I don’t know a thing about you, but I’ll bet that in youth soccer drills, the very basis of a game is its defense. When the score in a game is 0-0, it denotes defense played flawlessly by both the sides.

But, in kids soccer drills, there are two phases to winning a game. One is by demonstrating an outstanding defense. Second is the fact that your team has a great offense competent of defeating the other team’s defense.

In order for the players to score, they must be able to catch the ball. Some coaches have a tendency to train their players in either defense or offense. But, a player is completely trained only when he is proficient in playing offense when the ball is with him or her and defense when it is with the other team’s players.

Those players who let go of the ball in youth soccer practice should be the ones who chase the ball. This is very important and makes sense because the one who loses the ball is nearest to the ball. So, it’s necessary that this player puts pressure upon the other player who has the custody of the ball now.

Youth Soccer Drills

This is to say that he should attempt to get the ball back into his custody again. This will also allow sufficient time to the teammates who must pick up and quickly get into their defensive positions. This will restrict the opponent player’s movement in the field with the ball in his custody.

Players get to learn these skills by implementing the following techniques.

Immediate chase: When executed correctly in youth soccer drills, it puts the opponents under a good deal of pressure from all sides. And eventually this has the effect of them losing the possession of the ball or executing a wrong pass.

Fall back and delay: This necessitates the remaining team members to fall back, and challenge the opponent with the ball and delay him or her from getting into their team’s goal area.

The riskiest place on the field being the center, ask your players to force the opponent with the ball towards the touchline. This has the effect of the player losing the mobility to make a pass and also move in different directions.

Arc of Concentration: When it comes to scoring, the most dangerous area is the arc of concentration. Maximum number of goals is scored by players in the arc of concentration. So it becomes very important to teach the players in youth soccer coaching to learn to take the ball out of this area.

This arc falls right ahead of the goal. It originates from one corner post of the goal crossing through the corner of the goal box and moving on to the touchline. With the ball inside this area, it is highly probable that a goal will be scored.

The above methods are the easiest and most effective in teaching players effective game strategies and youth soccer drills.

You can also get your hands on loads of relevant information on coaching soccer drills in form of newsletters, articles, and videos by subscribing to our youth soccer coaching community.

Andre Botelho is a recognized authority in youth soccer coaching and has already helped thousands of youth coaches to dramatically improve their coaching skills. Learn  how to explode your players’ skills and make training fun by downloading your free ebook at: http://www.soccerdrillstips.com.

Imagine a scenario where 50% of the soccer coaching drills should adopt development of trapping skills as their focal point. You will not be convinced with the statement. But interestingly, researchers say that trapping, besides dribbling and passing is mainly responsible for consistently winning matches.

The ability to capture the ball and retain it for a considerable time is called trapping. In such soccer exercises, they can use their feet, chest, and thighs to do so.

It is imperative that your players know how to trap the ball. If they can’t trap the ball, they are sure to lose their grip over the match because this is very basic. Trapping skills of the players can be enhanced by following the ways mentioned here.

Involve the Feet: Primarily, the coach must teach the players to use their feet in tackling the ball. Particularly in kids soccer drills, teach the kids to use inside of their foot. The fact that the inside area of the foot is large makes it easy for the players to hold the ball.

Soccer Drills

Older and well-established players in soccer coaching drills should be trained to use their full foot, just the top, or instep. Train your players to adopt the strategy to apply ankle or shin to catch hold of the ball when it is jumping a lot.

Thigh Movement: Using your thigh to control rapid and bouncy ball is an excellent approach. Instruct the players to get in front of the ball, stand on one feet and rise the other thigh to stop the ball. While doing this, remember that the knee should some down when it comes in contact with the ball so that the ball remains within the player’s range.

Continue repeating this exercise till the time you learn it by heart i.e. stopping the ball with your thigh and then tumbling the thigh down so the ball stays somewhere close to you.

Use the Chest: Just like the thigh, chest too has a vital role to play in trapping the ball flying high in the air. Train the players to confront the ball head on by taking their chest out in full force in order to control the ball. This will have the effect of breaking the ball’s speed and tumbling it down immediately.

Nevertheless, soccer training drills should be careful not to expose young players too much to this skill. When they try to tackle the ball using the chest, it is their normal tendency to use their hands. This practice could lead to a problem by kids getting comfortable using their hands to deal with the ball.

It’s time now to execute these soccer coaching drills. Make the players practice these more and more. By subscribing to our youth soccer coaching community, keep yourself updated on the latest in the field.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Andre Botelho is known online as “The Expert Youth Soccer Coach” and his free ebooks and reports have been downloaded more than 100,000 times. Learn how to skyrocket your players’ skills and make training fun in record time. Download your free ebook at: http://www.soccerdrillstips.com – Youth Soccer Training Drills.