In youth football circles, U-21 football has been a bone of contention for many years with compelling arguments on both sides of the fence. At the heart of the debate are the questions: is winning more important at this stage, or should it all be about development? But why can’t it be both?
We like to break down football into four key quadrants to judge the development of players: technical, tactical, physical and mental. U-21 football covers two of these exceptionally well: technical and tactical but what about the other two measures – physicality and mentality? There is no doubt that the technical level in Category One English U-21 football is exceptionally high.
Most of these players have had elite-level coaching for 12 to 15 years from the age of six, so their technical ability in all areas of the game should be extremely good, as well as their tactical understanding of how their team/coach wants them to play in and out of possession. They are taught from a young age to have the courage to take the ball under pressure and how to press/counter-press; so, their technical and tactical ability is bound to improve.
