The team needs to work extremely hard during pre-season matches and then slow down the intensity of work out as the season approaches. A carefully designed soccer fitness regimen will train any player for the possible stresses and strains in a game and prepare them to perform their best.

I know many kids don’t like going to the gym or running everyday to build stamina, but it’s something that you must fit into your player’s routine till the time they get used to it. You’ll see that once they get into a regular physical fitness routine, working out will become a lot of fun.

Once kids get over that first hump, physical soccer conditioning is something that kids look forward to. It acts as a stress reliever, and does wonders for their self confidence. An improving physical fitness and mental conditioning is a key ingredient in achieving full potential of your players.

Fitness in soccer, or any other sport, is more than just running nonstop laps and doing sprints. There are many techniques that can be adopted to become and stay physically fit. For this purpose physical development of a soccer player has been divided into four categories:

Below are some examples on how to bring about improvement in each area of your team’s physical soccer fitness. These are only examples. You can implement them as it is into your training regime or think of new and innovative ideas, or look for ideas shared by some successful coaches in the same field. It is entirely up to you.

Strength: The first thing that should be included in a soccer fitness drill is the kid’s weight training capacity. If you’re team members are not following a weight training program, then you must enroll them in one that is apt to their age, stamina, resistance, and body composition.

The idea of enrolling young players in a weight training program is not to focus on “body building” but laying more emphasis on their “functional training”. We are concerned here with kids performing well on the field rather than just looking good while standing on the field. The training program should make use of full body movement exercises such as dead lifts, squats, clean & jerks, and bench presses.

Flexibility: Flexibility in a player’s body is as important as it is in a player’s mind. Ideally, your players should get into the habit of stretching every day irrespective of the type of soccer fitness training program they follow. Stretching not only improves player’s performance on field but also does wonders for their health & fitness in general.

Make time for at least 15 minutes in your busy training schedule everyday and focus on stretching all major parts of the body. Teach players to hold each stretch for a minimum of 20 seconds and concentrate on their breathing. The body part should be stretched to a level that it gets somewhat uncomfortable but it should not become unbearable.

Stamina: The game of soccer continues for a period of 90 minutes. Are your kids fit enough to continue playing at a top level for such a long period of time? It is a good idea to make the kids perform such drills that involve a lot of running around the field. Such drills not only teach young players different soccer techniques and tactics but also boost up the player’s stamina in case they already have a good endurance levels.

Have the players do these drills at least 3 times in a week. It’ll not take more than 20 minutes. Eventually, increase the duration of the drill by adding to it a few more players to keep your players progressing in the right direction.

Momentum: Kids playing professional soccer need to know the importance of speed and momentum in the game. Although soccer is played with a ball, it is the player’s control over his speed and his ability to maintain a steady pace that makes all the difference in getting the ball into the opposite team’s goal post.

To increase speed, have the players perform those soccer conditioning drills that focus more on sprint training. These could either take into account Hill Sprints, or flat ground sprints, or a combination of both. It is recommended that these soccer conditioning drills are performed at least two times in a week. Coach your players to look for quick starting accelerations and once they get to their top speed, they need to hold it. Every time the drill is performed for the second or third time, tell them to be a little faster.

The reason why we are talking so much about soccer fitness and performing the best soccer fitness/ conditioning drills is that soccer is a physically demanding sport. There are no breaks or time-gaps in between the matches to let the players get fresh and catch hold of their breath. Along with running after or frequently kicking the ball, it is an activity that calls for outstanding physical conditioning of a player to make a mark. It is therefore extremely important for all your budding players at the youth level to be in excellent shape, and it is the coach’s job to make that happen.

Following are a few soccer conditioning drills that you can carry out with your team.

Quick Sprints: Divide your players into two single lines and tell them to run in laps. The two players at the back must sprint up the outside of the lines and get to the front. When they get to the front, the next two players at the back should do the same. Continue like this and make them run at least 2-5 laps.

Central Sprints: Position your team members on the goal-line and begin with the 8 yard sprint. Tell the players to sprint only in one direction, and then walk back. Either keep the distance between them same, or increase it all the way to 18 yards. Do somewhere around 8-20 sprints.

Easy Variations: Instruct your players to lie down on their stomach or back. They should either face backwards or forwards. This drill takes care of a great number of issues including training players to recover fast from exhaustion.

As a youth soccer coach, you will be unfair to your team and your own self you are not serious about conditioning of your players and don’t pay much attention to it. So now is the time to get serious and do some productive drills with your team. Good luck!

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As a soccer coach, deciding the best youth soccer formation for your team is not always an easy decision to make. There are a number of youth soccer formations available that you can include in your training regimens. Several important factors play a significant part in deciding which particular formation should be used. This includes; the current state of a game, like the recent score, time left for practice, the total number of players in the team, their styles of play, the formation used and the opposition’s strength.

For young players, who don’t have much experience playing the game can be quite confused about learning and understanding various soccer positions. For instance; it may take them some time to understand who is a fullback, what is the purpose of a player at the central midfield and what is the role of a player at the sweep? So just give them sufficient time and encourage them to explore various field positions which they find particularly interesting. Also, it’s important that players are given the opportunity to play on the various positions in the game before they make up their mind as so the position that suits them the best.

It has been observed that a majority of young budding players prefer to play either as forwards or strikers.

1-    To develop a young kid into a proficient player playing at the sweep, you should first give your kids the necessary training and explain them the nitty-gritty’s of playing at a sweeper’s position and see if they possess the leadership qualities required for the position. Let them know that as a sweeper, their chief responsibility is to be in charge of the team’s defense and constantly follow the players in the fullback position.

