Summary: In this episode we reach across to Japan for two special guests who bring a unique and fresh perspective on a new revolution in youth development and grassroots football that is spreading to established federations, as well as the most competitive league in the world where salary caps are not accepted and parity is often reached in a single table. In segment one, Anto reunites with Tom Byer before he heads off to the Tomsan Tournament after having spent more time with the Chinese School Football program and CNN to discuss what elite means in sport, how several federations continue to fail their attempts to address youth development and what are some of the disturbing trends that emerged from the World Cup for some nations who failed to deliver fresh faces to their national teams. This is a lengthy conversation into the mistakes that are being made at federation level with national curriculums, outdated belief systems that fail to introduce the required technical skills at the right age, and how countries continue to miss with developing elite players. We also dig deep into how Australia and the United States continue to struggle in a multi-sport landscape where the development cycle relies more on the physical tools, and federations still have yet to figure out why parents and football culture begins not with coaches or systems, but with focus and discipline found in the family unit. In part two, commentator and correspondent Cesare Polenghi joins Anto once again from Sapporo to examine another crazy ride in the J.League where often the domestic first division is often settled in the last week of the season, and how this season has some similar revelations and some surprising notes including the collapse at Cerezo Osaka and a bizarre twist of fortune for Sagan Tosu who fired its coach while in first place. We also examine the frustrations for Shinji Kagawa at United, a second chance for Keisuke Honda at AC Milan and the less than certain future for Antonio Conte as national team manager for Italy. From the shores of Japan, a bold look into the spectacle that is world football.
