Finishing school

This story appears in the May 16, 2011 issue of ESPN The Magazine.

ON A BRIGHT, LATE-APRIL AFTERNOON outside Portland, Ore., Brian McBride is booting crosses toward Under-18 national team strikers, one after another, challenging each to direct a difficult-to-control pass on goal.

McBride knows about scoring under pressure. He was the last U.S. forward to find the net at a World Cup, way back in 2002. And during his 17-year career for U.S., MLS and English Premier League teams, he connected more than 150 times for clubs and country.

To read the full story on Brian McBride's teaching academy for young American strikers, become an ESPN Insider today.

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Doug McIntyre

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Doug McIntyre is a staff writer for ESPN The Magazine. He has covered American and international soccer since 2002.