If you want to be better at soccer, you’ll need to put in work outside of your team practices. In other words, individual training is important, if not more so. Here, we have 4 ways that will help you improve your soccer skills in your backyard.
Dribbling
Dribbling may seem simple. Yet, it is a great skill to work on in your backyard. When you dribble, you have to be able to think a couple of plays ahead. You have to be able to push the ball into a space. A space where you can get the ball and your opponent can’t
When you dribble, work on keeping your eyes up and in front of you. Yes, not staring down at the ball.
Juggling
Just because you can do amazing tricks when you juggle, doesn’t mean that you will be a great soccer player. Juggling does, however, help your touch. Indeed. You’ll need to be able to feel as comfortable as you’re juggling in the backyard as in a league game. If you’re able to juggle with ease in your backyard, then you’re likely to be able to control the ball in much better way in the game.
When you juggle, attempt to manipulate the ball in different ways. For example, juggle the ball without spin, with backspin, with topspin, and with sidespin. If you learn how to control the ball, how and when you want to, you’ll be able to manipulate it when you make passes in a game.
Trapping
After juggling, the next you should work on is trapping the ball out of the air.
How to do it? Kick the ball as high as you can under control. If you need to make a quick little sprint, that’s fine. Once the ball is coming down, use the top of your foot to settle it to the ground. And as you’re settling the ball, you don’t want it to bounce high off your foot. It shouldn’t bounce away from you. You should be able to perform a move with your next step. This is the key. Why? Because you’re keeping the ball close. And, you’ll be able to play quick.
Kick the ball against the wall
If you have a wall in your backyard, you can use it to help your training. Make sure it is a concrete or brick wall, as you don’t want to put a hole into its surface. And, don’t forget to pick a spot where there are no windows nearby. Once you have found a good spot, start your training.
Kick the ball against the wall with the instep of your foot, allowing the ball to bounce only once. Don’t forget to alternate feet. Start out by standing 2 feet away from the wall. As you get better, move back a bit. A foot is okay. Try to get in 100 bounce kicks off the wall.
After you mastered the instep, move onto striking the ball with your laces, using both feet, against the wall. Again, allowing only one bounce, before striking it back to the wall.