Before the Golden Week I wrote a text about 'winning' and I concluded that in youth football 'development' should be more important than 'winning'. This statement resulted in many kind replies, and I thank you for that. I also received a few critical remarks, and that's ok as well. I'm very aware that opinions can differ and that people come to us with different expectations. Even in the kind reactions there seemed to be various interpretations on what I meant with 'development'.
在黄金周之前，我写了一篇关于“取胜”的文章，我的结论是，对于青少年足球运动来说，球员的发展应该比在比赛中取胜更重要。很多人发来了善意的回复，非常感谢大家。我也收到了一些批评性的言论，这也没关系。我非常清楚每个人的想法是不同的，来我们这里的人们也抱着不同的期望。但是即使在大家善意的回复中也似乎对“发展”的概念有各种理解。
To avoid any miscommunications on this regard, I'd like to clarify myself once again. To me development means getting closer to the goal(s) which I wish to achieve. A more interesting question would therefore be: as a trainer, which goal(s) do I wish to achieve? My answer would be 'it depends', but usually I work towards achieving two goals: (1) creating better players; and (2) creating better citizens. I realize this still sounds vaguely abstract, so let me explain myself in a bit more detail below.
为了避免在这方面的误会，我想再次澄清一下，对我来说，发展意味着越来越接近想实现的目标。一个更有趣的问题是：作为教练，我希望达到哪个目标？我的答案是“不一定”，但通常我会努力实现两个目标：一、培养更好的球员；二、培养更好的人。我意识到这仍然听起来很模糊很抽象，所以请让我再详细解释一下。
1. CREATING BETTER PLAYERS – HOW?
If someone would tell me he wants to create better players, the first question that would cross my mind is: 'how?' And for everyone who is related to our club, I would find it only fair if they'd ask me the same. I will give you my answer to this question by explaining you the main guidelines of my football education:
1. 培养更好的球员 - 怎样培养？
如果有人说他想培养更好的球员，那我想到的第一个问题是：“怎样培养？” 所以如果与我们俱乐部有关的人问我这个问题，我也非常能理解。我将通过我的足球教育指导方针来给出我对这个问题的回答：
These guidelines state that for players under 10 years old the main emphasis should be on developing (1) technical skills. This implies doing lots of exercises with the ball and teaching players a toolbox of technical moves (dribbles, turns, passing, receiving, feint moves etc.). Ideally, if a player is taught well and trained hard enough, he/she will be able to perform all these moves by the age of 10.
这张图指出，对于10岁以下的球员，主要侧重的是发展（1）技术技能。这意味着用球进行大量练习，并教给球员一系列技术动作（运球，转弯，传球，接球，假动作等）。理想情况下，如果一名球员被教得很好并且训练足够努力，他/她将能够在10岁以前完成所有这些动作。
Subsequently this player should learn when to use these moves (when to give a pass? when to start a dribble? when to do a feint move? etc.). In this second stage the emphasis therefore shifts to (2) tactical decision making. Since this stage can be cognitive demanding it is important to consider the cognitive abilities of a student. Think about it: Is a 6 year old capable to understand complex tactical concepts like 'tilting', 'transition' or 'pressuring'? I don't think so and I therefore tend to avoid almost all tactical terminology before the age of 10.
随后这个球员应该学习什么时候使用这些动作（什么时候传球，什么时候开始运球，什么时候做假动作等）。因此在第二阶段，重点就转向（2）战术决策。由于这个阶段有认知要求，所以考虑学生的认知能力很重要。想一想，一个6岁的孩子真的有能力理解“进攻”、“换位”和“逼抢施压”这样复杂的战术概念吗？我认为不能，所以在培训10岁以下的孩子时我尽量避免使用任何战术术语。
The third stage of player development is (3) physical training. Again, implementation time matters here. Consider the testosterone levels of young players and you'll find that physical training can be useless before puberty, or even detrimental at the onset of puberty. It is therefore commonly recommended to gradually (!) start implementing physical exercises after the age of 14.
球员发展的第三个阶段是（3）体能训练。再次强调，年龄在这里很重要。参考年轻球员的荷尔蒙分泌水平，你会发现体能训练在青春期前可能是无用的，甚至在青春期开始时也是不利的。因此，通常建议在14岁以后逐渐开始实施体能训练。
If all these three stages are trained well, you should have a pretty complete player by the age of 16. It is around this time that we are entering the final stage of development, namely the (4) mental stage. I've seen many talents fail in this chapter. The life of a 16 to 18 year old usually comes with a lot of temptations. This can make it a big challenge for trainers to keep their talents focused and dedicated to the game. The mental stage cannot be underestimated, because in the end it will usually be the most focused and dedicated players that will get the most out of their careers.
如果一个球员在所有这三个阶段的训练都完成的很好，那么16岁时他就应该是一个非常完整的球员了。在这个时候，我们可以正式进入最后的发展阶段，即（4）心理阶段。我曾经看到过很多有天赋的孩子在这个阶段失败了。 16至18岁孩子的生活中通常有很多诱惑，所以让球员对训练和比赛保持专注对教练来说是一个很大的挑战。心理阶段不能被低估，因为最终通常是最专注最努力的球员在他们的足球职业生涯中发挥最好。
2. CREATING BETTER CITIZENS – WHY?
Obviously, not all our members will have a career in football. That's an understatement. The majority of our members will not have a career in football. In contrast, all of them will grow up to become adults in our world. This realization helps me to remind that youth football is not just about developing players. It is about developing people as well. This might sound overly ambitious for a football trainer, but actually this is the easy part. Football is a game that in itself facilitates personal development. It teaches our students a whole set of social skills, like team work and taking responsibility. It will also build their confidence, in themselves and in it others. They’ll experience a sense of belonging and they'll learn to cope with success and failure. As a consequence, football will bring them joy, discipline and encourage them to be healthy and creative individuals.
2. 培养更好的人 - 为什么？
显然，并不是我们所有的队员将来都会从事足球事业。保守估计，绝大多数队员将不会从事足球职业，但是他们都将长大成人。认识到这一点，我认为青少年足球事业不仅仅是培养球员，也是培养人。对于足球教练来说，这可能听起来过于雄心勃勃，但实际上这很容易。足球是一种能够促进个人发展的运动，它能教会我们的学员一整套社会技能，比如团队合作和承担责任。它也会帮助队员建立信心，对自己和对别人都是。学员还会有归属感，学会应对成功和失败。因此，足球将给他们带来快乐和纪律意识，鼓励他们成为健康的、有想法有创意的人才。
For me, to experience all these developments from up close is a remarkable thing. In only my last weekend, I saw a new member change from shy to confident, and I saw an old member change from aggressive to considerate. I saw a young member making big improvements on his technical skills, and I saw and older member making excellent decisions in his tactical game play. I saw various members who didn't speak the same language try to communicate, and I saw two members from different social backgrounds building a friendship for life. All the above, brings me back to the questions I raised in my previous column: Do I think winning is an important part of youth football? Yes. Do I think winning is the most important part of youth football? No.
对我来说，近距离感受和经历所有这些发展变化是一件了不起的事情。就在上周末，我看到一个新队员从开始的害羞变得自信，一个老队员从开始的鲁莽变得周到。我看到一个小队员在技术技能上有了很大提高，一个老队员在战术决策上做得很好。我看到讲不同语言的各位队员互相沟通，看到两位来自不同社会背景的队员建立起友谊。以上所有这一切把我们带回到了我在上一期中提出的问题：我认为在比赛中取胜对青少年足球运动来说重要吗？答案：是的。我认为在比赛中取胜对青少年足球运动来说是最重要的吗？答案：不是。
