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Soccer season has officially ended. Fabian had a busy weekend.

He had an 8:30 game for the Red team! They were a man down, so he actually played the whole game. He was a bit tentative at the beginning, but then started to get more and more involved. He then switched and played midfield and he played much better. They were passing the ball, he was hustling and winning a lot. He almost should have scored! In general, he had a very good game, I think. It looked like he belonged there.

The game in the afternoon was just ugly. I could see his frustration. He was passing the ball, but nobody could really receive it.  Fabian also had a few nice runs. One was a breakaway that he almost carried for the entire field. By some magic, a defender was able to kick it out. It was pretty. I thought be played decent, but other parents and coaches, even the opposing coach, said he played really way, that he had a great game.

So a very good end of the season. I can see he is improving, and has improved a lot. Confidence is starting to rise, he can do things he wasn’t able to do.

I had a tough talk with my team mate. He has been under delivering since he has joined. I layed out the cards on the table. Things are not working out, I told him. Clouds are forming, is the exact phrase used. I kind of gave him a deadline till the end of the year. He steps it up or he gets out. I’d rather have someone who is a hard worker than a smartie; I’d rather have someone who gets things done over one who is just smart.

I need him to start running from the beginning. He puts a lot of pressure on him when it is already late in the game.

One of the strengths that I think I posses is that I am open and honest. I listen to others. I let them decide. That gives them a sense of belonging, a sense of being heard, a sense of ownership. 

So Fabian got called up to play a game for the red team. That is exciting! They are playing the worse team in the standings, but still, he gets an opportunity to play with the players he should be playing. I am really excited as well. It should be fun, for sure.

He’s playing well lately. He started to care about soccer. He’s asking questions, he is aware of what’s going on.

He can play better. He still has to practice, he has to control the ball better, dribble better. But those are not easy skills to acquire and require a lot of patience and persistence.

Fabian has had 2 very good games this past week. He was crucial in winning the game against Thistle. He scored or assisted from the corner. It was really a great “here you go” shot that went in after Daniel, I believe, touched it. It was 2:0 at that point. Not game over, but a good cushion. Those guys pushed and pushed and our defense had a lot of work. But we hustled and we won!

Fabian made a few mistakes. But what was different in this game is that he knew about them. That’s what it takes to be “on the field,” to learn from those mistakes.

Then yesterday he had a very similar game. He was getting involved, he was stopping guys, he was getting involved. And if it wasn’t for that one goal, which should have been saved by Jack, our team had a really good defense. 

So that’s proof. If he wants to play, he can play. And play really well.

Management is a tough job. You can’t please everybody, all the time. Sometimes you have to deliver the bad news. It’s all part of the job. But that’s why it’s interesting. That’s why I really enjoy it.

I’ve learned a lot on the job already. It’s my 3rd year? So far, it’s be best move I’ve made. 

So yesterday I was giving quarterly reviews. At the beginning of each, I asked how they think they did. All responded to the same way I had put it down earlier. They all aligned. Then after I gave the review, I asked them for feedback for me, good or bad. Almost all was positive. There was a bit of “sometimes you are too hard” but that wasn’t even carried through, then there was a comment about book assignments. Prashant apparently doesn’t like to read. He likes videos and presentations. That’s not enough to get better.

I am struggling with my weight loss. I shed about 5 pounds, but now I am on an upswing and gained 2 pounds. I almost starve myself during the day but then I eat too much when I get home. And since there is not enough time before I go to sleep, it accumulates. I will need to figure out how to eat smaller portions at night. I think one of the keys is to eat more during the day. I don’t want to do that when I am trying to lose weight, but I will need to. 

Something has to give. 

Oh, and eating straight from the pot. That’s what got me in the past 2 days.

Takeaway? Limit the amount at night. No sweets. That’s the only way to move forward.

I have learned an important lesson that it is easy to forget: when something is not working the way you expect it, it’s probably wrong; something is probably hidden there. It’s important to dig, to assert that it’s working as expected. Only then I will be able to see how things are working.

My wife can be tough sometimes. She gets into this state where she almost loses control. She makes everybody miserable. She got into that state on Saturday, after Victor’s game. She said “let’s go to Applebee’s,” but the kids were not hungry and wanted to play on a trampoline. She insisted. She came back after 30 minutes, to allow kids to play, and then she lost it completely. Such a bad atmosphere. For what? 

Sometimes I am frustrated with Fabian and sometimes real proud. I guess that’s how it is. He’s trying. He’s trying to get better in soccer. Results will come, I’m sure about that.

I have to look at the big picture. If I see the same thing in spring, then I will just forget about it. Really. Just sign up for one team and be done.

But if he shows real progress, then I can think about doing this “extended” training for another year. But this would need to be worth it.

Fabian has good and bad games in soccer. Overall, I think he’s under performing as far as his potential goes. He has much more in him, but for one reason or the other, he’s not capitalizing it. But let’s not get carried away too quickly. He used to play in the D flight for U8 and now U9. There is a difference in the level of play there and for the MAPS play. He needs to “be ready” and on top of his game all the time, from start to finish. It usually takes him a few minutes to “warm up.” I feel that I have to scream before he plays well. That’s not too good.

If this continues into next year, then I will most likely not sign him up for 2 clubs.

I do hope that in spring time, he’s practice time and getting familiar with other boys that play at his level will pay off. I hope to see that on the field. We have some time to practice as well, so it should be interesting.