If your player or players are god at scoring goals, then soccer striker is a kind of position that’ll suit them the best. In case the player is not good at scoring goals, then it is better that they avoid playing at this position. I would like to clarify here in very simple words that playing in the position of a striker is the toughest and most painful job, particularly for young budding players.

The reason is that the player needs to have not only great soccer dribbling and soccer shooting skills but will also be required to do deal with the defenders who’ll do everything possible to stop him/ her.

2-    A youth soccer formation is different from a soccer position in that it describes the format in which different players in the team are assigned various positions on the ground. There could be different formations to opt from depending upon player’s skills, experience, knowledge and their opponents, and it also depends on the fact that whether or not your team is ready to face more defensive or attacking game. For instance; one of the most popular formation is the 4x4x2, in the game of soccer today and includes four defenders and midfielders each and two forwards.

Soccer is not just a competitive sport, it’s actually a war. And wars are first won in the mind, for which one needs tactics and strategies. While the idea of soccer seems simple, i.e. to put the ball into the opposition’s goal post, the strategies could be endless. Only by making your players understand the complexities of the game can you expect them to truly appreciate the sport and learn wholeheartedly.

3-    As your kids develop and mature, their practiced skills and strengthened body will allow them to experience a wider range of possibilities. One of the most important strategies that many coaches fail to implement is developing player’s intelligence and understanding so that the team’s success becomes more dependent on the strength of their will rather than any regular playing technique.

Not only is it essential for a kid to be an obedient player following team tactics. Good soccer players should be self-efficient individuals who operate logically by exploiting the opponent’s weaknesses and making the most of their strong points. As they progress towards the higher levels of the game, making mistakes can be very costly. So a complete and accurate understanding of team’s strategy becomes a must for every player.

Soccer tactics can be developed through repetition, watching or visualization. When kids practice a specific movement or tactic regularly during training sessions, their confidence gets a boost and it becomes easy for them to target and score points for their team.

One important type of training is watching quality games on the Television or selected videos in slow motion. When kids observe other players’ skills they get a better understanding of their own technique and playing methods.

So here it is. Clear understanding of various soccer tactics, developing and executing suitable strategies, youth soccer formations, positioning players in the most apt position, and choosing the right formation for the team can go a long way in building a great youth soccer team.

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There are many youth soccer leagues that fail to recognize this. They tend to ignore that if there’s no harmony within the team, the kids won’t feel motivated to work harder and better their game. When the player sees his parents constantly getting into an argument with the coach, he/ she will be distracted, unfocused and will not be able to have fun. It completely ruins the purpose of the drill, or activity. For this reason, it is important to avoid unpleasant situations and it can be done if the parents are notified in advance about certain expectations and rules.

The soccer coaching tips offered in the subsequent paragraphs will help you engage your player’s parents by involving them effectively and dealing diplomatically with problems that they may create. For instance; some parents might want their kid to play more. Then there may be some others who have issues with your judgement as a soccer coach. Practice the following soccer coaching guidelines and bring down the occasions when the coach has to intervene to take care of parents who are upset or annoyed with the game plan.

1. Discuss your game plan, your line of attack as well as your expectations from the team as a whole and individually from the players with respect to practice before hand with the kids as well as their parents. Encourage the parents to have their doubts or issues sorted there itself. Also, make it clear to everyone involved that the practice plan designed by you has been made after much deliberation and it’s best for the kids.

2. Make it a point to listen, consider, and appreciate their ideas, concerns and feelings. Never forget that their interest and concern is genuine because their kids are going to be involved.

3. While dealing with parent’s questions and objections, stay calm and remember that the objectives laid down by you have are primarily in accordance with what you think is best for the players and not for the parents.

4. You must refuse to give in to unreasonable pressure by the kid’s parents. When it comes to taking the last call, you are the final authority to take when it comes to coaching soccer to your young team.

5. Show an equal respect for every player in the team. This will send a message to the parents that they should too look at the team as whole and not individual players. Never discuss individual players with a different set of parents.

6. It is your responsibility to stop the parents from criticizing their kids before everyone. Don’t let anyone including the parents of your players humiliate them for whatever may be the reason.

7. Refrain from changing any rules at the eleventh hour. If there is no option but to make ceratin amendments in the rules at some stage in the season, be prompt in informing the players as well as their parents of the change.

8. Last but by no means the least, be fair. When you pay equal attention to each player in your team it is going to result in you gaining their respect of players and their parents as well.

Before you form an opinion about your team player’s parents being unreasonable, remind yourself of the fact that the parents and the players both from different backgrounds and their philosophy and standards are typical to their upbringing and cultures. This diversity should be acknowledged, accepted, and considered while dealing with them. The most challenging task for a soccer coach is to acknowledge this difference and positively address these diversities to make the season as enjoyable as possible for each one involved.

Communicate! Most parents would prefer to stay on the ground to watch the game. Show your acceptance to this by taking their services in a situation like this. Request them to keep offering drinks to their kids during the breaks. Make them understand in a positive way to cheer their kids from the sidelines but at the same time, avoid giving negative comments against other players.

It would be in the best interest of a soccer coach to inform the parents about dealing with problems that might show up before, during or after the match. For example: tell them not to get into a detailed dialogue with the coach prior to the game because there’s a lot of anxiety in the atmosphere during this time. Tell the parents to avoid any discussion with the coach during the game as well as immediately after the game gets over.

In fact, they should be guided to first check with the manager if they have an issue and make an effort to sort out that problem. If the issue still remain unsolved, they have the option of writing an email to the coach. Let me offer you a quick tip; in case there is a personal issue that needs to be fixed, call for a meeting and let the soccer parents fix the required appointment ahead of time. This delay in making arrangements, calling people, and waiting for everyone to gather may cause the problem to solve on its own once logic and judgement kicks in.

Behave in a mature and a coach like manner. As a youth soccer coach you should know how to handle soccer parents while staying composed and respectful in the meetings. Listen to the problem carefully and offer an objective solution to get rid of it while remaining unbiased. If you lose your temper and choose to be critical of the individual player or his/ her parents, it’ll only lead to disagreements, personal grudges and differences.

Since you are a mentor to an entire team, you should be cautious about what you say and also your behaviour. When reviewing your kid’s performance, add a positive comment at the end of your statement. For instance; young players often make mistakes but they are quick to learn from them, which helps them a great deal in their future.

When you see that it’s only one set of parents who is constantly coaching his kid from the sidelines during the match, call for an immediate meeting thereby requesting all the parents to be there. When you do this, it will enable you to address this concern without pointing out any particular set of parents.

Then when everyone is present, you should explain why it is so important to follow this rule. Make them understand that their kids are bound to get confused if they keep on hearing different sets of instructions during the game. This will even affect their ability to take decisions during the match as they’ll keep waiting for someone to instruct them when in a problematic situation.

You as a coach and your player’s parents need to realize and remember that when it comes to professional soccer players, they are very serious about their game. They have mastered their playing moves over the years. On the other hand, young soccer players who are learning to play just want to have fun. So you must explain this to their soccer parents because they would surely support their kids and wouldn’t go against the wishes of their players and the coach.

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Important Soccer Coaching Tips

As a soccer coach, it is very important that you keep looking for ways to improve upon what all is covered in your training sessions. It is essential that you constantly put your players in those positions that allow them to grow, learn, and develop an interest in the game while enjoying playing soccer. Let me take you through some key points in youth soccer coaching that will certainly help you become a better coach.

Take some time to know your players and learn their key characteristics. When you know what your player’s capabilities, interests, age, and requirements are, you can design a training plan that includes drills, exercises, and activities that players can not only handle but will be critical in developing them as professional soccer players. Having players perform activities that are either too difficult or too easy makes them feel frustrated. So it works well to identify and include drills that are challenging enough to excite players and fun enough to execute.

When a training session is designed, make sure you focus on just one skill. Having a theme for the session will allow the kids to stay on track of what they are required to practice and learn. It is therefore a bad idea to include jumping, passing, dribbling as well as defending and shooting in just one session.

Stick to a single subject for a complete week or consecutive weeks till your players get comfortable in the skill; for example, possession. And before you decide to move to the next theme in the subsequent week, assess your kid’s growth and learning during the end of the week games.

A majority of coaches make the mistake of having the players perform random acts based on their mood. It is very important for you being a coach to young players that you make every practice session count. For this planning the session before hand is a must. On a particular day, what activity shall be carried out, what all equipment is needed to carry out that activity, whether the players are fit to participate in the drill, and if the conditions and area in the field is suitable to perform the activity properly? All these points should be taken care of at least a day before the session to ensure an even flow from simple to complex acts with each practice session where players keep getting closer to activities that form the actual game of soccer.

One problem that many soccer coaching sessions have is monotony. We program our minds and then our kids minds that the game can only be played in a certain format. Hence, the players tend to play soccer in a structured environment that too under the observant eye of their coaches. There are two things that you as a coach need to bring in. One is that you demonstrate the skills before you let players get into the field. And second is that you must encourage them to experiment irrespective of their age and experience of the game. This type of environment is extremely beneficial to develop active soccer skills while coaching them.

More Soccer Coaching Tips

A soccer coach needs to possess many different attributes. In includes patience, willpower, humility, desire to learn more, and the ability to lead the team are a few of them. A youth soccer coach also needs to stay abreast of the best ways to advance from one training stage to the next.

Just because you are experienced and have good knowledge of the game does not make you a better coach than someone else.  Along with the knowledge and experience, the ability to teach represents a key attribute in a youth soccer coach because if you cannot convert that knowledge into action for your kids it is of no use. From training how to kick a soccer ball to the 4-4-2 tactics, coaching the game of soccer is the answer.

Tips To Coach Youth Soccer Effectively

Every youth soccer coach should have an individual approach to training and developing their kids. It would depend on the player’s age group, their background, physical fitness, interest, and their aptitude and potential. However, there are some general rules that apply to one and all soccer coaches. The best way to coach young players is by making them participate in training sessions that are fun. To make it even more interesting and productive, you can have your training session planned out well in advance with a bigger picture in mind.

Begin your training session with your kids warming up and stretching sufficiently to increase the heart rate and prepare their body for the day’s training. The idea of letting the players spend extra time in stretching is also to help them get focused on the session.

It is the right time to start the session once the kids are warmed up and fully stretched. Include drills that are important and necessary to teach kids essential game skills but are fun and engaging at the same time. Kids don’t mind training hard. Just make sure they are having a good time, feeling positive and enjoying themselves.

It is also important to give them breaks in between performing drills. Allow them time to chat and discuss their experiences. The kids may also give you some constructive feedback on the session’s level of difficulty. So hear them out, try and understand your kids psyche, and respond to their needs accordingly.

Allow for some flexibility in your training sessions or plans. Flexibility is necessary for some players who might find it difficult to settle in to the new environment and group of people. By making things interesting and fun, you keep the training sessions fresh and save your players from becoming complacent.

One of the most important features of youth soccer coaching is respect for players. It doesn’t matter they are one of the worst player in your team, they need to be respected! If you cannot promise your player respect, you’ve got no right to coach.

Last but by no means the least; don’t fall into the trap of training your team all by yourself. Look for the services of a professional to work with you as an assistant. This in no way implies that you aren’t capable of training your kids; rather it shows that you care for your player’s needs and offer support.

Always remember, soccer is a game and we all like to be winners. But if you are tolerant, your team is sure to grow, and players to get better. All the best!

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With a view to master the ball control skill, players need to get in touch with the ball.  The drills recommended in the subsequent paragraphs have the potential to make the kids practice and work upon a number of soccer touches that will also translate into a warm-up session for the practice match. You should therefore make it a practice to perform them in all your practice sessions as far as it is possible.

Delighted Feet: In youth soccer, this is the name most popular with the players. Here, you need to instruct the kids to use their inside foot to touch the ball and take it to the front and then move it back in between their legs. The ball at first will either go far-off in front of the players or will stay right behind them. When this happens, they must stop, and then move about the ball to get it back amid their legs, and make a start all over again.

After the kids become comfortable in doing it, they must be taught to make their touches crisp and precise.  While doing this they should keep the ball moving quietly between their feet.  Try and make them do it at an increased speed.  Tell them to take a quick look up and then bring back their attention towards the ball. In due course, they’ll become proficient enough to carry out the drill in such a way that does not even require them to give the ball a decent look.

Touch the ball using toes: This drill requires the kids to touch the ball at the top alternatively with their feet. Instruct the players to be gentle in touching the ball. Although it sounds like a simple thing to do but it can actually be very difficult for young kids to carry out this drill.  If they can’t do it and therefore feel discouraged, tell them to discontinue and try it all over again the following day.  It’s okay for the kids to feel frustrated but if they keep on doing it without any success, they are bound to get demotivated which you would not want.

In time, when they start feeling comfortable, they should be guided to gradually pick up the pace of their touches.  However, it is an exhausting exercise because they’ll have to move at a faster speed. To make it slightly easy, bring about a little variation in it where one player touches the top of the on one side and another player does it on the opposite side.

Sole Spins: Doing the sole spins will make your players comfortable in moving about the ball with the help of their feet; i.e. their soles. All they need to do is move the ball using either foot towards one side and then move it in the opposite side with their other foot. When they switch their feet i.e. bring into play the left foot in place of the right foot, instruct them to skip a little with that foot with which they roll the ball. This drill can be extremely difficult for players who are not used to touching the ball with their soles.

Drag and Cut the ball: In this drill, tell the kids to draw the ball at the back of one of their legs.  Then, without turning their body, they should use their inside leg to make a contact with the ball. Then repeat the same exercise with the alternating legs. This drill will also take the kids a lot of time to get a hand of it and will also require a lot of rhythm in their play.  In order to get a good rhythm, it is suggested you make them hop with their opposite legs. Otherwise your players might not be able to keep up with the pace of their teammates as well as the opponents.

Improve Ball Possession

As a coach, the fact that key to winning a soccer game is to keep the possession of the ball is not new to you. The team that ultimately wins the game has the ball’s possession for the maximum period of time. So, controlling the ball and maintaining its possession is by far the most challenging and important aspect of soccer.

Every successful soccer team has the ability to keep the soccer ball with them once they have the ball in their custody. It is important because no team can score goals and win games if they are not competent enough to take care of the ball. If you are planning to develop a team who is capable of keeping possession of the ball rather than simply kicking the ball up the field in the anticipation of a lucky break, you need to train your kids in this skill of ball control.

Now the question is how do you keep the ball in your possession? Most of the times, players tend to lose the possession of the ball because either they fail to control the pass, letting the ball get away from them, or dribble it for so long that the opposing player gets the opportunity to seize the ball. It happens especially with the younger players. Therefore, you need to train your kids in the skill of ball control.  Ball control is the ability of the player to receive passes and dribble the ball for just the right time.

When your team has the ball, your players should keep the possession even if it means getting backwards at first. No team can score if they don’t have the ball; whether it’s you or your opponents. This is why keeping possession of the ball is not just a very strong form of defense but a very strong from of offense as well.
When your team is able to keep the ball for majority of the game, it prevents the opposition from causing any issues for your defense.

You must have observed that if your kids have been out of the game for a while, when they resume their practice with the ball, their first touches are not that great. This proves that having the possession of the ball and getting lots of touches on the ball improves the quality of your player’s movement.

When your players are able to keep possession of the ball and constantly move it around the field, it’ll not just generate but also allow them to take advantage of openings in the opposition’s defense. Instead of moving the ball into areas where likelihood of scoring a goal is the least, good ball control will offer a better prospect of creating goal scoring opportunities for your team.

There is one more reason why you should try to keep possession of the ball. The opposition is bound to get exhausted by this as they’ll constantly be running after your kids all around the soccer field. And then, even if they get the ball, their exhaustion will negatively affect their attacking potential and skills.

Most importantly, developing and then improving upon your ball control skills is definitely much more enjoyable style of playing the game. You have the ball as well as the opportunity to create scoring chances and it is by far the most exciting parts about playing soccer. Therefore, it is only natural that every player would like doing it over and over again.

These are not the only reasons why your team should keep possession of the ball. These are just a few of them. So the next time you’re on the field with your players, make it a point to train them in keeping the ball, and creating scoring opportunities.

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There are several drills that you can incorporate in your practice training sessions to help the players become expert in passing the ball. In order to perform these drills correctly, you must adopt the right technique. As a coach, it’s your duty to demonstrate to the kids, correct techniques that need to be used to execute the drills.

The first receiving soccer drill is called “Receiving the Ball with Reflexive Opposition”: This drill focuses on trapping and control with the use of a passive defender. The defender allows the receiving player to remain more attentive to their surroundings in the field.

To perform the drill, divide players into groups of three; one player serves, one receives the ball while working on control and trapping, and the third player is a passive defender. Serving players stays at a distance of 10 yards from the receiver and defender.

The serving player plays a ball into the receiving player. The passive defender stands near the receiving player to touch him while trying to distract the receiving player. Instruct the passive defender to not attempt at winning the ball at this point in time. The serving player should play to chest, thigh, or feed as defined by the coach. Serves that come to right on to the chest and thigh should be thrown, while trapping with the feet should be done by the feet.

After the kids have trapped the ball and gets is in their control, repeat by playing back to the server.

The second drill is called “Receive and Control the Ball From the Front of the Goal”: This soccer receiving drill focuses on chest, thigh, fast traps and ball control. This drill lets the players learn to spin, shield, and play in the same way as if they are playing with their faces in front and back to the goal.

To set up the drill, form a grid that is about 20×30 yards wide and which has an 8 yard goal on the end line. Number the players as 1, 2, and 3. Player 1 is the server, player 2 is the attacker, and player 3 is the defender. Let player 1 begin the drill at the top of the grid with player 2 about 5 yards facing the goal in front of the server. Now, tell player 3 to start from the corner of the end line close to the goal.

Let player 1play the ball into the attacker. Then the defender immediately puts the attacker under pressure. The attacker must move towards the ball being passed to him and take a decision to either turn and beat the defender one on one and have a shot on goal, or play the ball back to the server and play two on one.

Of all the soccer skills, passing is very basic but at the same time very important. In order to make players capable of learning and then displaying great dribbling skills, flying headers, and long range shots, a player must first know how to pass the ball.

Great soccer passing skills require good technique and the capacity to take the right decision at the right time. A player with the ball has a number of different passing options available to him. So, he has to assess every option objectively and decide upon the right pass to make.

The game of soccer is all about getting the ball into advanced positions. When a forward pass is on, this option is ideal and should be exercised. Similarly, if a sideways pass or a backwards pass indicated clearly that choosing it won’t have you lose the possession of the ball; these can be valuable options too.

Great soccer players can foresee situations and have great understanding of what is taking place around them, even before the ball is received by them. This anticipation lets them take quick decisions and an edge in the game.

Timing a pass perfectly is a key component of the game. Even a perfectly executed pass can go wrong if the timing is wrong; either too soon or a little late. Timing the pass is a joint responsibility of both the receiver as well as the passer. It is necessary that the receiver is available to receive a pass and the player with the ball makes the pass accurately.

First touch receiving soccer drills: To become a complete soccer player, it is essential to master a good first touch as a soccer skill. An offensive game would totally collapse if the player takes too many touches to take control of the ball or loses its possession. But, if you practice some drills designed specifically for developing first touch, your kids will learn to precisely move the ball off the pass and improve their flexibility on the field. They should be able to quickly move through the space created by them on the field to arrange plays and score more goals.

It is suggested that you combine these two drills while designing a complete practice session for your kids. Don’t forget to start them with a proper warm up session and a small sided game to conclude the session.

Divide players in groups of three with a separate ball for each group in a 10×10 yards grid.

Have two players positioned on either side of the square with the ball as they face the third player on the opposite side. The first player passes the ball to the opposite player and runs around him. The receiving player then taps the ball to the side, does the first touch, as the first player comes close to him.  The first player passes first touch to the next player facing him who then repeats the action. The third player changes after several sequences.

In the second drill, set up a 10×10 yard to 15×15 yard area and divide the players into groups of 4 players at each corner of the grid. Let one group start with a ball.

Players pass the ball anti-clockwise to the first player in the following group and keep doing their passes. The receiving player stops the ball gently by the arriving passer, sprints around him towards the ball and passes it to the first player in the following group. You can increase the level of difficulty by introducing another ball.

The most important thing however to remember is that players should develop a feel for the ball. It means they should know what is it like to touch the ball. A player should be comfortable in touching the ball with different parts of the foot. For this the players must practice managing balls on the ground as well as in air.

Good control is the ability to take the ball with one touch in a way that the player is able to play the ball with his next move without going after it. A good touch may be instinctive to some players, but it may take time for others to master it. Whatever may be the level of your players, practicing specific receiving soccer drills will only help them get better in their first touch of the ball.

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The finishing player must be able to decide which angle is going to benefit him and the team in a given situation. If there are a lot of your own team’s players in the goal box, then the player may want to go far post. And when the player sees that he is all by himself, he may want to go near post. Then, even if he has a miss, it sets him up for a corner.

Mastering soccer finishing skills requires a player to learn a variety of skill sets. It forms that part of the game that cannot be ignored. Great finishers provide the impetus for the team in offense and therefore serve as a great asset to any team. Soccer after all, is a team sport.

This article covers soccer finishing drills that can help your players improve their finishing skills in easy but effective ways. The purpose of the first drill explained below is to improve the precision with which your player hits the ball while finishing.

Example Of Soccer Finishing Drills

Set up this soccer finishing drill with two groups of players in equal number on both sides of the goal. Two cones should be placed at a distance of about 1 yard away from the 18 yard stripe. Every player should have at least one ball each.

Instructions: The drill starts when the first player positioned on the red line speedily runs towards the cone placed before the line. One player positioned at the grey stripe would then pass him the ball, the moment he takes a round of the cone. The player on the red stripe shall promptly finish the attack without retaining the ball’s possession. The player on the grey stripe should also perform the same act, with the only difference that here a player on the red line shall pass the ball.

You may introduce variations to this simple drill by letting your players first get the ball’s possession and after that finish next to the goal. Another variation can be to instruct players that they use just the inside foot to shoot the ball.

A point that must be highlighted in this drill to teach your kids to shoot even when the ball is loose, instead of hitting the ball hard that will stop at least 25 yards well behind the goalpost. This means that accuracy here is way more essential than the use of strength.

The second soccer finishing drill involves at least 6 players positioned at the wingback position. Its purpose is to improve upon your player’s ability to finish at the goal with head, instep, volley, and inside of the foot.

To set up the drill, divide players into two teams with 3 players each. To identify which player belongs to which team, make them wear different colored vests. Mark the field using 4 cones like that in the image below. Place 5-6 balls next to the 2 cones. You should then position two players on both the sides of the square to act as wingers.

Instructions: One player will start by moving the ball in the direction of that cone located along the goal. The moment this player covers half yard distance from the cone, tell him to move the ball a touch inside the square. Those players who are positioned in the box will attempt finishing the attack by touching the ball just once. That team which manages to score maximum points will be declared as the champion. Then after about 3 minutes, you can start the drill again with two newly formed teams.

You can bring a variation to this drill by putting a restriction on the players in the square to only use only their head to finish.

When performing soccer finishing drills the players use their physical strength and soccer techniques in an attempt to get the ball through into the opposition’s goal. It is called scoring a goal or shooting the ball with the intent to score. The only difference between the two words is that the first one for a player and the team means successful finishing; a goal scored.

When devising the strategy, it is imperative to focus more on a player’s intent, his objective and his individual capacity rather than the technicalities. If there is a player on the attacking position with the ball who allows it to move across his legs in such a scenario where the shot is already headed for the goal, that player should be seen as the finisher. This move cannot be viewed as a pre determined strategy but a technique used by that player for scoring a goal.

It is not easy for a player to decide upon the course of action to hit the ball and score a goal although the player always has the opportunity whenever the ball is in his or her control. It is of extreme importance that the coach assesses an individual player’s level of skill with respect to the current situation. For example; there's no point hitting the ball to score a goal when the player is standing in the penalty box at his side because the distance would outweigh his ability to kick the ball. So it is vital that you teach finishing skills to each of your player so that they can perk up their scoring skills in the game. A player needs to invest great amount of time and energy in learning to become a great finisher but at the same time, pays off in heavy dividends for both the team and the individual player.

In soccer, players have the option to choose from a number of soccer finishing techniques that they would like to be trained in. Of all the techniques, the breakaway or 1v1 is number one. It requires the attacking player to go up against the goalkeeper only. There are various ways in which the player at the attack can carry this out. But a player’s skillfulness and the accuracy with which he plays it are the two characteristics that usually overshadow all other things.

Shooting from a considerably great distance is a new type of skill that any player who aims to become an expert finisher needs to learn. To be as effective in shooting from a great distance as from a closer distance, your kids must be very strong and very clear-cut in their aim. Yet, it is not necessary that both the skills are needed at the same time.  At times, having a lot of power can affect the level of accuracy.

Goalkeepers, like other players in the team have their favorite sides as well. They also have their share of weaknesses and if they tend to expose their weak points too much, it will allow the opposition to score easy goals. So educate your team to watch their opposition’s goalie during warm up sessions and in the practice matches to observe and identify his/ her not so strong side. By following these simple tips, it’ll be easier for your players to shoot effectively even from a considerable distance.

How to place a shot right is one more skill in finishing that the players must learn. Both corners at the top of the goal are referred to as the “top 90”. This area is as tricky for the player to place the ball as it is for the goalkeeper to save the ball from getting into the nets. Coaches teach this intricate skill to all their young kids but the kids often misunderstand it. They perceive this spot as the best to hit the ball to score a goal.

It may be okay as long as they are young budding players. But as they grow up as an individual and as a player, working on their finishing skills to develop into professionals, these players need to know the intricacy of this shot and learn it correctly. For any goalkeeper, a low shot into the corner of the goal is the toughest to save. When you let your kids practice shots in game like situations in a 1v1 drill, it’ll help a lot in improving their finishing skills.

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Another important aspect of soccer goalkeeper drills is for the players to have quick reflexes and it is something that does not come to players naturally. You’ll have to teach them and they’ll have to practice it regularly. The soccer goalies will have to work very hard if they want to improve their reflexes and become the best goalkeeper in the league. In soccer, the closer your player will be to his opponent the tougher it will be for the opponent to get the ball past your player into the net.

The ability of your players especially the goalkeeper to read the body language of the opponents is something you need to work upon and improve. Most players tend to look in the direction in which they are going to shoot the ball, with an exception of some skillful forwards playing in your rival team. So, in situations where your opponent turns out to be pretty clever and expert in dodging and your goalie is not able to make out the direction where the opponent would be shooting the ball, train him to look at the supporting foot of his opponent with the ball. The direction of his supporting foot is typically the direction that he will hit the ball.

Learning to dive is as important as other skills and you should always train your goalkeepers to land on their side, protecting their head and clutch the ball fast in to their stomach. By diving on their side, they save themselves from a head injury that might occur when the opponent may kick their head in place of the ball if your goalkeeper lands with his head first. Clever and well practiced soccer goalies always dive for the ball using the knee of their non-supporting leg to avoid any serious injury. You need to tell all these seemingly small but extremely important tips at the time of practice because diving for a high ball may hurt them very bad if they don’t protect themselves from the opponents.

Soccer Goalie Training Preparation

If you are a youth soccer coach, you must understand that soccer goalie raining is like coaching a regular soccer player; his or her performance will depend on how well the practice has been. Here are some tips that play a major role in a soccer goalie’s training.

