The Importance of Training at Home
Welcome back to our blog! Our topic this week will be the importance of players practicing on their own at home as well as quite a few skills videos for players to use in their at-home training for inspiration.
Why train at home (outside of regular practice?)
Players who put in additional time at home working on various exercises such as juggling, dribbling, or passing will find they are accelerating in their skill development. With the internet and thousands of skill tutorials available for children today, youth players have many resources to practice what they learn at home to further refine their technique which will set them apart from their peers. By putting in extra work outside of your organized team setting, you are helping to hone your understanding between the soccer ball, your feet, and your brain, immediately giving you an advantage over teammates due to the repetition and building of fundamental muscle memory. Youth players who train at home and put in extra work are also often happier on the field as they can see their progress and understand their practice is helping them to be more efficient and effective players. We encourage all of our players to take the extra time at home to practice their skills and turn their weaknesses into strengths!
Ball Mastery Exercises for Youth Players
When it comes to soccer ball mastery, this is one area that all youth players can improve. By exerting further (masterful) control of the soccer ball in all game scenarios, players quickly begin to control the game and what happens on the field. Check out the beginner and advanced ball mastery tutorials below and give each one a try. Train at home and build that muscle memory in your feet so that you don’t even have to see the soccer ball with your eyes because you can FEEL it with your feet!
Beginner Ball Mastery:
Advanced Ball Mastery:
Dribbling Exercises for Youth Players
Along with ball mastery, being able to dribble the soccer ball comfortably with all surfaces of both feet can give any youth player a distinct advantage and help them stand out from their peers. By putting in the extra work at home and building muscle memory, players can improve their dribbling understanding and how the ball may react with their feet. Ideally, when dribbling you should have enough muscle memory that you’re able to dribble with your head up to 80% of the time and can comfortably guide the ball as you move on the field with either foot and in any direction. Check out the dribbling tutorials below and try to put extra time into working on your nondominant foot’s control of the ball!
Speed, Agility, and Quickness
Speed, agility, and quickness as a soccer player can set you apart in all facets of the game if understood and applied correctly. A player with very good ball control, close dribbling ability, and the knowledge of when to exhibit a change of speed on the field can be lethal at any level. To improve speed and quickness as a soccer player, you must first understand the concept of anticipation and always being active instead of reactive. We encourage all our academy players to play on their toes, that is to play actively by keeping their head on a swivel and by remaining on the balls of their feet so they can quickly adjust direction and speed when attacking and defending. See the videos below and practice these exercises often to improve your first step and change of speed on the field!
Conclusion
We encourage all players who have been working extra on their skills at home or those who will start after reading this blog to continue putting in the extra work on their own time! It will make a massive difference individually as well as collectively once you’re back in the team setting. You will get one step closer to achieving your dreams by training at home.
If you work on your skills at home, comment on some of the most helpful drills you’ve come across that helped you improve your game. Be sure to check back in with us next week as we discuss the importance of free play to the modern young soccer player!
