I may not have your consent but at least listen to me. Soccer is just like any other game that requires you to set pre-defined goals for your Soccer practice sessions. And these goals must be revised season to season or as you move on. It is advised that you set up these goals before actually working out sessions.
Following objectives work for everyone whether you are coaching younger players or older ones.
Ensure that everyone has fun with soccer drills including you, the coach. This fun element is lost in soccer if you are too serious or rigid in your approach. Just remember that kids play soccer because they like playing it.
Plus, there are some exact goals.
- Supporting the players in molding their skills so that they play to win.
- Making sure that the players are fit.
- Coaching the players about developing a winning outlook.
There is a little something about winning that you should instruct the kids about. Help them understand that as long as they are regular on the soccer practice field, play their best, and try their hardest, they are winners.
This is important since the kids will get to the field and feel like winners every time. They do not need to understand the meaning of real victory till they mature and play important games. At a young age, it is important to help them enjoy the experience rather than get into the dynamics of winning and losing.
In soccer training, too much of verbal instructions are the prime mistakes that coaches make. Kids do not understand it. Their brain is more suited to capture visual rather than verbal instructions. So when you decide to teach them something, demonstrate it in different forms and they will imitate you like anything. That is what you want.
And when you’ve chosen to demonstrate it yourself, this would call for some serious practice before the training session. And if it’s not feasible for you to illustrate it on your own, it’s best to engage a senior player or an associate coach.
Design drills that give the players some targets to aim for. This gives the drills more purpose and the participant’s urgency in their approach. Besides, tell your players to demonstrate these to the whole group, one player at a time. This will give the players an option to display their leadership skills together with their soccer abilities skill.
Last but certainly not the least; do not present too many learning lessons all at once. It is best to take one point first and ensure that the players have understood and adapted to it and then get to the second one. Such as making the kids learn to get the body in line with the ball as you coach them to manage the approaching ball. When the kids have begun to do this consistently, move to the next.
Apply this to your soccer practice sessions immediately and see the difference. There are several such knowledgeable articles and videos in our youth soccer coaching community. Join today and make contact with several people with the common interest who belong to the soccer family.
Andre Botelho is the author of “The Expert Youth Soccer Coaching Guide” and he’s a recognized expert in the subject of youth soccer coaching. Learn how to explode your players’ skills and make coaching sessions fun in less than 29 days! Download your free pdf guide at: Soccer Coaching.