From August 9 to 15, a delegation from the Ukrainian Football Association visited Manchester for an educational program at City Football Academy. This is the second major visit within the cooperation between the UAF and English club "Manchester City." The goal was to transfer advanced knowledge where it can be quickly transformed into results — directly to practitioners of children's and youth football. The group included 16 representatives from clubs in the PRO League and Elite League of the National League of the Future, as well as five coaches of girls' teams from various leagues in Ukraine (from U-15 to Prime League).

THE TRAINING PROCESS

The program was aimed at the specifics of working with players up to 13 years old. However, Ukrainian experts managed to broaden their focus: they visited training sessions of youth teams U-15 and U-16, observed the preparation of a girls' team U-15, and attended an open practice session of Manchester City's first team.

It is important to note that the training was conducted under the guidance of coach educators — these are those who educate the coaches at Manchester City's academy. Emphasis was placed on forming a coaching profile: their approach to children, communication style, level of engagement and influence on the overall tone of the training process. Our coaches had the opportunity to freely communicate with English colleagues — there were no limits to questions.

Maxim Syrota, head of the children's and youth football department at UAF: "Coach educators constantly emphasize that it is necessary to remove pressure from children, demands for match results. Focus them exclusively on development. Work on technique, creativity, the entire training process is built around decision-making. As many game exercises as possible — 1 v 1, 2 v 2, 3 v 3, in smaller groups. Constant attention switching during exercise to prevent players from zoning out. Coaches do not give them ready-made hints — pass right, pass left, receive, dribble. There is none of that. Everything is built around independent decision-making. Our coaches are completely captivated by what they have experienced. Everyone notes that this approach is still not widely spread in our country. They will implement it in their clubs and disseminate information that creativity and flexibility at a young age build the foundation for players who later do not fear to make decisions in adult football."

SPECIFIC WORK WITH CHILDREN AT "MANCHESTER CITY"

The main conclusion that Ukrainian experts brought back from Manchester is the need to create a maximally safe and comfortable environment for young football players. The psychology of children should not be subjected to unnecessary pressure, as satisfaction with the process and positive emotions stimulate the fastest progress. The methodology of Manchester City's academy foresees the abandonment of monotonous and isolated exercises. Instead, training replicates real game scenarios where the coach communicates with players through questions like "why did you make this decision?" deliberately avoiding questions that can be answered simply "yes" or "no." This forms the creativity and improvisation that academy graduates later demonstrate in top-level adult football.

FEEDBACK FROM TRAINING PARTICIPANTS

Roman Debilko, academy coach of FC Kryvyi Rih:

"This was an incredibly valuable experience — to see from the inside how one of the best football academies in the world works, observe the training process, organization and approach of coaches to developing young players. I would like to thank UAF for the opportunity to attend a training session in Manchester. We continue learning and moving forward."

Oleg Karamushka, academy coach of FC Left Bank:

"A week of development, knowledge, new acquaintances and ideas. Thank you UAF for this opportunity. This is a great initiative to develop children's and youth football in Ukraine. Only by developing can we hope for a bright future in Ukrainian football."

Oleksandr Grynyshyn, academy coach of FC Karpaty: "It is very valuable to have the opportunity to be here and learn from people who develop football at the highest level every day. The most important thing is not just to come back with impressions, but with new knowledge and ideas that will help develop Ukrainian football. Thank you UAF for this significant step in my professional path."

Igor Duts, academy coach of FC Ruh: "I am just starting my coaching career, so this is an important experience for me. A good opportunity to see something new and learn a lot. UAF promotes changes in children's and youth football and cares about the quality education of coaches — these are great initiatives and hard work. The more qualified coaches there are, the better preparation children will receive."

Anastasia Sirmaiy, head coach of Women's FC Uzhhorod: