By Ian Torney - NH ODP Director of Coaching

It is important that each individual knows that they have a responsibility to themselves and to their team and team-mates to prepare themselves as best as possible for the next season, and to give themselves and the team the optimum chance for success; the team will only be as good as it's weakest link! Pre-season preparation should incorporate the four elements of team preparation - technical, tactical, physical and psychological. Here are some ideas and guidelines.

GUIDELINES FOR TECHNICAL PREPARATION - play with the ball, concentrating on developing the following technical skills:

• TRAPPING: from self-serves into the air or off a wall, use all parts of your body to bring the ball under control quickly, and into a position from which it will be easiest to make your next move; use your body to protect and shield the ball and your position on the field; trap, turn and dribble, trap and fake way to dribble the other; trap to fake a pass and shoot etc….
• DRIBBLING: work under complete control and close to your body, in tight spots while using your body as a shield; go left, go right, change your pace on the ball; practice body fakes and step-overs; play 1 vs 1 - protect the ball, it is yours, don't let anyone in….
• SHOOTING/FINISHING: use all parts of both feet (instep, outside, laces), body and head; start shooting easy, straight shots with no spin at slow-to-medium pace and then build up; remember that more shots are scored with accurate and quick release than with power….
• PASSING: again use all parts of both feet (instep, outside, laces), body and head; hit balls short, long, high, low, in-between, chips, all with different weight and speed, concentrating on accuracy - make the ball go exactly where you want it….
• HEADING: again from self-serves into the air or off a wall, head the ball forward, sideways, deflections, flick-on-behind, with power to shoot or pass, moving the ball decisively….
• JUGGLING: keep the ball in the air, high, low, with all surfaces of the body and in various combinations; both stationary and moving….
• FOR MORE INFORMATION see the "NH ODP Seven-Minute Drill."

GUIDELINES FOR TACTICAL PREPARATION - play the game:

• SMALL-SIDED GAMES: 1 v 1, 2 v 2, 3 v 3 etc. in tight spaces to allow the maximum touches under pressure; possession/keep-away games, or at goals - have fun….
• STREET-SOCCER: play "pick-up" games with small balls at make-shift goals….
• FULL FIELD 11 v 11: for a club or summer-league team ideally, or just pick-up games; challenge yourself to learn by playing different positions, both offense and defense….
• FOR MORE INFORMATION see "US Soccer Team Development."

GUIDELINES FOR PHYSICAL PREPARATION - keep a fitness journal; make a plan and keep a record - set goals to challenge and measure improvement:

• FLEXIBILITY: stretch the major muscle groups at every workout to increase flexibility; work gradually from the largest to the smallest muscles - hamstrings, quadriceps, groins, calves, ankles and then anything else; stretch each muscle twice, for a 10-count….
• DISTANCE/AEROBIC: run a two-to-five mile run three times a week to build an aerobic base - shoot for two miles in 12 minutes, or five miles in 35 minutes; run road races….
• SPRINTS/ANAEROBIC: incorporate an anaerobic workout into your training three times a week; run "quad-burns" by sprinting up stadium steps or a hill six times back-to-back, or sprint-cycle on a bicycle over a long distance; run six 440-yard "pacers" and six 100-yard sprints, with a easy jog/rest in-between hard sprints; work with a stopwatch and shorten your time allowed in-between sprints at every workout - test yourself to improve times….
• STRENGTH: at every workout perform 150 sit-ups (vary exercises to target all abdominal groups e.g. crunches or leg-lifts etc.) and 100 push-ups (sets of 25 push-ups with different "grips" i.e. wide, standard, narrow, single-arm); develop a weight-lifting program to target the development of all major muscle groups - upper body and lower body….
• FOR MORE INFORMATION see the "US Soccer Fitness Workbook."

GUIDELINES FOR PSYCHOLOGICAL PREPARATION - be a student of the game:

• WATCH TOP-LEVEL SOCCER, LIVE OR ON TV: observe the players who play your position; study the decisions they make both with and without the ball; observe how much time and/or space they have (or don't have); analyze their first touch - does it solve pressure or create pressure; assess their fitness level - how strong, fast and agile are they, and can they sustain a high level for a full 90 minutes; and examine the kind of emotional intensity that they bring to the game - do they inspire their team-mates too?
• READ ABOUT SOCCER: in soccer publications such as "Soccer America" or "Soccer New England;" on websites such as "FIFA" or the "US Soccer Federation" or the "National Soccer Coaches Association of America" or "NCAA-Soccer" or "Major League Soccer;" or soccer literature such as How Soccer Explains the World by Franklin Foer, or Football Against The Enemy by Simon Kuper, or Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby, or Soccer's Most Wanted by John Snyder, or OFFSIDE: Soccer and American Exceptionalism by Andrew S. Markovits and Steven L. Kellerman, or Among the Thugs by Bill Buford, or Training Soccer Champions by Anson Dorrance, or The Miracle of Castel Di Sangro by Joe McGinniss, or Brillant Orange: The Neurotic Genius of Dutch Football by David Winner, or Futebol-Soccer: The Brazilian Way by Alex Bellos, or The World's Game: A History of Soccer by Bill Murray, or Soccer in Sun and Shadow by Eduardo Galeano, or The Far Corner by Harry Pearson, or A Season with Verona: Travels Around Italy in Search of Illusion, National Character, and...Goals! by Tim Parks, or The Glory Game by Hunter Davies; or soccer-player biographies such as Hand of God: The Life of Diego Maradona, Soccer's Fallen Star by Jimmy Burn, or Maradona by Joseph Romain and Lian Goodall, or Beckham - My World by David Beckham and Dean Freeman, or Ronaldo by Joseph Romain and Mark Paddock, or My Life and the Beautiful Game - The Autobiography of Pele by Pele, Robert L. Fish, or Pele: The King of Soccer by Susan Canizares and Samantha Berger, or A Will To Win - The Managers Diary by Alex Ferguson, or Managing My Life - An Autobiography by Alex Ferguson.
• FOR MORE INFORMATION see "US Soccer Student of the Game" and "US Soccer Team Psychology."