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The name of John Ramos – known to all as “Johnny Ramos” is synonymous of class, success and humbleness. The newly awarded Coach of the Year (East), conveys wisdom and knowledge, as well as a great passion for youth soccer in Florida.

It’s 5 o’clock in the afternoon in Kendall, and John Ramos has just completed his training with the U-18 Kendall Soccer Coalition Team.

The man who transited from the Miami FC to the Spandauer Berlin in Germany, showing his capacity as a defense, now conveys his knowledge in clubs as Albion SC Plantation and Kendall SC from south Florida.

It is not easy being elected “Coach of the Year” in the United States. You compete with hundreds of coaches in three large geographic areas, East, West and Central. So, John is one of the top three in the 2015-2016 season, putting Florida back in the spotlight.

With his wooden board filled with notes and a copy of SoccerPlus under his arm, John answered each question with a calm tone.

How long have you been coaching for?
For the past 12 years I am coaching youth teams in Florida. I Have 10 years in Plantation and two years in Kendall.

Where did you play previously in the United States?
I played at Miami FC, also in Miami Fussion, the Cyclons of Jacksonville, the Boston Bulldogs and Raleigh Capital Express, among others.

Did you play in Europe?
Yes, I played three years with a German team, Spandau, in Berlin, at the German Regional League. It would be like third division.

Which players do you especially remember during your time at the MLS and professional soccer?
Among the ones I remember the most are the Brazilian Romario, the talented Pibe Valderrama of Colombia and Zinho, also from Brazil.

What position did you play?
Always as a defender, central position.

How do you see the players here in Kendall SC?
There’s a lot of talent here. We have guys from different countries from Latin America that live soccer in a natural, intuitive way. It’s something they already have within themselves.

What does it take to succeed in soccer at this age?
Passion. Without passion for the game a player won’t improve, he will not want to be on the court. Talent is important but without passion is difficult to reach your goal, I insist, even if you have a lot of talent.

How do you work in Kendall SC and Albion SC Plantation?
At Kendall SC I train the U-18 team, a very talented team. In Albion SC Plantation we have 30 teams. A total of 2,400 players. 400 in competition and two thousand in the recreational league. We have a partnership with Kendall SC so that the U-18 boys train in Kendall. There is good synergy between the two clubs.

Do you also train other coaches?
Yes, I also teach courses for coaches in all of Florida State.

Do you think there is further development of child and youth football now?
Of course, boys have many more opportunities. But that is also a problem, since the player cannot focus on one path, because he has five or six. There are many tournaments, leagues, and dozens of scouts from colleges and observers. It’s also a lot of pressure.

On the development of soccer in Florida, how do you see the new Miami FC?
I think that if the team has quality, it will have more followers. The Miami FC, now directed by Nesta could have more possibilities.

At the end of the interview, before leaving to fulfill his commitment in Plantation, Johnny smiles when we make two mandatory questions, what is your favorite player today, and what soccer club you admire the most. Without hesitation, says: Messi and Barcelona.

With high expectations and desires to fulfill their dreams and compete strongly, a group of players of Weston FC U16 was in Italy, participating in the famous tournament “Città di Arco – Beppe Viola 2016”, a tournament with more than 30 years of history, in the small town of Arco, near Verona. The Weston club was the only foreign guest of honor. Among the participating clubs with their U16 teams were the greatest in Italy: AS Roma, Lazio, Fiorentina, Juventus, AC Milan and others. A real experience and a litmus test for Weston.
The first stop in Italy: The Milan Malpensa airport and then continue the way towards the city of Verona … the city of Romeo and Juliet and soccer for a few days.

For best performance, the team left Miami four days before the tournament, in order to adapt to schedule changes, 11 hours difference between Europe and Miami, and the Italian winter indicating a temperature between 32 and 41 degrees Fahrenheit.

REAL-LIFE TEST

During this trip, the Weston FC U16 players experienced the reality of everyday life of a professional soccer player. Upon arrival to the city of Verona, they stayed at the concentration center of Chievo Verona, a professional team of the Italian series A. The bedtime routine, sharing, and feeding were made the professional way.

DAY-TO-DAY

The young people experienced a life dedicated to the field, training and rest. And besides soccer, boys had to devote time for their school work, for the days they’d be out. Daily training was made in two steps: In the morning, adaptation, consisting of physical and athletic. And more technical and specific in the afternoon. The coach Alessandro Sbrizzo says that was very interesting to see physical and mental adaptation of the players in the days before the tournament.

BEYOND THE TOURNAMENT

The group where Weston FC played turned out to be the most difficult, in fact The Champion Tournament – Atalanta was in group A. Weston FC played three games, from which got one loss, one tie and one win in one last dramatic match. Tournament rules only allow the first in the group to advance. After the third game, Weston FC returned to Verona, there visited the city and enjoyed a game of the series A, Chievo Verona against Milan. It was an experience to see great players in one of the most important leagues in the world. Before the game, Weston FC could watch the Chievo Verona training, talk to the players and get advice from them. On his last day in Italy, Weston FC faced against Bresian, team of the B series, in a friendly game that ended in a 3-3 tie. It was a very nice game where players felt free and much more confident and enjoyed playing soccer. Throughout the process there was no injured player due to good preparation. Weston FC represented Florida and U.S. soccer greatly, in a demanding and top-level competitive tournament.

RESULTS

FIRST MATCH
WESTON FC 0 –  TRENTINO 0

Incidences: Weston FC played to win on the field but the match was not so easy in the first few minutes, and while the team was adapted and settled, their moves were improving and had a chance to win.

