Charlton's U14s recently competed against the likes of European giants Real Madrid, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain at the 2024 Madrid Cup.
The young Addicks flew out to the Spanish capital to compete in the tournament for the third year in a row and finished in 17th.
Youth Development Phase Lead Coach Dan Gill said: “Madrid is a wonderful tour, one of our flagship tours that we have done on a regular basis now - that and the Northern Ireland trip. It’s always a wonderful experience for the boys and we're always pleased with the outcome.
“From a results point of view, we would have liked to have come further up in the pecking order. The tours are a little bit more than just going out there and winning there's so much more that we gain from the tours in terms of individual development.”
Charlton kicked off the tournament with a superb 3-1 win over FA Helsinki, before suffering back-to-back defeats against AS Roma and local Spanish side RC Alcobendas.
“The first day we started off quite well with a comfortable win, which allowed us to start the tournament with a positive foot in," Gill explained. "In tournament football you’ll always look to win your first game, worst case don’t lose. We won the first game and then we had tough second and third games where we faced two defeats. It meant we finished the first day on a bit of a downer.”
The young Addicks instantly returned to winning ways and finished the tournament in fine fashion with victories against IFK Lindingö FK, Viimsi JK and Hammarby IF.
“We set the boys a challenge, which we always do,” said Gill. “From day two onwards we went undefeated, we won every game after that really. In terms of results, it would have been nice to have picked up a couple more results in the first day against AS Roma and RC Alcobendas. It’s all part of the journey and the experience for these boys to play international teams. The boys rose to the challenge.
“The mentality here in general, regardless of who we play, is excellent. We have a great reputation as an academy. Even in our normal games programme here in England, when we come up against these so-called big boys in category one academies, we always compete and are a strong challenge. It was a slightly different environment, a slightly different opportunity for these boys to play against different makeups, sides and nationalities. It was a challenge, but the boys rose to it - they rolled their sleeves up and showed their commitment and grit after a tough end to day one. It was pleasing to see their reactions in day two and three."
The group consisted of 18 academy players, 15 of whom were receiving their first taste of an international tour.
“Even though day one was tough, the boys were able to take that on board in the analysis and feedback meetings, then they were able to rise to the challenge. A lot of them are chomping at the bit as to when the next tour is going to be, hoping that they can continue to perform on a weekly basis here to give themselves the best opportunity to be selected for the next one.”
Gill emphasised the importance of the off-pitch activities and experiences that allowed his squad to gel amongst themselves.
“One of the things we do is that we take their phones away from them," he explained. "That was a challenge! A slightly different way of doing things, but the boys responded well to it. In general, their overall behaviour and attitude was great. Part of our DNA here at the club is that we not only want to produce good footballers, but we also want to produce good people. They conducted themselves in a fantastic manner - we don’t expect anything else. It was more of a case that they applied our principles and values and continued that in a different country.
“On Thursday we used our downtime to go to a local shopping centre, having a wander there and a bite to eat. It was pure football from Friday morning onwards. After the final and the presentation on the Sunday, we then had the opportunity to go to Atlético Madrid’s Riyadh Air Metropolitano for a stadium tour, the boys were buzzing. We got to see one of the top stadiums in the country and then made our way home.”
Gill also shared his gratitude for the continued support of Valley Gold, whose hard work and generosity allows the club's academy prospects to experience these incredible opportunities.
“As we always allude to, the support and commitment from Valley Gold and the members is invaluable to this academy. The Madrid Cup has become a sort of flagship tournament for us now and if it wasn’t for Valley Gold, we wouldn’t have these fantastic opportunities.
"Again, not just them funding the tour, but also the transport from the training ground to the airport and back, everything is supported by them. Their support is very much valued and continued, the boys really appreciate it.”
Charlton fans can support the academy by signing up to the Valley Gold scheme. Valley Gold enables fans to support the club’s academy in unearthing the talents of tomorrow, as well as giving them the chance to win cash prizes.
Click here for more information on how you can become a Valley Gold member.
