The goal by Canada will go down as a complete fail by the Nigerian keeper.

Mia got called for a handball in the box and initially was red-carded, but changed to a yellow after video review. She had jumped to block a shot after her keeper had left the net open and the ball hit her arm between the shoulder and elbow.
The Under 20 World Cup won't have much impact on the college season after all with both the US and Canada out after the group stage.

Hypothetical question for those bashing the way girls are developed in the US: You have a daughter who is talented enough to play at any D1 College or go Pro. What would you advise her to do?

Go pro if she can and wants to. She can always go back to college after her pro career is over.

King Koda said:

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Hypothetical question for those bashing the way girls are developed in the US: You have a daughter who is talented enough to play at any D1 College or go Pro. What would you advise her to do?

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Here in the US? Go pro and go back to college later.

But my criticisms of the Euro academies and their developmental system are primarily with how they often skimp on education through players' formative years. There's a whole generation of guys in their 20s and 30s in England who washed out of soccer in their late teens who are waaaaaay behind their traditionally schooled peers because they were on the road or training and the academy-provided curriculum and tutors were basically a joke.

Edit to add that I think some of the negative press in recent years has forced pro academies to try to actually educate their players better, but it's still worrisome to me.

You think it's bad in Euro you should check out Argentina. Or other Latin Am countries. Every 6-17 year old thinks they're going to be a professional soccer player and sacrifice their education in pursuit of that dream. Then they turn 18, don't make the cut and end up with very few options. Its pretty shocking. On the other hand, it helps explain how those countries churn out world-class players every year, because the VAST majority of their talented kids are playing soccer and a large percentage of them only have soccer as a way out of poverty.

In the US we call this AAU basketball

Oh, I'm well aware. Several of my HS players in Houston had grown up playing in club academy systems in C. and S. America. (We we're just comparing Euro and US development models.)

jeffk said:

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King Koda said:

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Hypothetical question for those bashing the way girls are developed in the US: You have a daughter who is talented enough to play at any D1 College or go Pro. What would you advise her to do?

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Here in the US? Go pro and go back to college later.

But my criticisms of the Euro academy model of development are primarily with how they often skimp on education through players' formative years. There's a whole generation of guys in their 20s and 30s in England who washed out of soccer in their late teens who are waaaaaay behind their traditionally schooled peers because they were on the road or training and the academy-provided curriculum and tutors were basically a joke.

Edit to add that I think some of the negative press in recent years has forced pro academies to try to actually educate their players better, but it's still worrisome to me.

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I know it's anecdotal at best, but there's a 17 year old playing for FC Dallas MLS Next Pro who graduated from high school at 16 and is taking online college courses and playing professional soccer.

It can be done if the guidance is there.

Yeah, American academy systems puts a much better effort into the educational side of their programs than the Euros do (or at least have done in the near past).

I would echo what others have said, if she has the ability and desire to make a run at being a pro then that is what I would advise them to do.

I have two girls playing club soccer. IMO their ceiling is small college.

Knucklesammich said:

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I would echo what others have said, if she has the ability and desire to make a run at being a pro then that is what I would advise them to do.

I have two girls playing club soccer. IMO their ceiling is small college.

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That's where my daughter is. She wants to go to A&M so she needs to decide what she wants to do. She's smart tho and says if she doesn't prepare to play college soccer she can't.