Essential
Soccer Skills
Players
must perfect certain essential skills
like dribbling, passing and trapping
if they plan on playing soccer in high school,
college or beyond. As a coach, your job
is to make sure players exhibit the ability
to perform and understand each of these
essential skills.
Striking
a Soccer Ball Correctly
The
correct way to strike the ball depends on
what you are trying to accomplish. If you
are trying to pass it to teammate that is
within close range, you want to control
the ball, so the instep of the foot is usually
the best option. If you are trying to move
the ball a long distance or strike it with
authority, the laces would be best.
Passing-
Short passes should be struck with the instep
because it allows for the most control of
the ball. Long elevated passes like crosses
or switching the field should be struck
with the laces, as it is easier to get the
ball into the air.
Shooting-When
shooting, you usually want to get a little
something on it and movement is a good thing.
Straight flat shots get picked off easily
by the goalie. Therefore, the laces or the
out step of the foot are preferable because
you can strike the ball hardest and in the
case of an out step shot the ball will break
away from the goaltender.
Trapping-
The instep is the best place to trap the
ball using the foot, and your leg should
absorb the impact of the ball like a pendulum.
Volleys-
Instep or laces can both be used, just make
sure you make good contact with the ball,
rather than having it deflect weakly of
your leg . The instep will obviously give
you a little more control.
Strong
finishing can make all the difference
between good scoring chances and goals.
Developing solid shooting skills involves
a small list of mechanical and mental
items to perfect.
First,
teach your players how to strike the ball
correctly. The non-shooting foot should
be planted even with the ball, and when
they strike the ball their head should
be down, as well as their toe.
Next,
they should understand shots should be
kept on the goal, rather than over it.
Low shots are preferable to elevated one
and obviously into the corners away from
the goalie is always best. Of course there
is nothing wrong with missing wide, (that
is, unless you have the goalie juked out
of his shorts a foot from the goal and
still miss) but shooting over should be
avoided at all costs.
It
is often said that the only bad shot in
the one you don’t take, because
you can’t score if you don’t
shoot. However, it is also important for
players to strike the ball properly and
take low powerful shots to the corners.
Encourage them to take shots, but also
not to waste opportunities. Taking a low
probability shot from far away can be
incorrect if a teammate is open and likely
to get a better shot. By the same token,
dribbling too long and losing the ball
before taking a shot is worse, so if it
comes down to not taking a shot or taking
a shot, take a shot, but make sure it
is on point with something behind it.
