Modern Soccer Coach Podcast

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Most clubs agree psychology matters.
The challenge is turning that belief into daily practice.

In this episode of the Modern Soccer Coach Podcast, Gary Curneen is joined in person by sports psychologist Dan Abrahams, alongside coach and coach developer Kevin Leahy, to explore how psychology can be implemented properly inside football environments.

Rather than treating psychology as a one-off workshop or a classroom-based add-on, the conversation focuses on performance psychology — the often-missed layer that directly influences how players learn, decide, and perform on the pitch.

Dan breaks down the difference between performance psychology, wellbeing, and mental health, and explains why coaches are already delivering psychology every day, whether they intend to or not. Together, they discuss how clubs can embed psychological support through coaching behaviors, session design, and shared language — while also supporting coaches who are operating under increasing pressure.

Topics include:

Why clubs struggle to scale psychology across teams and age groups

How psychology can live on the training ground, not in PowerPoint slides

Supporting players through failure, confidence dips, and transitions

Helping young players navigate pressure, social media, and expectations

What realistic, coach-led psychological support actually looks like

This is a practical, honest conversation for coaches, directors, and leaders who want to build environments that develop better decision-makers, more resilient players, and more supported coaches.

In this episode of the Modern Soccer Coach Podcast, Gary is joined by Paul McVeigh — former Premier League player, performance psychologist, CEO, keynote speaker, and author of the new book It’s Not About You.

Paul brings a rare perspective, having lived inside elite football dressing rooms and now working at the highest levels of leadership in the business world. Together, we explore where leadership succeeds, where it breaks down, and why modern teams often struggle despite having elite talent.

We discuss the critical differences between football teams and business organizations, why elite performers don’t automatically create elite teams, and how leadership has shifted from command-and-control to relationship-driven approaches — sometimes at the cost of clarity and standards.

This conversation dives into empathy versus boundaries, why communication is often the missing piece in leadership, how belief is built (or destroyed) inside teams, and why leadership should be viewed as a process rather than a personality trait.

If you’re a coach, technical director, leader, or anyone responsible for developing people in high-pressure environments, this episode will challenge how you think about influence, accountability, and what it really means to lead.

This episode is proudly supported by Zone14
Zone14 helps coaches turn ideas into clarity — with session design tools, game models, and shared language that support real development on the grass.
https://zone14coaching.com/
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In this episode, Gary is joined by Patrice Gheisar for a deep, practical conversation on one of the most misunderstood debates in modern coaching: positionalism vs relationism.

Rather than choosing sides, Patrice shares how the two can work together inside a clear game model — using real match examples, training principles, and lessons learned from building a sustained attacking identity over multiple seasons.

We explore how positional structure provides reference points, while relational freedom allows players to solve problems in real time. Patrice breaks down wide overloads, central breaks, counter-pressing, rest defence, and attacking with numbers — all through the lens of what actually works on the grass.

This conversation goes beyond theory and into coaching reality, touching on player trust, decision-making, patience vs verticality, and why supporting good ideas matters more than chasing short-term results.

If you’re a coach, director, or educator trying to balance structure with freedom — this episode will challenge how you think about attacking football.

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The US Soccer age group rule change is here — and it’s creating real uncertainty across the youth soccer landscape. In this Modern Soccer Coach podcast episode, Gary Curneen is joined by STA Technical Director Tom Shields to explain exactly what’s changing (birth-year registration to a seasonal/school-year window), why it’s being introduced, and how coaches and clubs can manage the transition with clarity.

We unpack the biggest issues families are asking about: “Will my child be playing down?”, what happens to late-birthday players, how “trapped” players can be affected during middle school to high school transitions, and how clubs can protect player development, team culture, and coach well-being during year one. Tom shares a simple leadership framework for communication and trust: keep people informed, inspired, interested, involved, and included — so you can lead the change instead of reacting to it.

If you’re a director, coach, or parent navigating team placement, tryout season, and registration shifts, this episode will help you understand the implications and make better decisions rooted in process — not panic.

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In the final Modern Soccer Coach podcast of 2025, we step back from tactics and trends and ask a bigger question:

What will the game look like in 2026 and beyond?

Rather than reviewing downloads or highlights, this episode focuses on three ideas from 2025 that point directly toward the future of soccer coaching and player development.

Across the year on Modern Soccer Coach, conversations consistently returned to the same themes: clarity over complexity, individuality over rigid structure, and environments over outcomes.

In this episode, we explore:
• How modern game models may be limiting individual development
• Why more content does not always create better coaches
• The growing importance of methodology and clarity
• How youth environments shape the future of the professional game

This episode is for coaches who want to think beyond the next session and reflect on where the game is actually heading.

Thank you for listening throughout 2025.
We hope you stay with us in 2026.
- Gary Curneen