Soccer Coaching Drills

Let’s face it! When you coach youth soccer, it becomes a challenge to come up with challenging and interesting drills for the kids. The biggest challenge in teaching soccer is being creative enough to come up with great ideas so that the interest of the kids is sustained in the game.

Following are some drills that you can teach youth soccer players. These help them not just focus on the game, become proficient in soccer, but also enjoy the game.

Engage the boys in dribbling and shooting: This is a simple practice that engages all the players. Have the kid’s line up on the single goal line. Now, spread the balls all over the soccer field. Then, make the kids move with the ball as if they are attacking the opponent’s goal. They should shoot the ball as soon as they can.

This drill helps them build stamina, confidence, and also improves their dribbling skills. Since the kids do not have any opposition while they dribble, it also brings out their individual style.

Coaching Youth Soccer

How to pass the ball: Ask the kids to stand in a line at a far-away corner of the field. Count till 3 and as soon as you finish, instruct them to run towards you as fast as they can. When they are running for you, they also have to capture the ball from the other player who has the possession of the ball. When you say stop, the player who has the ball must pass it to another player.

When you coach youth soccer, these games make the kids showcase their best skills in passing and dribbling. At the same time, they learn the skill of clinching the ball from others which is also vital.

Touch and Go: A game full of fun that kids just love to play it. It requires the kids to stand in two rows under 40 meters away from the position of the goal. Besides, the goalpost should be defended by the goalie. Place yourself somewhere between the two queues.

The ball should then be passed on to any one row to subsequently pass or shoot the ball with just one contact. The intention should be to switch the ball into goal. Now the goalie should return the ball and continue with the practice.

If you have more than one goalkeeper in the team, keep them alternating between different sessions. This sport enables players to perk up their shooting skills through team effort. The goalkeeper becomes skilled at protecting the ball from converting to a goal.

Keeping the ball with you: Players get to learn the skill of moving ahead with the ball protecting it from the opposite team. Engage two players, one protecting the ball and the other attacking it. Guide them to play their respective roles and win points every time any player wins over the other.

These happen to be the simplest methods to coach youth soccer. Make your kids practice them and you will help them learn and have fun at the same time. If you would like more such tips and know about drills, join our youth soccer coaching community.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Andre Botelho is known online as “The Expert Youth Soccer Coach” and his free ebooks and reports have been downloaded more than 100,000 times. Learn how to skyrocket your players’ skills and make practice sessions fun in record time. Download your free ebook at: Soccer Drills.

Ever wondered how difficult it may seem to coach youth soccer team? Truly speaking, it’s not difficult when you have some valuable tips, correct outlook, and the talent to handle kids.

Originally, be practical and begin with the basics. At this stage, all they need to do is enjoy the game and eventually, they will begin to get professional in their approach. Moreover, complete knowledge of the basics of the game will make players not only confident but also more positive about the game.

On the road to teach youth soccer, to do nothing is the first step. But closely monitor them while allowing them to be themselves. Don’t attempt to be hugely organized or teach a great deal. Thus, the kids will only have loads to enjoy the game which is imperative.

Give them indispensable feedback to help them improve their performance. But make sure these feedbacks are given after and not through the session. Remember that they are just kids and so it is important to communicate with them in their language.

Coaching Youth Soccer

Parents are more involved in their kid’s improvement. Hence, it’s best to involve them at an early stage. It is beneficial in ensuring that the kids will stay interested in the sport even while at home. It is important for you to confirm accurate understanding and handling of kid’s questions.

Keep all the communication channels open. Personal meetings, telephones, email are all acceptable and effective modes of dialog. However, a word of caution! Do not instruct the kids or allow parents to do the same on the field. Besides, make it a point not to give negative feedback to any young player in the presence of everyone.

To coach youth soccer successfully, one must communicate regularly with the fellow trainers. It provides an opportunity for the trainers to interact effectively as all of them have a lot of exclusive and important experiences to share.

Organize the drills beforehand. So it actually calls for all the arrangements to be done in advance. Sometimes coaches take an easy approach thinking they are dealing with kids. It’s not right. Professionalism and courtesy is as much relevant in youth soccer as it is in professional soccer.

Kids should be made to do interesting drills that teach them the fundamentals of the game. For instance, plan and go out for an outing with them. Allow them to interact with each other and share their different views. This develops a sense of team spirit and camaraderie between them.

When teaching soccer, help the kids understand the value of regulation in soccer. From the beginning itself, make the players understand the value of best practices in soccer.

As closing remarks, it is appropriate to say that teach the kids so that they learn to have fun with soccer. Use these tips to train your team and the results will surprise you.

You will find a variety of such tips to coach youth soccer by subscribing to our youth soccer coaching community. Here you will find several resources on coaching youth soccer as well as a strong and helpful coaching community.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Andre Botelho is a recognized expert in youth soccer coaching. He influences well over 35,000 youth coaches each year with his unique coaching philosophy, and makes it really easy to explode your players’ skills and make training more fun in record time. To download your free youth soccer coaching guide visit: Coach youth soccer.