If there is one myth I battle against the most in my career coaching, it is the idea that to make it as a professional football player, young players must sacrifice all other activities to play more football. There are several issues with early specialisation, from burnout and injury to identity foreclosure; however, it was interesting to read a recent piece of research that showed, across many disciplines, that those who were world-class performers engaged in many disciplines when they were younger.
Eat football, sleep football, repeat.
Research often flies in the face of what we like to think is "common sense". For example, we've all been told that practice makes perfect, so it stands to reason that the more we practice becoming a footballer, the more chance we have of "making it". Unfortunately, that is a very simple way of looking at things, and it needs a little more thought. However, this simplistic view is often promoted by the academy system in the UK.
