How would you react to the fact that one thing that young players find truly hard is to use a straight leg to kick the ball? In Coaching soccer drills, this is by far the biggest problem that a coach and the players face. The player keeps overall balance and the leg to be used to kick the ball is bent at the knee. Both poise and power to kick the ball comes from below the knee.
In soccer practice, this is the starting position for almost all types of kicks. The rushing of the foot from below the knee creates an immense impact on the ball. The players get immense power from this to perform several styles of kicks. Still, the style of kick that would emerge would depend upon the nature of contact of the ball with the foot.
For example; it could be thumped very high, driven low, turn sharply to the left, or move to the right.
There are three vital passes in soccer i.e. a side foot pass, the outside of the foot pass, and the instep drive. We’ll now chat about them further.
The side foot pass: This is the easiest and the most widely used pass in teaching soccer. It is generally used for making short distance passes. Though it is a little slow and quite predictable during the game but is very easy for the kids to learn and execute accurately. The contact with the ball is made on the inside of the ankle and the foot with the foot turned outwards.
In coaching soccer drills, guide the players to keep their bodies totally relaxed throughout the entire movement. When it comes to different kicking actions, this rule is the truly indispensable. The ankle and the foot should be stiffened only at the time of contact with the ball.
Once the players become confident, their overall action should seem relaxed, smooth and effortless.
Outside of the foot pass: This is a little difficult to learn but is extremely important to master because it is accurate, quick, and cannot be predicted. A contact is made with the ball between the laces and outside edge of the foot with the foot extended and turned inward. With the help of the foot, the pass is modified into a quick flick for short distances.
Throughout the coaching drills session, the posture of the players should be relaxed.
The Instep Drive: Both the versions of instep drive i.e. the low driven version and the lofted version are brought into play to pass the ball over longer distances. After the players have learnt it, variations can be brought in to make a “chip pass” or an “in swinging pass”. As the approach of the instep drive is slightly angled and the non kicking foot is placed about 12 inches to the side of and behind the ball.
The ball makes a contact with the laces and inside of the foot, which should be firm and extended.
So now coach your kids the various techniques of kicking the ball and with variations to let them do different things with the ball.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
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: Soccer Practice Tips
