Shifting youngsters' focus to football

Over two months – that's how long it’s been since Lech’s youth teams had their last training session at Bułgarska street. This week, the Academy squads returned to training in accordance with the outlined regulations. “Up to 22 players and 4 coaches can use a full-sized pitch at the same time – these are the regulations that we need to follow. Currently, we cannot have two senior Academy squads train on the same pitch at the same time, which is limiting, however, what’s even more important is that we can slowly return to normal training sessions,” explained the Portuguese.

The safety measures implemented across all Academy teams are of paramount importance. In cooperation with the organisation department, hygiene and disinfection procedures minimising the risk of infection have been put in place. In addition, specially designated communication channels were introduced. The youth players arrive at the stadium dressed and ready to train, and each of them has their own water supply and bidon. Prior to entering the training pitch, the players and their equipment undergo disinfection. At the end of the training session, the equipment is disinfected once again. The dressing rooms are banned from use and the players who finish their training take a different route off the pitch – this procedure prevents two different Academy teams from clashing.

“Our coaches are in contact with the parents. The information about safety procedures that were put in place aroused trust among the parents – they were optimistic about the restart of training sessions which is reflected in high attendance,” emphasised Carvalho for whom safety has been a key priority.

The youth squads have had over 60 days without training. What is the plan for getting them back in shape? The Vice Director of Training explained that the objective is for the youngsters to play as much as possible. “Together with the coaching staff, we have decided that the key is for the restart of training to be safe and fun. Over the past few months, we were mostly bound to home and that applies to the players too. Each of the Academy footballers was trying to stay in good shape as much as possible and complete the training plans prepared by the coaches for each age group. Still, they couldn’t do what they love the most which is to play football. Therefore, knowing that, we want them to play as much as possible and enjoy themselves,” highlighted the Portuguese coach.

It’s the lost time from a coaching perspective that worries Carvalho the most. The lack of training sessions and rivalry on the pitch can have a negative impact on all players. A few days ago, the Greater Poland Football Association announced the decision to finish the 2019/20 season which means no more matches for the Poznan-based Academy teams. “In addition, all tournaments and training games were cancelled. Even though we all agree that this decision is reasonable, it’s still a big loss from the coaching perspective. Hence, we now have to come up with a solution so that the youth teams can ‘make up’ for the lost time and get back in shape with the upcoming season in mind,” said the Vice Director of Coaching.