Motor Learning and Skill Development
The rate of motor learning and skill development is highest from birth to the age of eleven or twelve. Therefore this stage of a footballer's development is absolutely vital and should be well rounded and not just limited to football. This may be the reason why girls don't look as fluent, simply because they often start later and don't do the movements when younger, as much as boys do in team sports.
It has been suggested that there are three stages of motor learning/skill development:
> Cognitive - Forming a mental understanding ('picture') of the different parts of the skill (body movement, cues, WHAT to do).
> Associative - The athlete now knows what to do so that the skill can be practised and perfected until the athlete can do it with ease and grace.
> Autonomous - The skill itself requires very little thought so the athlete can focus on other aspects of the game situation.
As different players develop at different rates, their football behaviour will become autonomous at varying ages. The earlier they reach this stage in one area, the quicker they can go on to mastering another, although a large part of this process will be simultaneous.
When people refer to the best players in the world, it is often to those with great cognitive processes, poise, balance, control and brilliant technique, performed with ease and grace. The technique does not require thought as it has become autonomous, leaving the player to focus his/her thinking on the tactical situations within the game.
Decision making and anticipation are two of the most important things in sports performance. But if a player does not develop the technique and skill to execute what he/she has decided to do, they will not be very effective.
We must allow technique and skill to develop! As technique/skill is practiced, players will have to make decisions. 'Mistakes', or rather ATTEMPTS, made during this process will help them learn WHAT to do and WHEN to do it. They will also understand WHY they did what they did. All of these answers can be enhanced with good questioning from the coach (see my previous blog 'Ask Questions or Give Answers')
There are times when it is necessary to clear the ball from a dangerous situation. However, on many occasions technique and skill can be used to make a better decision and keep the ball, or constitute better use of it; but only if they have learned how to do this by understanding the what, when and why.
So don't stop them before they have even tried!
Young players need as much contact time with the ball as possible, which is what the new regulations from the FA intend to provide. Small sided games increase the amount of touches each player has and the number of decisions they have to make. This increases the number of chances they have to practice technique and skill within a game.
I won't name individuals, but think of the greatest players; be it the sensational decision makers, tactical masters or the great dribblers we all admire. The best players WANT the ball as much as possible.
Give young players the chance to emulate them by letting them have as much contact time with the ball as possible. Technical and skill practices are important, as introductions in the 'cognitive' stage and for these to be effective the players must all have as many chances as possible to learn and explore (NO LINE DRILLS PLEASE!!!).
Most importantly they then need to know how to use what they know in the context of a game so that they can be most effective. For young players deliberate play is far more important than deliberate practice. Do you want your players to be brilliant at performing in a set drill or in a game which is random and ever-changing?
The most efficient way we can give players the best of both worlds is by playing small sided games.
References
FITTS, P.M. and POSNER, M.I. (1967) Human performance. Oxford, England: Brooks and Cole
http://www.brianmac.co.uk/tech.htm
http://www.pgpedia.com/f/fundamental-movement-phase
http://www.scottishfa.co.uk/resources/documents/footballdevelopment/PracticeZone/SoccerSevensResource/Small-SidedGamesStudy1.pdf
> Cognitive - Forming a mental understanding ('picture') of the different parts of the skill (body movement, cues, WHAT to do).
> Associative - The athlete now knows what to do so that the skill can be practised and perfected until the athlete can do it with ease and grace.
> Autonomous - The skill itself requires very little thought so the athlete can focus on other aspects of the game situation.
As different players develop at different rates, their football behaviour will become autonomous at varying ages. The earlier they reach this stage in one area, the quicker they can go on to mastering another, although a large part of this process will be simultaneous.
When people refer to the best players in the world, it is often to those with great cognitive processes, poise, balance, control and brilliant technique, performed with ease and grace. The technique does not require thought as it has become autonomous, leaving the player to focus his/her thinking on the tactical situations within the game.
Decision making and anticipation are two of the most important things in sports performance. But if a player does not develop the technique and skill to execute what he/she has decided to do, they will not be very effective.
