Step by Step

Step by Step DEVELOPING TECHNICAL PLAYERS

DEVELOPING PLAYERS

SPORTS PERFORMANCE

TRAINING CREATIVITY

DEVELOPING TECHNICAL PLAYERS AT THEIR OWN PACE.

HOW CAN CONSISTENCY BE DEVELOPED?

CAN YOU DEVELOP CREATIVITY?

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Contents Page 4 - This month Page 6 - Developing Ball Mastery Training Session Page 8 - Step by step Page 12 - Subscribe to our YouTube Page 13 - Consistency Page 15 - Our latest training releases Page 17 - Creativity: Can we develop it?

Page 22 - Warming up before warming up.

In This Month's Edition...

Welcome back to our 11th edition of the Player Development Magazine. There is nothing better than seeing a young player develop and flourish into a confident and technically gifted player on the ball.

We're hugely passionate about helping in the development of young footballers and are here to give you extra food for thought.

This month we take a look at developing players in their own time, focusing on the patience needed to master new skills. We also look at the current development of youth footballers, with a question to get you thinking...

Are we developing our players to all be midfielders?

Add to that our insight into the psychology of the game, then you've got a magazine giving players and coaches the insight and knowledge to take their game to the next level.

We hope you enjoy it and look forward to seeing the talented players you develop in the future.

Elliott Everson Founder, OpportunityElite

DEVELOPING BALL MASTERY TRAINING SESSION

Patience, Patience, and Patience.

We all develop at our own pace, some quicker than others. For players to improve, there must be patience within their training.

Take it step by step.

Developing Technical Players Taking it step by step We've all seen it before: a player who can seem to do anything you want them to do with the ball, head and shoulders above the rest. Those players may be rarer than others but we all develop at different rates and at different stages.

There may be some players who are more naturally talented with controlling the ball, while others may see a better pass, or demonstrate great skill in one v one situations.

The difficult part for us, as players and as coaches, is to take it step by step, ensuring that we don't miss out on areas of our development to try and keep up with, or outdo, others.

In last month's magazine, 'The Foundations of the Game', we discussed the techniques and areas of the game that we feel are crucial in the development of a player's game. You always have to build strong foundations to develop the player.

If you are a player looking to improve, or a coach developing youngsters, then it is important to realise what steps the player needs to take, making sure that you don't miss any.

One player at the moment, who I feel this relates to hugely, is Romelu Lukaku.

He has undoubted quality with a proven goalscoring record.

But, can we say he has worked through the steps in his development, and been patient in his practice within the technical side of the game?

In my opinion, I am not so sure. Lukaku has always been physically strong, and larger than the rest. To accelerate his chances of getting recognised by scouts, or coaches at his youth side, Anderlecht FC, it looks like he has focused from a young age on scoring as many goals as possible.

Nothing wrong with that at all!

However, has his size been to his detriment?

It could be, that over time, Lukaku has missed some steps in his development, instead focusing on his physical prowess to earn his success, rather than technical ability.

In the youth ages, Lukaku could use his size to dominate defenders, meaning his first touch was not as important. Now, at the highest of levels he can lose the ball to his opponents due to his body positioning and how he receives the ball.

It may be the case that through the youth levels he has skipped some phases of his development because he was getting instant success.

We've got to focus on all areas of development, even if that player is dominating games or, conversely, struggling to make an impression.

Let's not focus on the instant results, working on their technique instead over a longer period of time to make sure they are a better player for it, in the future.

As coaches and individuals, we must make sure not to skip steps in our development. Other players may be moving at a faster rate in a different area of the game, but we must work at our own pace.

We can't rush through the practice of a technique, we must keep working on it to improve our game. Even the very best players in the world need to keep practising skills that they learnt years ago, keeping up their sharpness and quality on the ball.

Look at player development as a long term process, avoiding the shorter term view of instant success in games.

It might be that your star player is a fantastic dribbler, capable of beating anyone, but poor in their passing. Keep encouraging the player to use their fantastic dribbling ability but don't think that they can get away with weaker passing abilities. One day, they will come up against better opponents and need to use the passing skills more often than they did at the youth level.

The key is repetition, the more you practise the correct techniques, the better you will become.

Don't overlook an area of your, or your player's game, just because at this moment in time you are doing just fine without it.

Many of the top players will continually work on their strengths, making sure they excel in that area. But they will also look at other areas of their game, areas that they feel need improving or developing.

What is important is to make sure players aren't one dimensional. As coaches we want to challenge our players to develop different areas of their game. Over the years, Messi has developed a fantastic passing game, he is no longer just regarded as a dribbler. This leaves his opponents in doubt - do they put pressure on him to stop the dangerous pass that he is about to make, or stand off to ensure he doesn't dribble around them?