Sbrizzo’s comment:
“The end of this game left a bitter taste because the result
0-0 didn’t reflect what happened on the court. Weston FC deserved to win but some mistakes stopped that we could achieve it”

Alessandro Sbrizzo
Coach Weston FC

SECOND MATCH
WESTON FC 0 ATALANTA 1

Incidences: Atalanta is a professional team series A. Weston FC had warmed up, and was moving very well on the court despite the superiority of the rival. Atalanta’s goal was scored in the second half, missing only 10 minutes to finish, which speaks of good tactics and physical layout of the Club of Florida.

Sbrizzo’s comment:
We had chances to tie but it didn’t happen. During this match, it was clear that the boys’ soccer was growing, at the same time of their athletic and psychological condition.”

THIRD MATCH

WESTON FC 4 TORINO 3
Weston goals
Luna Galarza Jesus Alberto
Murphy Liam Isavel
Betancur Sebastian
Perez Alfred Joseph

Incidences: On the last game came out all the preparation and work; beyond the 4-3 win there were major positive changes in the team. Players had more freedom to play, best moves and their mentality on the court was at a higher level. During the trip to Italy the team grew and it showed in the last game. The 4 points of Weston FC were not enough to stay in the tournament because only the first team of each group qualifies.

Sbrizzo’s comment:
“We couldn’t continue but we returned with congratulations from many soccer experts in Italy, and very satisfied with our job.”

GOOD NEWS

Some directors of Italian clubs showed interest in three or four players of Weston FC. The idea is to give these young boys the opportunity to travel in the coming months to Italy to carry out a test to see if they meet the necessary characteristics to play in an Italian club. And if they’re approved, they’d be ready to start their career as professional soccer players in Italy.

The trip to Italy was a success and could be performed thanks to the experience of the Italian professional agent Gaitano Fedelle who through friendship with former Italian professional soccer player and Director of Coaching of Weston FC, Alessandro Brizzio, could work together to bring the Florida club to the other side of the world to exchange high level soccer experiences.

WESTON FC IN ITALIY

This was the delegation of Weston FC at the tournament “Beppe Viola 2016”
Victor Pastora
Technical Director and Head Coach of the Academy

Alessandro Sbrizzo
Director of Coaching

Dr. Daniel Serravite
Head of Fitness and Sport Science

“this is a great opportunity for players. We are fortunate as a club to have these opportunities to compete in prestigious international tournaments like this one. We have earned it as a program over the years with the dedication and success of the players; efforts and sacrifices of the parents; commitment of staff to improve as a program daily; and the support of the Board of Directors that gives stability to our environment.”

Dr. Daniel Serravite.
Head of Fitness and Sport Science
Weston FC

Juan Jose Ore, coach of the U-17 national team of Peru, shares guidelines on how a “9” should be in these times.

Names like Suarez, Cristiano, Messi, Ibrahimovic, Falcao, Benzema, Torres or Lewadoski, have something in common: they are center-forwards and prolific scorers. In modern soccer, numbers do not exactly mean one position, but the number “9” is considered to correspond to the top scorer, center-forward, who keeps his position always facing the rival goal and constantly looking to score a goal.

SoccerPlus talked to Juan Jose Ore, in Lima. Ore is the coach of the U-17 Peruvian team, and he explains the basics that every boy or girl must follow to become an ideal “9”.

Precision and determination

“A “9” must be a scorer, very accurate, a lot of movement, equally strong with both feet and clash with rival defenses. These basics should be instilled from a small age, “said Ore. While it’s true that competitive soccer requires having a good biotype, for the Peruvian coach is not the most important. “A large or tall attacker is significant, but not decisive. A skilled player, technical, who knows how to play in that position and score goals, will give everybody something to talk about. A “9” should know his space and not play with his back towards the goal,” he indicated.

Both feet

On the other hand, Ore emphasized the need to kick with both feet. “Being two-footed is basic. A complete player will interest many teams. Nobody is doing that job with children. To kick with both feet is what’s currently required from a center-forward”, he said.

Dynamic and discipline

For “Jota Jota” is also important to play without the ball. “Mobility is necessary. The attacker looks for passes. That’s something you work on”. “It is very important to teach these things in youth soccer leagues because it’s the ideal age to learn. From the age of 11 years, a kid must know this, so that he can get to U-15 with a certain kind of knowledge, “he said.

Finally, he recommended maintaining discipline and work consistently to become great players. “I recommend working hard; keep practicing crosses, shooting, improving technical training because it’s important. You have to enjoy the game, fool one or two and dribble. You should also watch a lot of soccer, Champions League matches, analyze what the scorer does. Kids now have a baseline and can work around that, “he concluded.

Virtues of number 9

1. Mobility and pressure.
2. Strong with both feet.
3. Knowing his space.
4. Crosses and shooting training.
5. Agility in short spaces.
6. Plays both ways; facing and with his back towards the goal.
7. Strength: aerial game
8. Physical: resistant to physical and mental pressure because of
the constant marking from the defenders.

JUAN JOSE ORE

Current Head Coach of the Peruvian Youth Soccer Team

Achievements as coach:

– 8th place in the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2007 in South Korea.
– South American U-15 Soccer Championship (Peruvian team U-15).
– Olympic gold at the Olympic Youth Games 2014 (Peruvian team U-15).

BEST “9” TODAY
(AVERAGE BETWEEN MATCHES PLAYED AND GOALES.)

1. Luis Suarez
Barcelona

2. Cristiano Ronaldo
Real Madrid

3. Aubemayang
Dortmund

4. Lewandowski
Bayern Munich

5. Alex Texeira
Shaktar

6. Higuain
Napoles

7. Messi
Barcelona