The need to eat proper meals: A goalie’s body needs proper and complete nutrition to build stamina and remain healthy and strong. If both you and your goalie are serious with the goalkeeper training then you need to make a diet plan and start with the real soccer food in adequate quantities. This includes what and when your players should eat. For example; quality carbohydrates can be had from eating pasta, bread, fruits and vegetables. Though the most important source of energy for a goalkeeper is carbohydrates, they will need to eat adequate amount of protein and fat as well. Also, the goalie should eat frequent meals every 3-4 hours before the start of practice matches.

The need to get adequate sleep: The goalie should be taught to get at least 8 hours of sound sleep every night because it is the only time when a soccer player can recuperate. If they don’t, they’ll just walk around in the field like a zombie having no interest in the practice.

The need of a proper warm up session: If your goalie has the habit of getting into the playing mode right after reaching the field, he’ll risk serious injuries that may hold them off the field for a day to weeks to several months. This is why it is extremely important for the goalie and other players a well to do a complete warm-up session for at least 20 minutes before starting the practice.  It should include both strength and ball exercises because a goalie needs to learn catching the ball too.

The need for a goalie to be focused: For a goalie, every practice session is an opportunity to develop his or her skills and learn new ones. So they should be trained to come for training completely focused. Even on days when your goalie doesn’t feel like diving for the ball, he should push himself to remain alert, stay focused and perform his best during your practice sessions.

Need to stay calm, meditate and be in control: In order to concentrate on the game, a goalie needs to be focused. You may offer to teach your players the art of meditation and/ or listening to soothing music of their choice. When kids feel calmer from inside, they’re pumped up with power and would want to just run out on the field to play.

Soccer Goalkeeper Drills

Here are some soccer goalkeeper drills that will help your goalies increase their catching skills.

Catch the ball with one hand: This drill needs two players. Give the ball to one player and position the other player on the goal line. Both the players should be about 3 to 4 yards apart. Instruct the player with the ball to throw the ball towards the player on the goal line first to his left and then to his right.

Tell the goalie; player on the goal line to concentrate on making contact with the ball early and then catch the shot by keeping his hand relaxed. Goalie’s feet should remain firm on the ground. This soccer goalkeeping drill will help improve the goalie’s catching abilities with one hand thereby increasing their reflexes and developing their natural feelings for the ball.

Catch ball with two hands: This drill involves a teammate to support the goalie. Instruct this player to place the ball on the ground and the goalie to stand at a distance of about 5 yards from the ball. Now tell this supporting teammate to hit the ball hard at the goalie’s belly.

The purpose of this soccer goalie drill is to reproduce a real shoot in order to practice catching the ball in front of the body using both hands. Every time the goalie catches the ball his hands should make a W shape and the index fingers should move a little so that his hand is at the back of the ball.

Catch the low shot balls: The purpose of this particular drill for the goalie is to practice catching low shoots close to the left and right goal posts. The goalie should be made to stand in the middle of the goal.  The supporting teammate should stand and place the ball at a distance of about 6 yards from the goalie. When the goalie is ready, he should signal that teammate to hit a low shoot in close proximity to one of the goal posts. But, the most important thing is that he should not let you guess at which post is he going to shoot the ball. Instruct the goalie to keep his body relaxed while pitching and concentrate on the ball. This drill creates one of the most common match-like situations that come up in a real soccer game.

When these drills are performed by your prospective goalkeepers with maximum focus, these will help improve their goalkeeping skills to a great level. All four drills above present an opportunity for your players to grow into a better goalie.

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In order to design a comprehensive soccer plan, you should include 5 important segments in it which are as follows:

Warm-up: Irrespective of the kind of practice plan that you are developing, warm-up for about 10 to 30 minutes depending on the age of your kids, the level of competition etc is the most important part. Your warm-up schedule should include jogging and stretching exercises along with some interesting ball drills. However, these drills should be effortless and physically light. For example; a drill that lets your players juggle with different parts of their bodies can be incorporated in the warm-up training session.

Individual practice: This part of practice calls for all your kids to focus primarily on dribbling skills, passing skills, and heading. Each player must participate in this practice plan, each equipped with a ball. The idea is to work upon improving each of your player’s control over the ball. It is recommended that at least two individual drills are included in every practice.

The small group practice: Divide all players into groups of 2 to 3 players. Incorporate drills that are meant for small groups of players to practice. Here, you should focus more on building your player’s contact and communication skills on the field. It’s purpose is twofold. One, it allows you to identify the weak players by dividing them into small groups. Second, it lets you monitor those weaker players to ensure that they have supporting players alongside them. This develops team spirit in players.

Overall Fitness: In this part of your practice, shift your focus from the ball largely towards the drills that don’t necessarily require the use of a ball. This is the most undesirable part for the players in their entire practice plan and examples of such practices are doing sit-ups, sprints, knee jumps, and push-ups. But even then the kids need to go through this for their own betterment. Training players during the part should take somewhere around 10-15 minutes.

Cool Down: Letting your players cool down after a strenuous practice session is last but the most important part. You can include in it, light jogging for 5-10 minutes followed by stretching for about 10-15 minutes. Most kids will attempt to skip the stretching part here but it’s your job as a youth soccer coach to make sure that your players do it since it is very important to perform it with full concentration.

So, to develop soccer practice plans you need to decide on various soccer drills for each part of the plan and then familiarize kids with all these drills throughout the practice.

Soccer planning season: In every season, almost all youth soccer coaches face the dilemma where they have to decide on developing the best plan to get their team into shape for pre-season in a very limited time span. When I say limited time, I mean just three to four weeks. And all kinds of tactical and technical training need to be covered in these 3 to 4 weeks time besides conditioning.

