|

A Complete Guide on How to Get Better at Football (2024)

Written ByDaniel Pena
Reading Time: 6 minutes

If you are reading this blog, then that means you are looking for tips on how to improve at soccer. I’ve played soccer ever since I can remember and at various lower levels of the U.S. soccer pyramid.

I also recently graduated from San Jose State University with a degree in Kinesiology: rehab science, and I am a Certified Personal Trainer and soccer coach. One of my goals with The Art of Football is to help soccer players unlock elite athleticism and stay injury-free.

With my experience and knowledge, I know that if you continue reading, you will find new training tips that you can start implementing today to improve your performance, whether you are a youth, amateur, or professional player. 

The “red pill” concept is a metaphorical term from the movie The Matrix. In the film, the protagonist, Neo, is offered a choice between blue and red. The blue pill represents staying in the simulated reality, a comfortable illusion, while the red pill represents facing the harsh realities and truth of existence.

We live in a world where players have access to so much information about various topics related to health and training that it is often hard to know what information works and what does not. Many players are stuck in a “blue pill,” meaning they have a false perception of elite performance and proper health because of all the information out there.

My goal with this blog is to give you the “red pill” you need to improve at football. Long story short, the “red pill” is to play the game a lot, train using different variations of the game and other sports, prioritize improving every aspect of performance that actually matters, learn to have fun when training, and work with nature. Too many players focus on the wrong things, and they waste valuable time when, in reality, working with nature is the best and most logical way to improve health and performance on and off the field.

How to Get Better at Football

Play the Game and Learn Through Experience

In soccer, and in anything in life, the absolute best way to improve is to do what you want to improve at a lot and gain experience. Experience is the best teacher.

As a footballer, you want to train in a way that best resembles a real match and puts you in realistic scenarios. This is best done by consistently playing the game and its variations and learning through experience, whether that is through team training, pick-up games, small-sided games, futsal, beach soccer, soccer tennis, soccer ping pong, or any other variation of the game.

If you are serious about getting better, especially if you are a youth player, you should be in a team environment because that is absolutely the best way to improve. You will be competing consistently against other players, you can learn from your teammates, and you can receive feedback from coaches.

Your goal should be to join the best team in your area, become the best or one of the best, and aim to play for a better team every season. That way, you can keep playing against better and better players and learn from more experienced coaches, which are some of the keys to faster development.

Also, you learn the most during an actual game, so you must be on a team to play in these matches and gain experience.

How to Get Better at Football

Learn how to Properly Train Individually

Apart from team training and playing other variations of the game, players should also do extra work individually when it’s appropriate and makes sense. For example, you should never sacrifice individual training for team training; however, if there is a week when you don’t train as much with your team, then an extra individual training session can be beneficial.

When doing an individual training session, knowing how to train is essential. You want to be training in a way that best replicates the unpredictability of an actual match, allowing you to get into a flow state, such as by using our top-rated soccer drills. These are some of our other tips to use when training individually:

  • Spend time training barefoot and work up to playing barefoot on concrete without pain or discomfort.
  • Train with a wall or soccer rebounder
  • Train at game speed with maximum effort.
  • Learn to have fun during your training – training should not be something you have to do; it should be something you want to do
  • Include a proper warm-up and include fascia training exercises.
  • Focus on simple drills that focus on the basics of the game, but perform with high focus and mindfulness.
  • Cross-training, which means playing other sports, can also indirectly help you become a better soccer player because it can make you more athletic and coordinated and familiarize you with movement patterns that don’t occur in soccer.
How to Get Better at Football

Improve your Athleticism

The best way to develop athleticism as a soccer player is to play the game often, spend time barefoot, play many sports, and train in a way that optimizes your fascia system.

As a soccer player, you want to focus on training the quality of your fascia, which is the connective tissue that covers your entire body and stores the elastic energy required for running, kicking, and every other skill you perform on the soccer field.

Your goal as a soccer player should be to become a more fascia-driven athlete, which all top athletes already are consciously or subconsciously. By improving the quality of your fascia, developing your athleticism, and applying many other tips on this list, you will also become more resistant to injury, allowing you to stay healthy on the field for longer periods.

