wagenaar and Abbas Musa have to offer. Fichaud remains a strong anchor, tho he's working through a rare patch of off-form. Bradshaw is world-class, and Dehere has a chance to be one of Canada's best ever. Middle-agers like Villanueva, Malhotra and Holden are all useful pieces, and I've been very impressed with young Sebrango, who seems destined for stardom.
Keepers
Canada may finally be in a position where it's not Parker-or-bust. Madden is still a little slow, but is improving - and is clearly the most viable second option we've ever had. Singh and Lemaitre are both still young and training hard - in another season or two we'll be in a position where we aren't a knock or two away from disaster.
Conclusion
We continue to improve at key positions, and perhaps more importantly, are adding some depth. Though we are getting better it's important to remember that the nations around us in the rankings are also improving - many at a greater rate due to higher manager numbers. So even with a stronger team I expect it to be increasingly more difficult to hold our world position.
Canada continues to hit above its weight primarily because of the commitment of many of our top managers to train domestic. This prevents a host of potential problems that may occur when top prospects are trained abroad. I hope that we, as a community, can continue this high level of dedication to national goals.
Thanks for the support over the past two seasons. It hasn't been easy - either in Sokker or RL - and I really appreciate the co-operation, encouragement and kind words I have received from so many of you.
Cheers!
All in all, a rather disappointing season. The losses against Austria and BiH in Season 11 (still some of the goofiest I've ever been a part of) left us in a difficult position as a #4 team in the World Cup. Meant we only had a good chance in 1 of the 3 matches (vs. the Swiss), and we were a little flat that game. Parker did his best to help overcome a weak tactic from me against Germany, and the team did the best it could against Finland, but needed to catch some big breaks and didn't. In the end three close results, but nothing our way.
The unofficial U21 tournament wasn't all that memorable either. The flukey win against the US was offset by a distressing draw against Malaysia. Having an underpowered defense against some of the big boys meant I played some destructive and less-then-entertaining football.
Many of the friendlies carried a similar tone. In many we were arguably the better side, and often played well enough to win, but not that many results came our way. Like I said, disappointing.
Still, the team remains in the second tier, and it's hard to argue we are stronger then any of those teams ranked above us. Given our user-base we are never going to push into the #1 seeds for qualifying. The goal this season was to stay a #2 - which was achieved. I think this should continue to be the target - a #2 generally has an excellent chance of qualifying for the World Cup.
I got behind doing the player stats early on, and it became too big a job to get caught up. My apologies. I may yet throw together some goal and assist totals.
I'm not doing the player by player anecdotal this season, in large part because I would be mostly repeating what I said last season. Instead, I thought I'd look positionally at where we are and where we may be headed.
Striker
Amado has been the talisman for the past several seasons, and may continue to be for the next 1 - perhaps 2. The last 2 adjustments to the ME have hurt his game somewhat, but he still remains an important threat. Coupled with a marksman (Wang, Giacomi, W. Lav) he keeps defenses honest. Giacomi may have a little more to give (he's not got much on W. Lav), but is riding towards the sunset. I never imagined Wang would have the NT career he's managed. He's not spectacular, but his steady all-round game has made him useful. Manohar is somewhat similar - and has become significantly more effective the past season or so. But he's caught between the old guard and the heirs apparent.
The question is how long before W. Lav and Biron assert themselves as the new tandem. Could happen this season or next ... but by the next round of qualifying I expect them to be top options.
Offensive Midfield - Winger
Caron has (IMO) clearly established himself in this position - particularly the wing spot. In fact, his defensive skills have meant he's a little scary anywhere but the wing position. He's progressed to the point where he's got a good chance of beating NT caliber defenders to the corner flag, and has enough passing to get a good % of balls into the box. His finishing skills are also useful - can count on him to chip in with a goal from time to time. Caron's emergence will make it harder for players like O'Hara, Faria and Canizalez to get action.
Iginla is also an excellent wide thread, but with better defending he's more flexible and can be used centrally or pushed back deeper into midfield. Ribeiro, Ferranti and Lorenzo are up and coming options, but each of them may have trouble getting tailored training due to higher profile teammates.
Midfield
Where offensive midfield has long been a team strength, midfield not so much. Omar still has decent skills, but can't have much more gas in the tank. O Lav was supposed to be our rock in the center, but is unfortunately really injury prone, and has also had a fair bit of form trouble. There is light on the horizon. Lemieux and Foster are going to be great. Fluet also looks like he may have staying power. Like the young strikers, it's only a matter of time before these youngsters establish themselves on the senior squad.
Defensive Midfield
Gonzo appears to be the defensive middie the team has long desired. He was thrown into the fire against Finland (WC) and came out un-singed. Against top opposition we're likely still looking at a defender in this role, but it's a great help to have a fairly dependable defender with added creativity.
Defense
A lot of transition here too. I'm not sure how much more icons Wagenaar and Abbas Musa have to offer. Fichaud remains a strong anchor, tho he's working through a rare patch of off-form. Bradshaw is world-class, and Dehere has a chance to be one of Canada's best ever. Middle-agers like Villanueva, Malhotra and Holden are all useful pieces, and I've been very impressed with young Sebrango, who seems destined for stardom.
Keepers
Canada may finally be in a position where it's not Parker-or-bust. Madden is still a little slow, but is improving - and is clearly the most viable second option we've ever had. Singh and Lemaitre are both still young and training hard - in another season or two we'll be in a position where we aren't a knock or two away from disaster.
Conclusion
We continue to improve at key positions, and perhaps more importantly, are adding some depth. Though we are getting better it's important to remember that the nations around us in the rankings are also improving - many at a greater rate due to higher manager numbers. So even with a stronger team I expect it to be increasingly more difficult to hold our world position.
Canada continues to hit above its weight primarily because of the commitment of many of our top managers to train domestic. This prevents a host of potential problems that may occur when top prospects are trained abroad. I hope that we, as a community, can continue this high level of dedication to national goals.
Thanks for the support over the past two seasons. It hasn't been easy - either in Sokker or RL - and I really appreciate the co-operation, encouragement and kind words I have received from so many of you.
Cheers!
Your posts are always informed and thoughtfully written. They have been a must read whenever I log on to sokker. Your team analysis, in my opinion, has done more than anything else to strengthen the national team by integrating Canadian managers into the nt strategy.
In this post you have been incredibly humble, wins you have characterized as lucky and losses as tactical errors. Canadians are used to being a low middle power, while our aspirations are high, our expectations must be modest in keeping with our abilities. Because you have always put thought into the lineup and tactics and because you have kept the player profiles up to date, you have done everything and more that can be expected of our national team coach. You have set a high bar for future nt managers.
In this post you have been incredibly humble, wins you have characterized as lucky and losses as tactical errors. Canadians are used to being a low middle power, while our aspirations are high, our expectations must be modest in keeping with our abilities. Because you have always put thought into the lineup and tactics and because you have kept the player profiles up to date, you have done everything and more that can be expected of our national team coach. You have set a high bar for future nt managers.
What a humble fellow you are! You've done amazing things with the NT squad Seca. I do hope you consider running again in the future.
Thank you so much for the time & effort you put into our national side :)
Thank you so much for the time & effort you put into our national side :)
Seca thank you for this Guide, it's going to help me I'm sure.....good luck in NZ and in real life, all the best!!!
Take it for what it's worth. :P As I hinted, I was disappointed with some aspects of the team's achievement. If you see things differently you should try it out - a new direction may be what's needed. :)
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