In the entire soccer season, pre-season is the most critical time for both players as well as for the coach. You need to develop a detailed planning program and a step-by-step process to make training as resourceful and effective as possible. The following pointers can guide you in the right direction when designing a soccer practice plan.

A warm-up before training: The best way to get your players geared up for a practice session is by incorporating a vigorous warm-up including movements and speeds. When it comes to youth soccer, the traditional warm-up of light jogging followed by 5-10 minutes of stretching is in fact disadvantageous to the speed, strength, and increases the probability of injury in kids.

Jump-start the central nervous system: After a dynamic warm-up, have your players do a set of exercises specially designed to jump-start the central nervous system to prepare them for a high intensity training session.

Focus on player’s hydration: Drinking habits of the players are the focus here. Adequate intake of water before, during, and immediately after practice session can have a significant effect on the player’s health. Make sure that your kids start training after drinking sufficient amount of water (liquid) to stay hydrated during the practice. In addition to it, allocate frequent breaks every 20-30 minutes for recovering and having some more water during training.

Promote the best nutritional practices: One of the deciding factors in close matches during the entire season is eating habits of the players. Get them into the practice of eating only good nutritious food. A poor diet can reverse all the effort made by the players in training as it does not allow the body to recuperate, adjust, and improve in the right spirit. You should instruct the players about what to eat and what to avoid before games and training.

For young soccer players their coach is the first role model. Good coaching is mostly about planning. It’s about thinking before every practice or game; “Is what I’m planning to do today in the best interest of my players? A good coach is always realistic and plans well before the start of the season. This means progressing step by step and training in a controlled manner. A well laid out soccer practice plan could be the sole reason for players to enjoy a successful soccer season or struggle throughout.

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As a coach, I have found that the biggest problem that most of the young soccer players face is the lack of confidence in their playing ability. This in turn creates a feeling of fear, which can later on develop into major problems with respect to the game. All these emotional aspects tend to affect not just the players but their parents, and the coaches as well.

A youth soccer coach must therefore be concerned with the development of their kids both on and off the field. In order to build a strong youth soccer team, you can influence the psychology of players by using the tool of appreciative intelligence. Appreciative intelligence in youth soccer has the ability to build emotional strength in young players that they need to compete on the soccer field.

Appreciative intelligence is a technique that allows your players to focus on the positive elements of their most successful experiences both as individuals and also as team members. By focusing on these aspects you, as a coach, set the tone and outline the agenda for the psychological growth of your players. This practice of emphasizing on the positive ensures that your players don’t slip back into thoughts of negativity.

Let me share some quick tips on how to develop a positive self-image for kids in soccer:

1. Become your player’s greatest fan and support them completely.
2. Focus more on player’s strengths.
3. Encourage your players to speak out and discuss with you whatever issues they may be having.
4. Encourage your players to focus only on their performance instead of focusing on winning the title.
5. Never criticize your player’s opponents, parents or the officials of your team members.
6. Greet kids with a smile always and make use of positive words and affirmations while dealing with your players.

No matter how talented your players are, a structure to your training sessions ensures that the practices will be productive and well-organized. You can retain your player’s attention by focusing the soccer practice session on some specific points and highlight their progress.

Some of the ways to help keep young kids interested and focused during a practice match have been listed below for your reference.

1. The players should keep moving: Make sure that players don’t just keep standing in lines for a long time. You should instead use circles to engage kids make them feel more occupied.
2. Provide ample opportunities to players to play with the ball: If players get several opportunities to touch the ball, they’ll become more comfortable with playing with their feet only.
3. Keep changing the drills and activities every now and then to avoid boredom and monotony in the training and practice matches. It could be a completely new activity or a simple adjustment of a training drill.
4. Young soccer players have a limited stamina to run around. So it’s best to include aerobic activities like walking, jogging, running, stair climbing and sprinting to build their stamina and strength.
5. Don’t overwhelm young players by giving them too many instructions to execute. Instead tell them one thing at a time and then demonstrate it to be more precise. The players would find it easy to learn by listening first to directions and then looking at what needs to be done.
6. Choose soccer drills that are fun and teach skills at the same time. Just let them have fun while playing and the game will teach them much more than any coach can. A lot of times it only requires you to be a little creative and add some kind of fun aspect or game to an otherwise interesting practice drill.

Most of the youth soccer coaches tend to forget what it’s really like to be a kid. Remember that young children face a lot of stimulus in their lives and soccer practice should serve as a stress-free outlet to them.

To understand what motivates a young player and how to get the most out of him/ her can help a coach take the play to a higher level. For this, you need to have a clear understanding of the player’s state of mind and their outlook towards the game on the following aspects;

Level of competition; it’s absolutely normal when all players in the team don’t feel the urge to win. Some players play the game to just have fun. Then there are some who associate with soccer out of inquisitiveness, or because their parents force them to, or because soccer, to them, seemed like the best sport to get into. So naturally, winning does not carry much importance to these players. No coach will be able to take them to the level of players who are motivated by win.

Degree of aggressiveness: There will be some players in the team who are not frightened at all to fight for the ball irrespective of the size of their opponents. They are more aggressive. While there would be others who need to be shown that they can fight and win. Soccer drills that are aimed at building aggressiveness in players can help greatly for players like these.

It’s a tough task to bring all of the diverse physical and mental characteristics of your kids together and have them all playing as a team. But that is the responsibility of a youth soccer coach; to soften the overly aggressive player and infuse confidence in the overtly nervous player.

It all boils down to setting up a scene where players have fun at practice and games, where they are free to be kids, learn soccer, experiment, succeed as a player, and then as a team.

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