While our practices a centered around gameplay scenarios, we encourage all players to have their “feet on the ball” whenever possible. This develops a sense of touch and familiarity to take them to the next level. Here are some ideas that you can use at home to work with your budding soccer star to give them an advantage in practices and games.
The “Feet on the Ball” approach to soccer training focuses on developing a player’s ball control and technical skills. It involves using various exercises and drills that require players to manipulate the ball with their feet, improving their touch, dribbling, passing, and shooting abilities.
Here’s a general outline of how we might approach a feet on the ball practice session:
Warm-up: Begin with a dynamic warm-up routine that includes jogging, stretching, and mobility exercises to prepare the players’ muscles and joints for the training session.
Ball mastery exercises: Start with ball mastery drills that focus on basic ball control techniques. These exercises typically involve players performing various movements while keeping close control of the ball with different surfaces of their feet. Examples include dribbling through cones, performing inside and outside foot touches, and practicing sole rolls and toe taps.
Dribbling drills: Progress to dribbling exercises that challenge players to maneuver the ball in tight spaces, improve their close control, and enhance their ability to change direction quickly. Set up cone courses or small-sided games where players have to navigate through defenders or tight spaces while maintaining possession.
Passing and receiving exercises: Incorporate passing and receiving drills to work on players’ accuracy, weight of passes, and first touch. Use partner passing exercises, wall passes, or pick-up games to encourage quick and accurate passing and receiving techniques.
Shooting and finishing: Integrate shooting and finishing exercises to improve players’ ability to score goals. Set up shooting drills that simulate game-like scenarios, such as one-on-one situations with the goalkeeper, shooting from different angles, or finishing from crosses.
