Don’t set your expectations based on what you see online.
I recently saw a thread on a soccer bulletin board in which a coach of a team of six-year-olds asked for input on how to encourage his players to be better passers. He referred to a few drills he had seen on the internet and lamented that although his team showed promise during practice, they failed to execute in games. The first few responses were positive attempts to help as other coaches gave suggestions of alternatives to try, encouraging words, and links to more drills. I scrolled down the list of comments; one stood out. It reminded me of a few problem-solving meetings I attended where the group earnestly worked together and struggled, and then a voice from someone older and wiser chimed in from the back of the room. The sage’s suggestion was based on years of experience. They had watched the group struggle and rehash a topic the sage encountered years before. The sage had no interest in steering the meeting or taking over; they wanted to see the group succeed, so they offered straightforward advice that was met with utter silence as meeting participants executed a collective facepalm in response to an embarrassingly obvious aha moment. The soccer sage advised: “You’re expecting way too much from six-year-olds. Six-year-old players don’t pass.”
I read those words and smiled. His comment caught me off guard. I had been caught up in the discussion. Visions of players expertly executing a passing drill were whirling through my brain when I read the sage’s words. Those words brought me back to reality—the vision vaporized. It wasn’t real. I had encountered it on the internet where spectacular events dominate and normal, everyday, routine things don’t make the cut. And that’s my message:
Don’t get frustrated by your high expectations stemming from research conducted online. Don’t behave like an awkward teenager flipping through a fashion magazine, comparing themselves to what they see. What’s in that magazine and on the internet are rare events recorded under unknown conditions. You have no idea how many takes were required to catch the perfect moment or how much editing was done to produce the image you see.
Don’t get me wrong: I doubt that online soccer advice is as manipulated as fashion content. A fantastic abundance of altruistic soccer advice is posted purely to help those seeking assistance. Soccer coaches should use it, and the generous, knowledgeable folks who post it should keep doing so. But don’t judge yourself or your team when the perfect objective of athleticism or teamwork is not realized. Remember how far you and the team have come; remember that there will always be room for improvement.
Be patient. Sometimes, it takes time for new ideas to be digested and for understanding to replace confusion. Alternatively, ask yourself if there is another way to teach the skill. Maybe the weak link is your ability to explain what you want and not the player’s resistance to comply. Use visual aids: show the players what you are trying to achieve by sharing a YouTube video so they can see the play in motion. Pause the action and assign players roles so they can imagine themselves in real-time as they watch.
Still, if the team fails to achieve, consider a reality check. Remind yourself that soccer is supposed to be fun. Make the squad work, then reward them regardless of the outcome. If the objective turns out to be beyond your team’s ability, take heart because you have planted the seeds of success in the future. A soccer tactic that makes sense to you will also appeal to your more experienced players, and they may master it and lead the way at another time.
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