Soccer Vision Training

Most players can spot open players when under no pressure or when sitting on the bench watching the game. However to possess good soccer vision must be able to receive the ball under defensive pressure and see a good pass quickly enough to deliver it effectively. Soccer vision is not limited solely to passing the ball, soccer vision requires the ability to see; Defensive pressure from all angles,  Defensive cover, Open areas of the field to dribble into, Open areas of field to lead a teammate into.

Coaching Vision

Coaches must make a consistent effort to develop the vision of their players in competitive game situations. A coach should constantly emphasize the need for a player to look around and be aware of the surrounding area BEFORE they receive the ball in to their feet. If a player is looking around as the ball arrives it may well lead to possession being lost. A player should be taught to look around before the ball is played to him, and already have a picture of his surroundings as the ball arrives. This will allow a player not only to take his first touch away from pressure, but also to play a one touch pass into space if that is the best option.

Emphasize that when a player sees an opening the pass must be executed quickly so defenders do not have time to recover and get back into their position. Players should constantly look around and also use their peripheral vision to spot openings.

Practice Drills

Practice games can be used to develop vision, but should progress beyond the fundamentals of keep away to maximize the potential of your players. Vision that is required in keep away includes;

• Recognizing defensive pressure, and the angle it comes from.
• Recognizing defensive cover and open spaces.
• Recognizing open spaces.

In addition to the skills above, the drills listed below help players develop peripheral vision, and the awareness to switch focus instantly as the situation dictates.

Cone Color

This is a basic drill to develop peripheral vision. Play 4 v 2 keep away with 4 players and/or coaches around the outside of the box, one on each edge. Each player on the outside has behind his back 3 cones, all of different colors. The attacking team plays keep away, every 10-20 seconds one of the players on the outside will hold up a cone. The attacking team must all call the color of the cone within 3 seconds, as they do this they must keep playing and not lose possession of the ball to the defenders. The fact that anyone from the 4 outer edges could hold up a cone forces the attacking team to monitor their surroundings and look beyond what is immediately in front of them. Increase or difficulty of this drill by manipulating the team numbers, for example of the attacking team is struggling switch to 5 v 1 keep away.

Find the Corners

Play this game in a 25-30 yard box with 5 yard boxes on each corner. Number the corners 1 through 4 and tell the attacking team the numbers. The game begins with 4 v 1 keep away in the box, as coach call out a number between 1 and 4 every 20-30 seconds. When you call a number the attacking team wins a point by getting the ball in and out of that corner. For example, if you call 1 then the player in possession of the ball should switch focus to that corner, and one of her teammates should run into box 1. The ball should be passed to the player in box 1 who then passes out to another teammate (not the player to pass it to her) without the defender managing to put in a successful tackle or interception. As soon as you call the number the defender is allowed to run and guard that corner, the objective being for the attacking team to get the ball there quicker than the defender can recover. Explain the similarity to a game, when openings exist but defenders will be recovering as quickly as possible.