There are numerous ways for soccer talents to be discovered. Some are developed at academies, some in soccer tournaments, and a large number are discovered during tryouts. But, how can you best prepare for tryouts?
Obviously, by understanding what is expected of us, perfecting it, and demonstrating these abilities and competencies on the soccer field.
Soccer coaches at tryouts look for several technical and physical abilities, attitudes, and personal characteristics, and often the X factor.
Players that are attending tryouts should be aware of what the coaches will be looking for when they witness the play. It’s not uncommon for players to be given information that isn’t helpful in discovering them. Hopefully, these pieces of information will be useful to both players and curious ones.
Soccer Coaches Look for Technical Ability
Ball Control
A player must be able to quickly and smoothly bring a ball passed to him under control. This is the ability to collect the ball and move in a different direction without completely stopping it, while still keeping it secure. Develop the ability to catch a pass at top speed. This implies not slowing down to catch a ball that is falling, bouncing, or flying through the air. In order to get rid of his opponent, a player must be able to shield the ball while also developing deception.
Passing
A player must be able to complete both short and long-range passes successfully. This includes all of the ball skills, such as heading, bending, chipping, and passing the ball to a teammate.
Dribbling
The ability to move the ball past an opponent without allowing him to tackle you, allowing you to keep possession. To penetrate space and create opportunities for himself or his teammate, a player must have quick feet and a sense of comfort under pressure.
A player must be able to pick up the ball and go in a different direction without entirely stopping it while maintaining control of it. Passing, dribbling, and heading are all skills that a player should be able to master. A good goal scorer should be unafraid of failing. Coaches are looking for athletes that can display controlled aggression as well as make quick and confident decisions.
Heading
The ability of a player to hit the ball with their head to move it in a specific direction. They can direct the ball toward another player, across the field, or into the goal of the opposing team. Under the pressure of the game, a player should be able to effectively demonstrate this ability.
Finishing
The ability to score goals makes the biggest impression on people. This feature includes the proper technique for striking the ball in a variety of ways. Coaches are looking for players who can show composed aggression, as well as quick and secure decision-making when the situation calls for it. A successful goal scorer should be fearless of failure.
Soccer Coaches Look For Physical Aspects
A soccer player’s physical conditioning must prepare him or her to play better soccer. Too often, fitness is equated with running, which has little to do with the modern demands of the game. Throughout the game, fitness must be designed to aid a player’s self-assurance when handling the ball while tackling opposition players. To become a complete player, all physical factors must be balanced. Fitness and ball control must be developed in tandem.
Agility
The capacity to quickly shift gears. Twisting, rotating while dribbling, adjusting the body to an awkwardly added ball, and rapidly getting up after a tackle are just a few examples. Conditioning should be linked with tactical and skill development.
Endurance
– The ability of a player to devote himself to offense and defense throughout the game without showing signs of tiredness or loss of ball control. That player must be continually demanding the ball or tugging and committing opposing players to create openings. Even though this is a tactical commitment, it will only be successful if you have the endurance to run for 90 minutes. While you’re being exposed to tactical challenges you’re trying to solve in the game, the coach will be looking at your physical effort.
Conditioning and tactical and skill development should be linked. All physical variables must be balanced in order to become a full player. Understanding how to effectively use that strength to your advantage is critical.
Strength
The ability to win physical battles by effectively using your body. Tackling (1 vs. 1), winning the aerial duel (heading), and shifting directions successfully are all examples of strength (explosiveness). It’s also crucial to understand how to successfully use that strength to your advantage, as exemplified by holding a player off with your arms while sprinting at top speed with the ball or shooting for power. You can combine a lot of your strength and power training with technique training.
Speed
Refers to a player’s ability to accelerate swiftly and maintain that acceleration over the various distances the position requires. The forward, for example, requires acceleration with fluctuations in the speed of three to twenty yards. Pure straight-ahead running speed, lateral speed (changing direction), speed change (slow to fast, fast to half speed), and deceleration(“stopping on a dime”) are some of the elements. After mastering the fundamentals, it’s time to work on speed with the ball.