We must allow technique and skill to develop! As technique/skill is practiced, players will have to make decisions. 'Mistakes', or rather ATTEMPTS, made during this process will help them learn WHAT to do and WHEN to do it. They will also understand WHY they did what they did. All of these answers can be enhanced with good questioning from the coach (see my previous blog 'Ask Questions or Give Answers')
There are times when it is necessary to clear the ball from a dangerous situation. However, on many occasions technique and skill can be used to make a better decision and keep the ball, or constitute better use of it; but only if they have learned how to do this by understanding the what, when and why.
So don't stop them before they have even tried!
I won't name individuals, but think of the greatest players; be it the sensational decision makers, tactical masters or the great dribblers we all admire. The best players WANT the ball as much as possible.
Give young players the chance to emulate them by letting them have as much contact time with the ball as possible. Technical and skill practices are important, as introductions in the 'cognitive' stage and for these to be effective the players must all have as many chances as possible to learn and explore (NO LINE DRILLS PLEASE!!!).
Most importantly they then need to know how to use what they know in the context of a game so that they can be most effective. For young players deliberate play is far more important than deliberate practice. Do you want your players to be brilliant at performing in a set drill or in a game which is random and ever-changing?
The most efficient way we can give players the best of both worlds is by playing small sided games.
References
FITTS, P.M. and POSNER, M.I. (1967) Human performance. Oxford, England: Brooks and Cole
http://www.brianmac.co.uk/tech.htm
http://www.pgpedia.com/f/fundamental-movement-phase
http://www.scottishfa.co.uk/resources/documents/footballdevelopment/PracticeZone/SoccerSevensResource/Small-SidedGamesStudy1.pdf
"We are breeding a number of teams who's outlook seems to be
that pace, punch and fitness are all that is required
to win the honours in the game. They forget that, without pure skills,
these virtues count for precisely nothing." - Sir Matt Busby
"A great pianist doesn't run around the piano or do push ups with the
tops of his fingers. To be great, he plays the piano. He plays all his life,
and being a footballer is not about running, push ups or physical work generally.
The best way to be a great footballer is to play." - Jose Mourinho
"We are breeding a number of teams who's outlook seems to be
that pace, punch and fitness are all that is required
to win the honours in the game. They forget that, without pure skills,
these virtues count for precisely nothing." - Sir Matt Busby
"A great pianist doesn't run around the piano or do push ups with the
tops of his fingers. To be great, he plays the piano. He plays all his life,
and being a footballer is not about running, push ups or physical work generally.
The best way to be a great footballer is to play." - Jose Mourinho
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The basics and fundamentals need to be coached, taught and
demonstrated. But building upon those basic elements, we are able to
produce complex answers. For example, you teach a child to count and
then how to add numbers. The concept of numbers and addition is taught,
so that the child understands how 1+1 = 2 and how 2+3 = 5. Eventually
you will not need to teach the child that 5+5 = 10 because they will
have found a way to figure it out.
However if you tell the child to learn that 5+5 = 10, they will learn it, but they will not know why, if they do not understand the concept of addition.
In school did your teachers ask you questions, did you practice past papers and sit exams; or were you just given all the answers?
You know the answer to the question above, without me having to tell you. Now I want football coaches to focus on that question and think about what they are doing when they coach. Do you tell your players what to do all the time? Is that a good way for them to learn? Do they understand why they did something, or was it just because they were told to do it?
Check Understanding
Even when praising something a player does that was positive, ask questions first to check their understanding, then praise their understanding - not the singular event. This shows they have attained the necessary knowledge and that the player is developing his/her game sense.
Let Them Play
Children enjoy trying to figure out how things work: how to open things, how to turn the tv on and change it to their favourite channel, how to open the door, how to a score a goal they saw on tv or how to play a new computer game, these are just a few common examples.
If you keep opening the door for children, they may never learn to open it themselves!
However if you tell the child to learn that 5+5 = 10, they will learn it, but they will not know why, if they do not understand the concept of addition.
In school did your teachers ask you questions, did you practice past papers and sit exams; or were you just given all the answers?
You know the answer to the question above, without me having to tell you. Now I want football coaches to focus on that question and think about what they are doing when they coach. Do you tell your players what to do all the time? Is that a good way for them to learn? Do they understand why they did something, or was it just because they were told to do it?
Check Understanding
Even when praising something a player does that was positive, ask questions first to check their understanding, then praise their understanding - not the singular event. This shows they have attained the necessary knowledge and that the player is developing his/her game sense.
