A Guide on How to Improve Speed of Play in Soccer
Speed of play is one of the most important factors that separates professional football from amateur football. While amateurs usually take one too many touches to control the soccer ball or take too long to decide their next move, professionals perform at full speed with the ability to play one or two touch football while being steps ahead of the game.
To improve your speed of play means to sharpen your ability to make quick decisions, execute them effortlessly, and maintain a high-intensity of play throughout the game. In this guide, we’ll cover some of the best tips to help you improve your speed of play with some soccer drills and speed training exercises.
How to Increase Your Speed of Play in Soccer
Play More Soccer
One of the best ways to improve your speed of play in soccer is simply to play more of the game. The more time you spend on the soccer field, the more comfortable and confident you become in high-pressure situations, which allows you to make faster decisions and play at a higher tempo.
Play in as many different environments as possible—team trainings, pickup games, small-sided games, futsal, and even beach soccer—to expose yourself to a variety of scenarios that force you to think and react quicker. This constant exposure helps sharpen your instincts, improve your reaction speed, and build the rhythm and timing needed to perform at full speed.
Develop a Strong Mindset
Another important trait to develop to improve your speed of play is a strong growth mindset that helps you stay confident, focused, and composed. This mental edge allows you to react faster than the other players and trust your instinct during high pressure situations. This strong mindset is also what will help you develop faster by learning from every experience and letting the game be the teacher.
Improve your Athleticism
The next step of improving your speed of play involves improving your athleticism and coordination so that your body can actually do what you want it to during a game. To develop an athletic body focus on playing a lot of soccer, and soccer variations, playing a lot of different sports, fascia training exercises, breath work, strength training, agility drills, and high-intensity exercises like hill sprints and box jumps.
Master the Basic Skills of the Game with Both Feet
To play comfortably at a high pace you also need to master the basic skills of the game and be comfortable with both feet. The basic skills of the game include:
Improve Your Awareness and Scanning Abilities
The next thing you need to do to improve your speed of play is to develop better awareness and scanning abilities. Practice scanning the field before receiving the soccer ball to anticipate moves and have a better picture of where everything else is – teammates, opponents, space, passing lanes, etc.
Improve Your Stamina
To improve your speed of play in soccer, you need strong stamina to maintain full speed and sharp decision-making throughout the game. Focus on playin a lot of soccer games and variations, to build soccer specific stamina, as well as high-intensity conditioning drills like soccer flying sprints, shuttle runs, hill sprints, and box jumps to build endurance and explosive power.
Improve Your Football IQ and Decision-Making Abilities
To improve your speed of play, you need to sharpen your football IQ by playing a lot, studying high-level matches, analyzing game footage with a soccer camera, and practicing decision-making in high-speed situations.
Summary
Improving speed of play in soccer means learning to make quick decisions, execute them under pressure, and play at full speed with confidence and control. In this blog, I covered important strategies like playing more soccer, developing a strong mindset, mastering basic skills, and building athleticism through targeted drills and conditioning to improve your speed of play.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I improve my soccer speed?
To increase speed as a soccer player and get explosive speed it is important to perform fascia training exercises, perform breath-work, roll out fascia adhesions with massage tools, and perform soccer speed drills, acceleration drills, and dribbling drills to improve speed while dribbling with and without a soccer ball.
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 for the right training regimen to accelerate your progress, contact us or sign an interest form for our private training program.
How can I learn more about the game?
To learn more about soccer the most important thing is to join a team and play the game as much as possible. If possible, analyze high level games as much as you can and your own games as well by recording them with a soccer camera. Also read soccer books, listen to podcasts and interviews watch soccer documentaries, as well as some movies, tv shows, and anime.