How to Get Better at Football

Master the Basics

Soccer is a simple game that should be played simply, even at the highest level, but playing simply is not as easy as it sounds. Playing simple but fast, efficiently, and consistently is one of the hardest things in soccer, but it can make all the difference.

To get better at playing simple, you have to master the basics of soccer, which include:

  • Knowing the rules of the game
  • Knowing common soccer terms
  • Understanding the different positions, formations, and tactics
      • Being technically proficient in essential skills such as Technical Skillsball control
      • being able to escape tight spaces
      • Passing skills short-range passing, long-range passing, curving the ball
      • Be able to pass the ball properly with both feet (dominant and non-dominant foot)
    • Dribbling Skills
    • Shooting Skills
    • Stamina and Endurance
    • Awareness
    • Decision making
How to Get Better at Football

Real Madrid Vs Club America 2022 in San Francisco

Analyze your Soccer Games and Professional Soccer Games

Learning from professional soccer players is one of the best ways to improve because these players haAnalyze your Soccer Games and Professional Soccer Games

Learning from professional soccer players is one of the best ways to improve because they have already done what you are trying to do, and they are elite athletes for a reason. These are some of the best ways to learn from your favorite players.

To learn more about the soccer industry, I highly recommend checking out this YouTube playlist I have created. It contains very valuable information that will take time to digest and understand. There are also other videos that you may not think are related to soccer, but getting real information about health and the strength and conditioning industry is also very important.

How to Get Better at Football

Write Down Your Goals and Track Progress

Setting goals in soccer is a great way to stay motivated and on track to meet those goals. As a player, you should have long-term and short-term goals, and here is a video you can watch to help you start setting goals.

Also, a great way to monitor your development as a soccer player is by keeping a dedicated notebook or journal in which you can write about various things, such as :

  • Your goals
  • The date and duration of a game or training session
  • Skill areas focused on (e.g., passing accuracy, shooting power)
  • Daily goal achievements (number of successful passes/shots)
  • New techniques learned or practiced
  • Things you need to improve on
  • Personal reflections on performance improvements/challenges faced

“Train” Every Other Aspect of Life that Impacts Health and Performance

Most soccer players think that training only occurs when they are physically on the soccer field with the ball. However, that is not a good mindset, and you should always be “training” every aspect of life that impacts health and performance from the minute you wake up to the minute you go to sleep.

To get the most out of your valuable time, you have to train smarter, not necessarily harder, although working hard is already a given and something that all players should be doing. Training smarter means taking care of all other aspects of your life that impact your health and performance, including:

Summary

In this blog, I covered everything you need to know about how to get better at soccer fast. If you are a serious player and you want to improve your soccer skills, then your main form of training should be playing the game or variations of the game as much as possible. Ideally, you should attend team practice at least 2-3 times a week.

Playing the game as much as possible will allow you to learn through experience and from coaches and will help you improve all of the essential soccer skills needed for the game. We also shared many tips on how to optimize your time off the field to make sure you are training every aspect of your life that affects your athleticism, performance, recovery, and overall health.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you Improve your football skills alone?

Yes, you can, but not to the extent you would if you played outside against real opponents. Nothing that happens on a football pitch, futsal court, or indoors can be replicated with a drill. If you must train alone, use a wall, train barefoot, and use the max intent principle.

How can I begin improving my soccer skills right now?

To begin improving your soccer skills right now, check out our post on the best soccer training drills. If you are looking to accelerate your progress, contact us or sign an interest form for our private training program.

Soccer Coach/ CPT/Blogger/Sports Coordinator

Daniel Pena is an amateur footballer, a private coach, blogger, and league manager who is passionate about the beautiful game and looking to give back to the game. Daniel has a combined 10+ years of experience playing in club soccer, high school, college, and top amateur adult leagues in the United States, a Bachelor’s Degree in Kinesiology Rehab:Science, and is a Certified Personal Trainer and Nutritionist.
Daniel has a training program called The Art of Football and works with various athletes in all age-ranges with athletic training, recovery from injuries, and football training. The Art of Football believes that one of the best ways to get better at the game is to play the game and surround yourself with it as much as possible.
That is why Daniel also created Bay Area Champions. A competitive but friendly small-sided soccer league in the United States. Through the Art of Football and Bay Area Champions Daniel also gives back to the community of San Jose by hosting free pickup games for players in our leagues, training program, for the public!

Similar Posts