Dribbling: Close Control

As we talked about last night, as much as we at Sac United stress dribble moves, what really matters in the skill of dribbling is close control. Each player has a unique talent set. It is important for each player to develop and hone her own moves, turns, tricks, & controls to suit her ability. Not everyone is a step-over type player. Practice on your own will help to solidify your soccer personality.

As an example I offer Leo Messi the worlds best player and his unique playing style. Messi has developed a method of dribbling that is unique in it's control and change of direction at full sprinting pace. It is this combination, along with a brave attacking spirit, that so confounds defenses. This combination goes right to the heart of what we talk about when teaching dribbling:

1. Change of speed [x]
2. Change of direction [x]
3. Control [x]
4. Vision [x]
5. Creativity/ Improvisation [x]

Here is a highlight clip of Messi from a recent match. It shows every soccer decision he made in the game on Wednesday night. Each dribble, each pass, each shot, each defensive challenge. Even the ones he made poor choices.



Practice at home to continue to develop your own soccer personality. The future is yours to create. You just have to train for it.