Let Them Play
Children enjoy trying to figure out how things work: how to open things, how to turn the tv on and change it to their favourite channel, how to open the door, how to a score a goal they saw on tv or how to play a new computer game, these are just a few common examples.
If you keep opening the door for children, they may never learn to open it themselves!
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Don't Just Hoof It!
Is it better to keep possession, and play through the thirds, using the short passing game? The question has been asked many times, but have we found a simple enough answer to explain it to the masses?
If we look at Swansea in the English Premier League, they have come through the lower leagues playing out from the back with short passing and are now seen as a credit to the top tier of English football.
For the idealists, the 'purists' this would be the way every club plays; but maybe the different styles in football are what make it so enthralling.
Anyhow, take for example a fixture played between Blackburn Rovers and Swansea City on December 3, a fixture I analysed for Opta.
Anyhow, take for example a fixture played between Blackburn Rovers and Swansea City on December 3, a fixture I analysed for Opta.
Launched
By the end of the first three or four minutes, Swansea had around 93% possession. Blackburn Rovers absolutely refused to play football, the first few free kicks they won in their own half were launched into the Swansea box, with Samba being sent forward (within the first fifteen minutes).
Over ninety minutes Swansea had 68.4% possession, even though they played with ten men for the last ten minutes.
Throughout the game Swansea played some beautiful football, but could not create enough opportunities with a proverbial bus parked in front of them. Blackburn had 15 shots with 5 on target compared to Swansea with 10 shots and 4 on target.
The long punts into dangerous areas paid dividends for Blackburn Rovers as they were 3-2 up before an 80th minute red was given to a frustrated young genius in Joe Allen. Who had been trying his best to find a solution to the problem he had been presented with; a psychological error in judgement influenced by Blackburn's style of play?
In any case, the brutal, 'distasteful' tactics ultimately brought about the desired result. How can you argue that Blackburn were wrong, since they won?
More importantly, how do we argue this with the coaches and parents who bring it up in youth football?
An article in 'The Guardian' newspaper (First link in this google search (doesn't work directly for some reason)) shows the importance of possession, and the statistics that support this notion, in the final section of the article.
It also beautifully sums up the Blackburn Rovers vs Swansea fixture with its final paragraph (what a group of players that is).
Maybe it needs someone to suggest a national game strategy of hoofing the ball from one end to another to cause uproar.
Well from that article we can see that in the 70's and 80's 'at the FA's Centre of Excellence at Lilleshall, direct football became the explicit tactical philosophy of the English game, and the emphasis came increasingly to focus on long diagonals and effort'.
Long ball strategy
For me it is frightening to think that, even now, rather than uproar, possibly an equal amount of people as those supporting the short passing and dribbling game, would back the long ball strategy. By this I mean constantly hoofing the ball up to strikers, without much thought. There are times when the long ball/direct football is the correct decision, but seeing kids with their heads down and just kicking it as far forward as possible is disappointing for me.
Without the proper education, or an easy to understand explanation, a lot of people will take things at face value, and in the aforementioned English Premier League game they would have seen Blackburn Rovers comprehensively beat Swansea City 4-2.
How do we tell the kids in mini soccer that Swansea City was the better football team? Is it purely aesthetic or do we have a rational, purposeful, simple explanation.
Specific examples aside (which is usually where the opposing rationale comes from in this situation); current research has shown the importance of possession in football.
Penas et al (2010) summed up previous research and produced their own statistics showing that the teams that retain possession for longer periods are more successful (http://www.jssm.org/vol9/n2/18/v9n2-18pdf.pdf).
First touch
We see the best team in the world at the moment, FC Barcelona, playing in this way. If you look at the weight of their first touch, and the pace they can play at, it is incredible; especially in the tight spaces in midfield and in and around the penalty box.
The weight of pass and touch is amazingly well controlled and allows them to pass through the thirds with confidence.
As well as being very well organised as a team, individually they have great ball control and spatial awareness. The motor skills that aid this task are better developed at a young age, not when they become adults.
I will allow people to draw their own conclusions from this post, but I can not see how launching the ball from back to front will help develop this range of motor skills and create better footballers.
As for a simple answer ''complex problems do not have simple solutions''.