Developing each step of your game allows for unpredictability, and a much improved player over the long term.

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Consistency Our Sports Performance Coach, Trevor Gray, discusses consistency and its importance in developing successful players.

“The quality of always being the same, doing things in the same way, having the same standards.�

Consistency is vital to all players, and it can separate the best from the rest.

Think of the top players in the world - your Ronaldos and Messis. What sets them apart is their ability to perform at the highest of levels over and over again. You rarely get a game where they struggle to perform.

We all see some players who play amazingly well one week, then poor the following. Consistency can take the player to the next level in their game.

When you brush your teeth, how often do you brush them and for how long?

So how we can improve our Consistency?

If we brushed them for 2 minutes each day, that adds up to an hour every month.

Quantity • Repetition • Repetition • Repetition

But, if we brushed for one hour for just one day every month and not any other day would that have the same effect?

Quality • High standard • Good practice • Both feet • Concentration

Of course not!

Improve your consistency, become a better team player and get the most out of your potential!

So what is better - Intensity or Consistency?

To improve over the long term, Consistency is much better.

Follow Trevor on...

www.psychotherapyforsport.co.uk www.trevorgraytherapy.co.uk

OUR LATEST TRAINING RELEASES New training practices that will develop confident and technical players.

Interested in our advertising opportunities?

For more information email info@opportunityelite.co.uk

Creativity: Can we develop it?

Transfers involving creative footballers are typically among the highest sales prices out there. There is something special about seeing a player such as Kevin De Bruyne slide a ball through to his team-mate, dissecting the opponents' midfield, and back four.

Sometimes, even after watching the replay, we can be scratching our heads, unsure as to how he even saw that pass.

Some players just seem to have a natural instinct to move and create opportunities out of the most tricky situations.

However, as coaches, are we able to develop creativity in our players?Â

It's a question that has been asked many a time. But, there are ways that you can help develop creativity.

Without constantly scanning and checking their surroundings players would miss these opportunities.

Firstly, when playing, we need to continually be aware of what is happening around us, being aware of where your opponents and team-mates are.

To be creative, we do need to make sure that players are comfortable on the ball.

Quite often we actually have more time in possession than we think. As a player, or coach, we should embrace the time that we have on the ball. Practising more close control drills will give the players the foundations to execute and perform their creative techniques and skills.

In order to do this players need to be constantly checking their surroundings. As coaches can we get players to continuously check their shoulders, look up and scan different areas of the pitch?

The more that a player does this, the more of an understanding that they will develop. Soon, they will be able to see gaps appearing in the opponents' back four, or notice the chance to play the ball round the corner to their advancing team-mate.Â

Try these 10 Ball Mastery skills on the next page and build the foundations for creative footballers to perform with confidence and imagination.

10 BALL MASTERY SKILLS HELPING DEVELOP CREATIVE PLAYERS

The aim should be to give players the tools to use and execute creative plays within the game. However, players need to be encouraged to try something new, something different, especially at a young age.

For most attacking players, they love the freedom to express themselves. If they feel that they will get criticised for trying something different then the creativity that they have soon starts to subside from their game. Encourage players, give them praise for trying something different. The more freedom and opportunity to express themselves, the better.

They will soon become more creative, and spot opportunities that they may not have done so before.

FOLLOW US ON: KEEP IN TOUCH AND SEE OUR LATEST NEWS AND TRAINING RELEASES

Warming up, before warming up The professionals do it, but what does it mean?

Warming up before warming up?

What is it and how can you use it in your training?

Our resident Strength and Conditioning coach, George Lyons, talks us through neutral activation, warming up your body to be ready for training, or competition. The benefits of neutral activation are that it keeps players mobile and flexible. It also doesn't require a gym membership, or lots of training equipment.

Just a mini band will do!

George will take us through a couple of exercises that will help you increase mobility and flexibility, preparing yourself, or your players, for the upcoming matches ahead.

George Lyons, Strength & Conditioning

Exercise 1 Place a mini band around the ankles and step laterally. The lead foot must not come far off the floor, skimming the ground.Â

Perform six to eight walks on each leg. Slightly bend the knees and have an upright torso.

Progression

Changing the position of the band, raise the knee to a 90 degree angle. This gives strength and flexibility within the lower leg muscles, crucial for injury prevention and strength within football. These simple exercises provide fantastic strength and flexibility for players, reducing the risk of injury, while also increasing power.

The great aspect of this training is that you can do it in your own home. All you need is a band!

See more of George's training content here...