Permit me a straight question. To coach youth soccer, what are the 3 things for the coach to do? Before you answer this question, it is important to know that youth soccer is all about letting the kids have fun. The attention should always be making the exercises exciting so that the players have fun all the time.
Therefore, to teach youth soccer, take care of the following instructions. They will help you guide the young kids to becoming professional players.
Allow the players to enjoy themselves: As mentioned earlier, youth soccer means to enjoy the game thoroughly. As a coach, you must plan each session well in advance. For instance, make the kids do some warm-up exercises to prepare them for the main drills. After that, get to the advanced exercises such as dribbling, passing, trapping etc.
To add to that, encourage the players to think creatively. Motivate the kids to attempt new things and when they make mistakes, which is natural, do not disrupt them. Discuss with them after the practice session is over. It is essential to take the parents into confidence if you wish to make the game enjoyable for the players.
To coach youth soccer, it is important since the kids will spend a considerable time with their parents off the field. Ask the parents to inspire the kids, keep a track of their diet, and be regular in their training sessions.
Get familiar with the age of the kids: Teaching soccer to kids is between the age of 7 to 14. At this level, it is very painstaking to find drills that actually make the kids happy. Hence, spend a lot of time thinking about exercises that they would play and enjoy. In addition, it is important to keep the age of the kids in mind while conversing with them as they may not find it easy to understand your instructions if they are too complex.
It makes sense to split the group into two and name them differently. This breeds the feeling of mutual respect. It is advised not to conduct a lot of trials too. A good session is one that has a mix of new and old time-tested techniques.
Write the exercises: It always pays to write the exercises on paper along with the results that you are expecting from them. It achieves a road-map for the efforts of the team. The documentation also helps you in evaluating the progress of the players. If anything requires to be changed, you can easily do so in a written documentation.
You can also follow your objectives easily. It is natural that some things go wrong in which case, you can always retrace your steps.
It can be safely said that youth soccer is an enjoyable and ever changing job. But with these techniques and proper regulation, you will undoubtedly succeed at it.
Put this to test right away! These tricks on coach youth soccer will bring you immense results. For a treasure of resources, tips, and techniques on soccer, enroll for our youth soccer coaching community.
Andre Botelho is the author of “The Expert Youth Soccer Coaching Guide” and he’s a recognized expert in the subject of youth soccer coaching. Learn how to explode your players’ skills and make coaching sessions fun in less than 29 days! Download your free pdf guide at: Soccer Coaching Drills.