Help! I am now a soccer coach
 

Well I was asked to coach a team of 3-5 year olds for the city of Talladega and for some reason I agreed. The problem is I am clueless on nearly everything relating to soccer. I know there are a couple coaches on here Beebs and maybe the Cocktooth that might be able to point me in the right direction? I know most of the kids are clueless on how to play and will probably just be running around crazy. I want to make sure the kids are learning the basics and having fun along with keeping the crazy ass parents off my ass. What resources are out there to help me get started? Websites, books, etc. I've researched some drills but really do not know if they are appropriate for the age group. We will have 2-3 practice sessions a week plus 2 games a week starting next week. Any suggestions for practice drills at this age? The director claims that they do not run any 'plays' or certain formations but all of the other coaches have for several years. Beebs, I expect a response within 24 hours. Thx

2-3 practice sessions plus two games a week for five year olds? What the fuck is the world coming to?

I'm no expert, but I would imagine that teaching them proper dribbling, passing, and shooting mechanics should be the first and foremost thing they're taught.

Don't touch their special parts and you'll already be one step ahead of most other people who coach soccer to 3 year olds.

how to coach youth football (soccer)

Get memorising. my fav " That kind of work makes me very happy."
86 ways to say "very good!"

from the Michigan State Soccer Association

Good for you!

That’s really nice

Superb

That’s the best ever

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You’ve got it made

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Terrific

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Good thinking

Marvelous

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Tremendous!

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You must have been practicing!

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WOW!

That kind of work makes me very happy.

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I’m very proud of you

That’s a good boy/girl

One more time an you’ll have it

That’s very much better

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Super!

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I’ve never seen anyone do it better

You’ve just mastered that!

You are very good at that.

Actually have some insight here.

The Netherlands is a country of 17 million people but is a powerhouse on the international stage when it comes to soccer. More kids in the USA play soccer than the Netherlands. Why are the Dutch so god damned good at soccer? Because from an early age they focus on skills. Skills means any touch of the ball. Not just dribbling, but also controlled moves, tricks, any manipulation of the ball. Americans focus on playing the game. But during the course of a 90 minute game any given player will only touch the ball a handful of times. If you instead spend 90 minutes constantly touching the ball and doing tricks and moves and passes and dribbles, you're going to have the skills where it counts. Basically in soccer fundamentals are underrated and gameplay is massively overrated. That's all.

Make sure you have a ton of balls and have the kids always dribbling, passing, doing tricks.