67 Coaching Tips for Soccer Coaches

Cobra Gaynor

• Must have a professional attitude
• Must be a disciplinarian
• Must be passionate about coaching
• Able to talk to individual player effectively
• Able to improvise
• Able to evaluate a player's ability and a game situation
• Able to impart his knowledge to the players
• Able to run an efficient practice session
• Knowledgeable in all areas of the game
• Able to motivate his players
• Be a student of the game
• Must aspire to be the best coach in the world

Kieron Boyle

• I try and stress, as a coach, the use of two touches/trying to make a move rather than having kids just try and kick it (of course for some just getting a foot on the ball is progress), and stressing improving over the season rather than focusing on the game score. I work with ages 8 and under so . . .
• I want to incorporate more dribble warm ups / juggling to help individual players so always looking for ideas, as I am apprehensive of trying to teach dribble moves with the varying levels of players on teams. So I am always looking for creative dribble "circuits" to keep the kids attention but work on moves without them getting too caught up on all the little technicalities.

Gary Sporer

• Teams always mirror the attitudes of their coaches. If a team is positive & enthusiastic you can be sure their coach is. If they are arrogant & make excuses it is because the coach allows it.
• Keep it positive. Find something each player is doing right & point it out to them & the team. Your players will work harder.
• Keep learning & improving & be creative. Don't fall into the trap of using the same drills season after season. We expect our players to continue to learn & improve. We coaches must hold ourselves to the same standard. Read books by & about great coaches from any sport, i.e. John Wooden, You Haven't Taught Until They Have Learned
• Have a plan but be willing to depart from the plan
• The most important thing we can impart to players is a set of values that will serve them throughout their lives

Raymond Decelis

• Prepare beforehand each session and be early (before Players)
• Adapt session to his team needs, improvise according to each situation. Sessions should be carried out as a priority and logical sequence and sessions should be joyful and interesting.

Douglas Partlow

• My coaching techniques are simple and step by step. I explain with a walk through – then demonstrate – and then they practice the drills or techniques slowly and then full speed.
• Never penalize a player because they struggle with a drill or technique. Slow things down for them and let them take it at a slower pace and gradually build up to the speed we want things to happen.
• Correction is needed and will be given without insulting or degrading the players. I like to pull players off the field and talk with them and help them to point out what it taking place on the field so THEY know and can identify what we are working on and if it is working or not. Sometimes they see it quickly and other times it takes a while, but I think it essential for them to see the whole picture and identify for themselves what is taking place on the field.

Tami Lipson

• A LOVE OF THE GAME, an ability to have FUN and make sure those around you are having fun,
• They need you to teach them about healthy choices 24 hours to ½ hour before the game and 1-3 hours after each game.
• The great coaches I have had the good fortune to work with have always had an innate ability to see when the team needed a break or change in routine and schedule, when they needed a routine and schedule and when it was time to enforce the routine and schedule.
• The best coaches coach at practice, refresh during pre-game and half-time and let the kids play and learn on their own during the games.
• Letting each player know that their efforts are what is measured not always their ability is crucial for keeping kids in the game—who knows how they will play in 5 months or even 5 years but we won’t ever if they quit the game because it wasn’t fun or they never got to play.
• SPORTMANSHIP toward teammates and opposing players and respect for coaches and officials is so lost in the competition and can ruin a Saturday afternoon at the ball field.

Horace

• Put conditioning first, without that all the basic technical things won't be accomplished. Make your conditioning a part of your ball feel and touch exercises.
• Have your players practice whatever the practice focus is at home for 30 minutes.

Owen Fowler

• Coaching is 90% management of the team / group.
• I've found that by speaking clearly & concisely, in a non aggressive manner, I can achieve the greatest results.
• Know how to talk to teenagers, in a manner that draws them into the success driven philosophy of learning to win. Some of the very best coaches, were never great players .... but they were very effective communicators. Some of the weaker coaches played soccer at a high level ... premiership, university, semi - pro and professionally, but have no ability to communicate with teenagers ... they too often deal with their own shortcomings through a punishment style of coaching, which rarely bears positive results.
• We use several systems of play with the teams I've coached. There are two reasons ..... almost every team we meet on the pitch will line up in the 4-4-2 formation, and we make a point of almost never using it. Nothing wrong with the system other than everyone uses it in my area ... perhaps because its just the easiest one to explain and set up. We will use 3-5-2, 4-5-1, 4-1-3-2, 4-3-3 & 3-4-3 ... my players have always been taught these systems and are prepared to change on the fly during a game if something isn't working, if we lose mental focus, if we are under particularly harsh attack or if I just want to rest my players during a game. The systems are almost a bag of tricks for my players, so if one isn't going according to plan, they will happily and with renewed confidence, pull a different one out of the hat and try it.
• Teenage soccer athletes, if properly managed and imbued with confidence, can rise to a level of play that even they didn't expect.

Gary Gibson

• Be smart in your appearance (role model)
• Keep things simple (terminology)
• Don't progress players if they haven't achieved the basics
• Focus a part of your session on individuals (small groups)
• Show rather than describing, as children are the best mimics in the world
• Keep stages short and high tempo to maintain concentration and interest
• Challenge your players and create positive competition within the team at each session
• Show an interest in the individual and take the time to make the player feel like the most important player in the world as a confident player will give more and believe more in his ability.

Okpor Emeka

• Charisma is a gift all coaches should have.
• For coaches to become great soccer coaches, Coaches need to be patient with players.

Mark

• The coach should play the game like a game a chess- knowing where , when and how to play the team.
• It is up to the coach to stress to the goalkeeper how brave he/she is and how important they are in the last line of defense.
• Tell the backs how important they are, and how valuable every position is.
• Makes changes when they are best made, not just for the sake of it, e.g. on attack half during throw-ins, never corners, penalties, or whilst defending.
• North Americans concentrate too much on drills and fitness. Although these are important, it is not the be-all -and end-all. The simple things are the most important like ball control alone, or with a partner. Being a good listener, and always practicing by yourself makes a player better than the others.

Brad Partridge

• Historical and current research shows us that the two most effective ways to help players improve are: 1. give them immediate objective feedback. 2. have them set and manage measurable goals.
• Unfortunately this is not very glamorous and it requires the coach to be patient and invest time in fundamentals. Far too often we see players that lack the basic ability to move with the ball, receive a ball or redirect a ball with any consistency.
• U12’s and under should dedicate 90% of practice time to an individual working with a ball and the remaining 10% to 3 vs 3 or 4 vs 4 small sided games.
• U13 to U16 should be 50% with the ball, 25% small sided games and 25% full field. Only when we redirect our efforts to individual basic skills will we be able to produce great world players.

James Thomson

• Stay calm
• Keep it at the right level for your players - don't expect 12 year olds to do Premiership work
• Identify your 'A' players and use them to help bring the rest of the group to the same level
• Use the ball as much as possible
• Don't single players out for public criticism
• Get the players to identify problems and potential solutions - it's their team
• Be honest with players about expected game time
• Be honest about player’s ability levels and whether a player is 'right' for the team - either way

Gary Perkins

• With junior players I often break then up into groups to do smaller drills and start each group off with a drill I know they are good at. This gets their confidence up and they are then keep to get into the drills they may have trouble mastering.
• Before training begins I have a quick word with the defense, midfield and forwards to find out how they feel the last game went. E.G. The forwards say they aren't getting enough through balls, we might start with 10M then 20M angled passing.

Matt Barry

• Hydration would be my tip since I coach in South Carolina. I tell my teams to cut their weight in half and whatever number that is they are to drink that in fluid ounces prior to the next training session or match.