Dennis Bergkamp scored 37 goals in 79 appearances for the Netherlands and won titles with Ajax Amsterdam, Inter Milan and Arsenal, where he lifted three EPL and four FA Cup crowns.

In Part 2 of our series on coach-parent-player communication, the Youth Soccer Insider sought advice for parents.

Why do we want to teach youth national team players to "embrace failure?"

How much information and access should parents expect from their children's coaches? In Part 1 of our series on coach-parent-player communication, the Youth Soccer Insider sought perspective from the clubs' side.

I suspected this many times as a coach and spectator, but it comes through even more clearly when I referee: Coaches can destroy their teams with the way they shout from the sidelines.

America is obsessed with rankings. From NCAA football and basketball to top high school recruits across the sporting spectrum, the American sports fan has no shortage of statistics and ratings in every professional and college sport. Unfortunately, team rankings have leached into youth sports as well, where any benefit they bring is far outweighed by the negative consequences of rating young athletes and teams during their developmental years.

In "Save the Best For Last," Vanessa Williams sings, "Sometimes the snow comes down in June, Sometimes the sun goes 'round the moon." Those are unusual lyrics that describe the interesting weather we have been experiencing of late.

If you coach at the younger levels, this might be a familiar scenario:

"Why is it a goal kick when she kicked it out?" -- is what an 8-year-old asked me.