St. Louis Scott Gallagher has announced the addition of Tim Lees as the new Academy Director for the Missouri Boys Division. Lees will lead SLSG’s Academy, curriculum guidelines, monitoring academy player and staff development, overseeing coaching at all academy age groups and be the head coach of the U16 and U18 U.S. Development Academy teams.
Lees comes to SLSG from the Liverpool Football Club of England where he has served as Manager of Academy Philosophy for the 13 and 14 year old age groups since 2014. Prior to LFC, Lees was the Youth Development Phase Manager for Wigan Athletic FC under Roberto Martinez from 2010 to 2014 overseeing the U12-U16 age groups.
During his time with Wigan, Lees designed and implemented the coaching program, philosophy and content to the U12–U16 year old age groups and implemented first team philosophy into the Academy. He was responsible for introducing a player profile measurement system specific to each age, individual development and worked with first team analysts to ensure the philosophy was delivered throughout the academy.
“Finding the right people to join our culture and organization is extremely important to the long-term success of the club and our mission of being the best club in the country.” said Kevin Kalish St. Louis Scott Gallagher Missouri Boys Technical Director. “Tim brings a wealth of experience to the position after coaching with and for some of the top minds in today’s game at Liverpool and Wigan including Roberto Martinez, Pepjin Lijnders, Alex Inglethorpe and Brendan Rodgers. He believes in the same principles and style of play that has been engrained in the club’s DNA over the last 20 years and can add and improve our philosophy to evolve with the modern game.”
As a player, Lees progressed through the academy system at Everton and Bolton Wanderers and appeared in over 300 semi-professional matches at various clubs around England.
Lees currently holds a UEFA A license, F.A. Youth Modules One, Two and Three, a degree in Sports Psychology and a BTEC National Diploma in Sports Science.
“I am extremely excited about becoming part of one of the best clubs in the U.S.” said Lees. “The club has a great history and tradition of producing elite players, not only domestically but internationally, thus it was a perfect opportunity for me at this stage of my career. The club has the infrastructure, foundation, talent pool and facilities to become the number one program in the country for youth development. We will strive to play a very particular style throughout all of our age groups; one where a St. Louis team would be instantly recognizable. I am very humbled to play a part in making this club the go-to place for all elite players in North America.”
“Investing in top-level coaching from top to bottom is vital to the success of our club and Academy program.” added Kalish. “In Tim, we have someone of tremendous quality that is well-educated and driven to make this one of the best academies in the United States. He is the right person to lead our Academy and help us develop more players for STLFC and the professional game.”
The St. Louis Scott Gallagher Missouri Boys Academy has had tremendous success in helping produce professional players, placing players on various youth national teams, and securing scholarships for Academy players to attend the best college programs in the country since the U.S. Development Academy’s inception in 2007. Each year, over 90% of SLSG Academy players move on to play at top universities across the country. A few recent universities include Stanford, Saint Louis University, Indiana, Michigan State, Harvard, Tulsa, Northwestern, Southern Illinois – Edwardsville, Dayton, Wisconsin, and Georgetown.
The SLSG Academy has also provided a pathway for the following players to be called in to their various youth national teams and/or been drafted by Major League Soccer since the U.S. Development Academy began in 2007:
SLSG U.S Development Academy Players – U.S Youth National Team Production:
Keegan McHugh (U15 National Team)
Keith Grieshaber (U15 National Team)
Tommy Meyer (U17 National Team)
Charles Renken (U17 National Team)
Logan Panchot (U17 National Team)
AJ Palazzolo (U17 National Team)
Josh Sargent (U17 National Team)
Mark Pais (U18 National Team)
Sito Sasieta (U18 National Team)
Aedan Stanley ( U18 National Team)
Seth Steibel (U18 National Team)
Robbie Kristo (U18 National Team)
AJ Cochran (U18 & U20 National Teams)
Ryan Bauer (U20 National Team)
Tomas Gomez (U20 National Team)
SLSG U.S Development Academy Players – Drafted by Major League Soccer:
Will Bruin (Drafted by Houston Dynamo, 2011)
Tommy Meyer (Drafted by LA Galaxy, 2012)
Luis Soffner (Drafted by New England Revolution, 2013)
AJ Cochran (Drafted by Houston Dynamo, 2014)
Adnan Gabeljic (Drafted by Sporting Kansas City, 2014)
Robbie Kristo (Drafted by Columbus Crew, 2015)
Tomas Gomez (Drafted by Columbus Crew, 2015)
Justin Bilyeu (Drafted by New York Red Bulls, 2016)
Connor Sparrow (Drafted by Real Salt Lake, 2016)
