Soccer is a game that requires more than just raw talent. There are many players that do have a great deal of talent, but seem to fall short of getting to where they want to with the beautiful game.
Those that are having a difficult time progressing, may need to look into a few ways that can help improve skills and create opportunities for themselves in a variety of different options.
There are a lot of ways that you can improve soccer skills, the following are just some of the most prominent overall. These are simple options for just about any player that is involved with soccer today, whether you’re a novice or an expert, these can help you garner a great deal of success.
Running – Sprinting and Stopping
One of the hardest things to master for a soccer player is mastering the stamina needed to play a full 90 minutes of play. Not every player is going to have to run a full 90 minutes, but the goal is to have enough stamina to do so.
Jogging, running, and boosting cardio is definitely a good thing, but that’s just the starting point.
After one has reached the stamina level where running for 90 minutes is somewhat simple, the next element is to run and stop, sprint and stop, then run backwards and more. Doing this is going to help with making movement in games and out with relative ease.
Soccer players that can turn on the “jets” so to speak, with relative ease, will definitely improve on the field.
Juggling The Ball
Control of the soccer ball is absolutely important for all players. If you do not know how to control the ball when running, squaring up, and moving along the pitch, you’re not going to end up with a good forward progress.
Juggling is an interesting thing because you’ll want to move the ball and create options that allow you to progress, pass, or even score with a good shot at the goal.
To increase your skill set in this solution, juggle the ball, and do so for 5 minutes, starting, stopping, turning, and moving the ball forwards, backwards, sideways, and more. Give yourself 5 minute intervals to change, move, and juggle.
The more you are comfortable with the ball at various speeds, turns, and movements, the easier it is going to be when you’re in a game situation.
Dribbling Drills
Combine your focus on speed, and dribbling so that you can have clean clearances, passing, and breaks if you’re a striker. You need to be able to dribble fast, especially on fast breaks across the pitch, and that means that you will need to be prepared.
You may not always get the ball, and you may have to fight for every sequence you will have in a game. At times, you’ll need to dribble straight through various defenders, and that may mean to create space where there is very little movement involved.
Practicing this is as easy as setting up some cones across a patch of grass. You want one row of cones, and your goal is to dribble left to right, turning, and switching between stances and movements across no less than 10 small cones, without hitting them.
You want to do this for at least 20 minutes a day, focusing on ball control, and keeping in mind that you’ll have to move fast, in close quarters, and keep the ball. To add a point of difficulty, have a friend or family member try to interject as you try to dribble.
Use Walls For First Touch Drills
The critical part of striking the ball is that first touch. The first touch that you get when on a clear pitch is going to make or break your next move. The best players in the world know how to control the ball, dribble, and juggle, but that first touch is critical, because it means control when it matters most.
To ensure that you’re improving, focus on finding a wall that you can kick your soccer ball against, and then stand no less than 2 feet away. As you look at this option, kick the ball and then try to catch it without stopping momentum, using various tactics, to stall, turn, dribble, and move towards the wall as if it were a goal.
As you work this out, move further away from the wall, increase the speed and area of your kick, and then collect the ball with speed, and focus. The steps here are to help you get the ball, control it, move it, and then kick it again, in a quick fire drill of ball control and momentum shifting.
Practice Not Touching The Ball
This sounds like something that is counter productive in terms of your skill set for soccer. The goal here is not so much to get familiar with the ball, but to learn how to move your feet around the ball, and without hitting it.
When you see professionals in the field, you’ll find that they will know how to control the ball, then move their feet around, forward, behind, and every which way without touching the ball, even in movement.
The goal is to get a defender to slip, and be able to pass them when needed. You will need to use specialty moves to ensure that your feet move, the ball is in control, and you are able to advance if need be, defend, or pass without having to think twice. This can only be done if you practice the art of not touching the ball, and moving your feet. This can be dizzying, but it’s critical for your improvement.
Run Backwards
At this point, you have a few ideas of what you can do to help with various means of improving your soccer skills. However, you will need to also work with your stamina backwards. You should know how to run backwards, change directions, and then stop suddenly and move forward.
This is going to help you defend against an attack, control your feet when running, and change directions when you are chasing a ball.