June 24, 2010
Youth Soccer Drills:How To Win Midfield Battles
Even if you don’t agree with me on this, give it a thought that nearly all games are won in the midfield clashes. If your players don’t practice youth soccer drills to develop their ability to win the ball at the midfield, then they’ll not be able to advance the ball forward.
Very often in youth soccer practice, players lose the ball at midfield and this is an warning to the coach that all players are always on defense. Here, the other team will ultimately score in this situation.
It is very important in training to get the custody of the ball. Once your players get the ball, allow them to practice dribbling the ball to open spaces, away from other team’s players. This will teach them to make their way out of traffic. Teach them to quickly move the ball by making clean passes after they’ve mastered this skill.
It is best to have the other team running after the ball.
They can stay abreast of a player dribbling the ball, but they can’t run as fast as the ball, when passed. While practicing passing of the ball, involve the entire team. The player who is ready to take the pass and is closest would be the right player to pass the ball. In addition, they should be taught to constantly change the direction of the ball.
Train them to keep moving the ball around with the intention that the players in the opposite team also move about with that. In kids soccer drills, do not pass the ball just backward or forward.
While executing youth soccer drills, the players will simply move with the ball with no clue as to where it is going. As a result, they will never be able to build a solid defense.
The players must be insistent if they are to snatch the ball away from the other team. They must follow the player with the ball so that it can be retained. Once the players have taken the ball from the other team, they should still be persistent in their attack.
Just like defense, in youth soccer coaching, when the team goes on offense, the entire team is on offense. It is not sufficient to just have a solid defense. It is equally crucial that your players can penetrate into the opposition’s defense so that a goal can be scored.
This can be initiated by teaching players strategies that are unlike the ones used in defense.
Your players should keep moving and keep the other team’s defense uneven. So it is necessary that your offense is on the move. Moving the ball constantly throws off the defense, and this is what you should aim at.
Your team should command the situation in the game so well that the other team has no option but to only react to your actions.
Don’t think twice about it. Every time your team is performing youth soccer drills, every player in your team must be in a position to support their teammates.
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Andre Botelho is a recognized authority in youth soccer coaching and has already helped thousands of youth coaches to dramatically improve their coaching skills. Learn how to explode your players’ skills and make training fun by downloading your free ebook at: http://www.soccerdrillstips.com.
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