Lead European Football Tactics Analyst
An expert specializing in the deconstruction of formation and strategy for top continental clubs.
U.S. Soccer Sends Its Cerebral Palsy National Team to Colombia Before the 2026 World Cup: Is American Soccer Becoming More Inclusive at the Elite Level?
The U.S. Men’s Cerebral Palsy National Team traveled to Colombia in August 2026 and returned without a victory. In another context, that might sound like a disappointing international window. For U.S. Soccer, however, the trip represented something considerably more important: another step toward treating disability soccer as an elite competitive program rather than a separate…
U.S. Soccer Is Expanding Talent Identification Nationwide: Can It Stop Elite Players From Falling Through the Cracks?
Finding the best young soccer players in the United States has always been more complicated than simply scouting the strongest academies. The country is too large, the player pool is too fragmented, and the pathways into elite soccer are too varied for one traditional scouting model to work effectively. A future national-team player might be…
Zavier Gozo Heads to Crystal Palace at 19: Is MLS Becoming a Better Launchpad for American Teenagers?
Zavier Gozo grew up in Utah, entered the Real Salt Lake academy as a teenager, progressed through Real Monarchs, broke into Major League Soccer, became an MLS All-Star and, at 19, earned a transfer to the English Premier League. That sequence is significant well beyond one player. On August 18, 2026, Real Salt Lake announced…
MLS Signed 49 Players This Summer—and 36 Were Under 30: Is the “Retirement League” Era Finally Ending?
For years, one of the easiest criticisms of Major League Soccer was also one of the most persistent: the league could attract famous players, but too often only after Europe had already enjoyed their best seasons. That description was never completely fair. MLS has developed young Americans, exported players to Europe and recruited productive internationals…