Do you give your players regular soccer homework to perform outside of practice? If you answered ‘yes’ to this question, clap yourself on the back. As a player, I was never really given much in the way of soccer homework. Especially not at the younger ages. I had a Guatemalan coach when I was fourteen who constantly stressed that I needed to add more feints and footwork into my game. Prior to his suggestions I relied almost exclusively on speed. I could beat players easily with a limited number of touches, but no coach before this one had looked into my future to see me struggling to cope with similarly speedy defenders. He encouraged me to both do Tae-Bo (rhythmic cardio boxing for the uninitiated) to improve my agility and attend a Coerver camp to improve my comfort with the ball (for those who don’t know, The Coerver Method is a Dutch system aimed at developing players’ ability with the ball). He would relate stories of growing up in Guatemala where, when he wasn’t playing soccer with kids in the neighborhood, he would imagine everything around him as an opposing defender. When he ran to his friends’ houses he would stop in front of trees and bushes, juking left and right, as he used his imagination to sharpen his soccer skills away from the field. I’m not sure if he played professionally (I imagine he probably played at a fairly high level; maybe not top level professional, but at least the equivalent of AAA baseball or something similar), but he tried out for Guatemala’s Olympic soccer team and I believe was assigned to the reserve team. Not a bad accomplishment by any means. While playing for this coach I experienced a rapid growth in my technical abilities. His South American flavored practices were very different to what I had previously been exposed. I only played on his team for one season, before moving on to a more competitive ‘premier’ team, but sometimes I wonder how I would have turned out as a player if I had continued to play for him (although that’s an entirely different topic altogether). But my main reason for relating this anecdote is: providing your soccer players with soccer homework and stimulating their imagination is maybe one of the most important things you can as their coach.

I’ve already told you about the methods this coach assigned me to improve my rhythm, but the other side of that coin is that he would frequently teach me a technique at the end of practice, explain in what game situations it was useful and why, and would then tell me to go practice it all the time at home. This is how I first learned how to run with the ball properly. Before that, I would simply hit the ball forward with the inside of my foot and catch up with it. As I progressed he taught me additional techniques that I was to practice at home. When I was sixteen I played for another coach who decided that my touch and comfort with the ball wasn’t up to snuff. He told me his own story of going into the park in Philly and banging the ball against the wall while listening to his tape player. He apparently went to a Division I school in Philly before suffering a career ending ankle injury. So, going into my senior year of high school I would go to a wall near my house and practice receiving the ball from all different speeds and angles, in my barefeet (helps speed up the learning process by allowing a better touch on the ball, some, including myself, believe). My touch was the best it ever was and I had my best season as well.

Imagination is another aspect of play that, when used appropriately can really produce some magic on the field. I remember stumbling upon Nike’s soccer website which used to have a section where anyone could submit video of themselves performing freestyle tricks. I had always juggled, but only used the conventional surfaces. I had never tried to perform some of the tricks I saw on these videos. Inspired, I would go outside and practice, trying to nail down tricks I had watched on the videos. I would slow down the video to see each move piece by piece. Then when I was outside, I would imagine that I was in a game. Using my imagination, I would dream of pulling off cool tricks and flicks to get around defenders. So when I was juggling, I would flick it up in the air over a fictional defender then cut it back to my other foot to evade another oncoming defender and continue to string movements together until I decided to do something else. This translated on the field as the type of creative play I became known for. It opened my mind to see that I really could use any means necessary to get the ball from point A to point B. While always trying to be team efficient, I wouldn’t shy away from popping it over a defender’s head if I surmised that be the best method of beating that player. It really helped me to establish what I consider to be my ’style’ as a player.

So I think one of the greatest gifts you can give your players is homework. The more you can individualize it the better, but at least select a technique and an activity through which they can practice said technique and tell the team to go practice it for a week. You can’t force them to do it, but the players who listen will improve much quicker than the rest and social pressure should help take care of the rest. While I always practiced on my own ever since I started playing at U-11, receiving specific feedback from these two coaches significantly guided my efforts. Try to stimulate their imagination as well. Encourage them to play with the ball when they’re at home, trying difficult tricks they’ve either seen or heard about. Certainly perform some if you can. Let them know that they can find great videos on the internet of freestyle soccer players and professional players like Ronaldinho who consistently exhibit a supreme level of technical skill. Hopefully you’ve read my last article Why Winning Isn’t Important and realize that stimulating this creativity will allow you and more importantly, your players, to reap the benefits in the long term. Good luck!

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