Soccer Coaches Look For Attitude and Personal Characteristics
Other elements significantly affect a coach’s decision to recruit a certain athlete, regardless of a player’s performance, ability, tactical, or physical show. Coaches will analyze their mental and psychological makeup, as well as their mental ability to perceive and assess situations quickly and accurately, motivational drive and willpower, self-confidence, and emotional stability. After all – character is revealed through competition.
Every coach enjoys identifying crucial players who have personalities and attributes that make them team leaders. The following are the most well-known personality traits:
Drive
A burning will to succeed, great self-motivation, commitment, perseverance, and determination are all examples of the drive.
Determination
Seeks the shortest path to the objective, making no compromises, not hesitating to make decisions, willingness, full concentration, and a focus on success.
Aggressiveness
– “Go-getter,” strong self-assertion, risk-taking, desire to dominate opponents, hard effort, and ruthlessness in attack and defense Danger – awful losers who are prone to retaliation and revenge fouls, lose their self-control and lack discipline in general.
Leadership
– intelligence, dedication, pride, bearing responsibility for the team, affecting the environment, anticipation, instinct, independence, and spontaneity, persuading and dominating player, hard worker, no surrender, self-control, endurance, communicative, respectable, and trustworthy.
A player’s mental and psychological constitution, as well as their mental aptitude to notice and appraise situations quickly and effectively, will be scrutinized by coaches. Other factors, regardless of an athlete’s performance, have a big impact on a coach’s decision to recruit them.
Coaches will assess their personalities and characteristics that distinguish them as team leaders. After all, competition is how character is exposed.
Responsibility
Intelligent, tactically aware, diligent, dependable, seeking security, cooperative, willing to compromise, and a reliable and skilled player.
Coachability
Willingness to learn and achieve goals, self-motivated, attentive and receptive, willingness, interest, spontaneity, dedicating themselves, enjoy discussing issues, hard worker, self-disciplined, creative, constructive, progressive.
Self-Control
Discipline, emotional stability, calmness, discretion, and overcoming disputes are all examples of self-control.
Self-Assuredness
Consistent ball control and the application of skills and strategies under duress (both external and self-imposed). Risk: These athletes have a proclivity for underestimating opponents, a lack of willingness to be trained, and are easily complacent.
Conscientiousness
Sensitive, nervous, diligent, always wants to offer their best, humble, reserved, scared, thoughtful, self-critical, depends on success, reliable player in a stable setting
Trustworthiness
Reliable, self-assured, will be respected and attract teammates’ sympathies, unwavering commitments, collected and self-control, determined influential and communicative, open-minded and approachable, good team spirit
Mental Toughness
Consistency, commitment, and perseverance throughout the game, no surrender, and firm self-assertion.
X-Factor
The X factor is that special something you bring to a group. A coach may occasionally select a player that lacks the skill, speed, or agility of the ideal soccer player. The fact that a player strives so hard and plays with such passion can sometimes serve as an inspiration to the other players.
Coaches sometimes believe that with a little more time and effort, a player can develop into a really good soccer player. Sometimes the player is a natural leader, and motivator.
Last but not least, a coach is frequently compelled to choose (or not choose) a player purely on gut instinct. Many times, soccer tryouts fail to disclose a potential player’s genuine worth. Most coaches do not have the opportunity to get to know a player as a person before making a team selection.
Soccer tryouts frequently fail to reveal a potential player’s true worth. The player may be a natural leader, or a motivator, in some cases. A coach is regularly compelled to select (or not select) a player solely on the basis of gut instinct.
They can see the talent, but they won’t know how dedicated or hardworking the athlete is unless they see it on the field.
A player will not have the opportunity to sit down and have an interview with the coach. The coach will discover what he needs to know and whether they a player has a spot on the team based on how they conduct their soccer trials.
Conclusion
It can be intimidating to try out for a soccer league, but with good preparation and practice before the big day, you can win the competition. It’s crucial to do your research ahead of time so you know what’s expected of you and to maintain your confidence throughout the tryout. To get the position, you should also try to keep active throughout the tryout and demonstrate your finest skills and leadership abilities.
We hope that our suggestions will be useful for future tryouts. Be confident and give your best. Best of luck!