Six 08 Standout Players from ECNL Virginia

This past Memorial Day weekend, we saw 150 teams from across the country come and play in the ECNL Virginia 2025 tournament. Below are some of the 2008 standout players from this past weekend.    Playing as a defensive midfielder, Alex thrives in the role of a deep-lying playmaker for his side. He possesses a fantastic first touch, which allows him to make quick turns on the ball to beat defenders. A quality I like in Alex is he scans the area around him before receiving the ball, knowing where the opposing defenders are coming from and where the space to exploit them is. He passes and moves quite a lot, constantly making short runs into space to pass and go. His distribution on the ball was on display this weekend as well, pinging out some nice passes to teammates.     A quick right winger/striker, Christian can burn opponents for pace and get behind the defensive line on the end of through balls. He is constantly making runs in behind, and even when he isn't being played through, the runs he makes attract defenders towards him opening up space in other parts of the pitch. Christian scored a nice goal on Sunday in which he used his pace down the right flank to create a one-on-one opportunity with the goalie before finishing it home.     An attacking right back, Sean is extremely effective at using his body to shield off attackers from the ball and regain possession. He is sound defensively, making timely challenges and disrupting opposing attacks. As an attacking wingback, Sean will make overlapping runs when his team is in position, and can create chances out wide by playing crosses into the box or cutting in and going for goal.     Greyson dominates the game in the middle of the pitch as a center midfielder, clogging up passing lanes when tracking back and creating opportunities offensively. In Saturday's match for Baltimore, Greyson scored a rocket of a shot from outside the box with his right foot in the top corner, showcasing his finishing ability. He possesses some nice touches around the box and within close proximity of defenders as well.     A very skilled and crafty center midfielder, Jordan makes good use of his exquisite dribbling skills to get by defenders and set up his teammates to score. A very technical dribbler, Jordan is very effective at baiting defenders to stab, leaving them flat-footed and rooted as he rounds them. The timing of the touches he takes on the ball impressed me a lot, waiting just long enough to get another touch in before the defender goes for the tackle. He also is a great passer with lots of vision, playing long switch balls across the pitch.     A physical left back, Landon makes very effective challenges to thwart opponents attacks. He makes timely tackles and contains attackers well, not letting anyone get past him. A physical player as well who isn't afraid of putting a shoulder in someone to win the ball back. Offensively Landon brings a lot to the table as well, delivering in some beautiful crosses out wide and from set pieces. He can press up high as well to try and start counters without leaving his assignments defensively.     A technical left midfielder, Fredde is a catalyst on attack for his side. The left mid uses a mix of quality touches and nice dribbling skills such as step overs and Cruyff turns to confuse defenders. You can tell when watching Fredde how good his vision on the pitch is, playing passes that most players wouldn't ever see. In the first game on Friday, Fredde spotted an overlapping runner and sent him through with a back heeled pass between the defenders legs. He can play with his back facing the pitch using his footwork and nice control on the ball.

This past Memorial Day weekend, we saw 150 teams from across the country come and play in the ECNL Virginia 2025 tournament. Below are some of the 2008 standout players from this past weekend.