How To Get Better At Soccer | 7 Useful Tips For Players
If you’re passionate about playing soccer, then you probably want to do everything you can to improve your game. Like any skill, getting better at soccer takes time and a lot of practice. In this post, we will share with you 7 useful tips on how to get better at soccer so you can develop your skills and take your game to the next level!
1: Watch Professional Soccer Games
It may sound obvious, but one of the easiest and best ways to get better at soccer is to watch how the professionals do it. Watching pro soccer will help you to understand the game and help you improve your soccer I.Q. For example, if you play in the winger position, then watching professional wingers like Ronaldo and Messi can help you understand what it takes to be successful in this position.
When you’re watching professional games to improve your soccer skills, make sure that you pay attention to what the players do both with and without the ball, where they are on the field, and compare how they play when they are attacking versus when they are defending. Once you’ve got a better understanding of how professionals play soccer, you can use this knowledge to make your game better.
2: Play Futsal
“Everything I am as a Brazilian player, I owe to Futsal“, said Zico, one of the most famous and creative soccer players of all time! And he’s not the only professional player to credit the sport with having a key role in their development as soccer players. Messi, Ronaldo, Xavi, and Neymar are just a few more examples of players who grew up and honed their game in the world of futsal.
Futsal is a 5v5, fast-paced variation of soccer that is played with a heavier ball, typically played on a hard surface roughly the size of a basketball court. Playing futsal is one of the best things you can do to improve your soccer skills. This is because the nature of the game encourages quick decision-making, close ball control, and creative dribbling and passing. What’s more, playing futsal is incredibly fun! So, if there’s a futsal league in your area, get some friends together and start playing and your soccer skills will surely get better in no time!
3: Attend Extra Practice Sessions
One of the best things you can do to improve your game is to attend extra practice sessions. The more you practice soccer, the quicker you will improve! Finding extra practice sessions, however, can prove challenging. If your team practices 2/3 times a week, but you want more, you can try asking your club if you can attend practice with a team in the age group above or below you. Or if your club has multiple teams in the same age group, you could request to attend extra training sessions with them. Be proactive and look for opportunities wherever you can! The more you play soccer, the better you will get!
4: Hire A Personal Coach
If you’re serious about taking your soccer game to the next level, then hiring a personal coach is definitely something you should consider doing. A good coach will be able to help identify any weak areas in your game and give you specific advice on what you need to do to improve on them. They’ll also be able to provide you with exercise ideas to improve your fitness and stamina.
Just remember, a personal coach will not solve all your problems! They are there to help hone your skills, assist you in making slight adjustments to your game and give you ideas on what else you can work on both in and outside of practice. It will still be down to you to put in the hard work and additional hours outside your training sessions in order to improve your game the most.
5: Reflect On What You Can Improve
If you are not reflecting on your performances and what you can improve on, then you are unlikely to get better at soccer. Be sure to take some time to reflect on what is working and what is not working when you are playing soccer. This way, you can make a conscious effort to focus on specific aspects of your game to work on.
While at practice or playing a game, pay attention and make mental notes about things that happened during practice/the match. Then after, reflect on what worked well and what didn’t work well. Next, set yourself goals and picture how you can improve on the aspects of your game that didn’t work so well last time. And finally, put the improvements into practice in your next training session or match. This ‘reflection cycle’ should take place each and every time you play soccer, and over time it will help you to hone your skills and become a better soccer player.
6: Practice At Home
Although it’s always better to practice and play with other people (soccer is a team game, after all), at times, it’s simply not possible! At these times, you can work on your individual skills on your own by practicing at home. You can practice juggling to improve your ball control and foot-eye coordination, practice balance and striking ability by kicking a ball against a wall, or if you live close to a soccer field, you can go out and practice your shooting. There are so many things you can do at home to develop your soccer skills, so if you’re not practicing at home your missing out on a big opportunity to improve your game. For more ideas, check out these 7 Fun Activites And Drills To Practice Soccer At Home.
7: Ask For Feedback
Probably one of the most important things you can do if you want to get better at soccer is to ask for feedback. You can ask your coach, other players, or people watching from the sidelines to share their thoughts about how you played. Be sure to tell them to be honest with you and tell you the things they think you could improve on or different ways you can approach certain game situations. Chances are there will be lots of sets of eyes watching you when you play. So, take advantage of that, and never be afraid to ask for feedback!
Improving your soccer game doesn’t have to be complicated. It’s often just a case of playing, thinking, and reflecting more whilst immersing yourself in the world’s favorite game. Hopefully, you found these tips useful and feel excited and ready to take your game to the next level!
