The Yellows side are in the first season and are keen to learn and enjoy the game as Villarreal players
Raw and with a lot of energy. These are the two main characteristics of the Mini F, one of the club’s U7 sides, who are full of excitement and cannot wait to get started in the world of football, under the guidance of Villarreal CF. For the youngsters, each training session is an adventure full of fun, but also an opportunity to gain knowledge. Not only football knowledge, but emotional knowledge to, and knowledge that can help them in their day-to-day life. A lot of what they learn will help them for the rest of their life.
At this age, the role of the coaches is crucially important. They’re guides for the youngsters: “They’re very young and we know that it’s a big responsibility. We have a lot of patience with them and we try and give them basic playing concepts. They understand that we need to press, or make the pitch big or small depending on how the game is going. That’s only a small bit of the learning process. As they’re so young, it’s very important to help them with their emotions, to stop them getting frustrated at results, that they know how to manage their egos and that they understand that football is a team sport. Here we win or lose together,” explains Jessica Collado, coach and Villarreal Women vice-captain.
A lot of the young Mini F players are experiencing their first season in the world of sport: “The team is made up mainly of players who are playing football for the first team. We only have two or three players who were involved in the Psychomotor Skills for Children courses.”
Working regularly with conviction and a good attitude is key to success. The matches reflect each training session, and that is transmitted to the boys: “We’re looking for them to be focused, to not get distracted. We have a lot of patience and we teach them that if we train well, we’ll be on the right path and the matches will go well for us.”
In the ‘Grupo de plata’, the Yellows are hoping for good second half of the season. Collado, however, underlines that the results are the least important thing: “We don’t give them much importance. For us, what’s most important is that they have a good time and learn do things by themselves. It’s still hard for them, but we’re working so that by the end of the season, they don’t need our help in the dressing room.”
The team, coached by Pascual Gallardo and Jessica Collado, is made up of the following players: Alessandro de Angelis, Marc Sánchez, Álex Sáez, Isan Dan, Xuan Soler, Guillem Expósito, Adrián García, Carlos Ortega, Vicent Orenga, Mario Poy, Diego Alegre and Adriano Monzoníz.
