Have you ever guessed how the deficiency of soccer coaching and playing experience relate to the proficiency and confidence of a coach? Allow me to present different angles of a coach’s persona that can aptly be called the traits of a soccer coach.
Personality: Experience is very good but nothing works better than the personality. How successful a coach is, is determined by his/her personality, whether the end-result is a fun game without any physical and mental pressures or the creation of a consistently strong team.
Knowledge of the game: A coach must have the willingness to learn new strategies for the growth of the kids. Learning game’s rules, strategies, and tactics is fundamental to winning the respect of the players.
Enthusiasm and interest: When in a soccer training program, assume the role of a salesperson. Once they like the session, they feel motivated. It’s also vital to be open to a player’s needs with respect to team goals, no matter what their age. If you encourage questions, they are certain to enjoy the game.
Persistence and Patience: It is risky to not pay attention to the inability of the player to execute soccer drills. A player does not want to learn anything new when he or she does not perform well. Setting unrealistic objectives leads to frustration in players. Therefore, be patient and persevere as players try to motivate themselves in moving from one session to another.
Ability to manage priorities: Develop a step-by-step technique of learning using which the players can learn and move forward. At the time of soccer coaching, the players should have adequate time to practice what they have learnt in the sessions. Only after each player has understood and mastered a skill, a new one should be introduced.
Single-mindedness: A coach must take a genuine interest in the skills and social and moral behavior of each player. Being sensitive to their individual needs and being honest with them goes a long way. To develop into a great player, strength of character in victory as well as in defeat lays foundation for a player’s success.
Understand the learning process: A clear understanding of the learning process will help in better player and team development. Give confidence to the players to be enthusiastic in exercises that help them change their thinking and acting.
Motivate the players to learn soccer skills through participation, demonstration, and guidance. The learning process concludes only when the kids execute what they have been taught. Learning requires active experience and not just plain teaching.
Imagination: Create situations that challenge the player’s imaginations, bring them pleasure in performing tasks, and serve important game drills. Inspire the players to make their sessions enjoyable and interesting.
For your own sake, take these soccer coaching attributes and you will find yourself rated as a first class coach. If you would like to enhance your knowledge on soccer coaching for kids, subscribe to our youth soccer coaching community that has a huge amount of information in form of articles, newsletters and videos.
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: Youth Soccer Practice.
Tags: soccer coaching, soccer drills, soccer skills, soccer training