The San Diego Football Academy (SDFA) Bo Nielsen, Jen Lalor-Nielsen and Johnson Asiedu. Photo Credit Aaron Jaffe

San Diego Soccer News: The San Diego Football Academy (SDFA) is approved by Cal South

The San Diego Football Academy (SDFA) announced today that their competitive youth soccer club has been approved by Cal South. 

Johnson Asiedu, founder of the SDFA, says "I was very impressed with Cal South. Everyone at Cal South was fabulous, very professional and helpful.  There were people who said we would never become an approved club, and here we are, with our parents and players very pleased." 

Jen Lalor-Nielsen, Director of Coaching for Girls, said "We are very pleased that we are now approved by Cal South.  The greatest challenge really has been explaining our goals and vision to players and parents.  I look forward to when our season starts and we can demonstrate our difference in player development.  The SDFA is really dedicated to the development of individual player skills and views player development as a process not a season." 

"Part of our job is not only getting teams and having people understand our academy style but it is getting people to see our vision," says Lalor-Nielsen.

Lalor-Nielsen says, "We have been in the San Diego soccer community for more than five or six years and we have been around a lot of players.  There are definitely a lot of people who have followed us because they believe in us.  But there are those people who are wanting to wait a season to see how our new club develops."

"The San Diego Football Academy focuses on fundamental soccer skills.  We emphasize basic individual skills which are taught at every practice.  Every player needs to be able to rely on themselves.  Our academy teaches individuals how to be great soccer players.  If you live and breathe soccer, this is the place for you. The players that are going to be coming to us in the next couple of years are the soccer players who really want to take their game to another level."

The SDFA has already been holding team meetings to make sure parents and players understand the focus on skill development and technical training and that the results of all the hard work will be clear as time passes. 

Johnson Asiedu has returned recently from AJAX and is planning to take players from the SDFA over this summer.  Asiedu acknowledges that although one year the trip was cancelled and refunds were not able to be issued as the booking company went out of business, he has been encouraged to start arranging these trips again.  Johnson Asiedu has agreed and will be taking players from SDFA departing San Diego July 11 and will be training at AJAX for one week and then on to Sweden for the Youth World Cup.  "It was wonderful at Ajax surrounded by soccer people always talking soccer," says Asiedu.

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Asiedu says, "Our teams will play in Presidio Soccer League and Coast Soccer League and we look forward to the beginning of the upcoming soccer season."

Lalor-Nielsen continues, "We want the very best for our dedicated soccer players.  We are great coaches but not experts, for instance, in nutrition.  The SDFA is going to bring in leaders in areas where we are not the experts. We are going to have nutritionists and psychologists joining is and explaining what to eat and how to mentally be your best on the field."

Johnson Asiedu says, "The SDFA already has 12 younger teams and will be holding tryouts for olders soon.  

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