The Whole is Greater than the Sum of its Parts (Part 1)

First coined by the philosopher Aristotle, this phrase aptly defines the modern concept of synergy. For anyone who has played team sports, it echoes the T.E.A.M. acronym – Together, Everyone Achieves More.

Coaching grassroots needs to be way more than just teach kicking the ball around, it’s a chance of teaching players that soccer is way more than a game. When a kid joins a team, mostly of the times he’s nervous, but has a big desire to play, have fun and make friends. The club and coaches need to be conscientious of the impact that they’ll have in this kid’s future.

“A coach will impact more people in one year than the average person will in an entire lifetime.” Billy Graham

As coaches we need to look on a Player-centric level, rather than a Team-centric. The focus should be on the individual primarily, and developing the collective of individuals you’ll develop the Team. Individuals success are moments not trophies, and those moments will affect the kids life’s on and off the field.

During a technical meeting at the club where I coach, our Technical Director once asked us: “Do you remember your third goal that you ever scored?”, all the coaches in the room started to think about it, nobody was able to come out with a answer, but after he asked “Do you remember your third coach?”, at that moment everyone was smiling and every single coach had some good stories to share. That simple question made me think about the impact that all the coaches made in my life while in sports, on my social life at the moment, my social life now and even the way that I raise my kids. I never thought about the tremendous influence that my coaches had in my life, today I’m a coach and I wish that I can deliver to my players that inspiration, those memories, those life lessons and that desire for them one day follow the same route as me becoming a coach.

The 4 corners of Holistic Development in soccer. What is the holistic approach?

In soccer we “break” the Holistic Development approach in 4 main areas:

·        Technical/Tactical ·        Psychological ·        Social ·        Physical

Personally, I’ll like to add another area, since during the week a coach (at grassroots) spends average of 3-4 hours with the player, it’s important to understand how everyone around this player is affecting him for the other 165 hours. Let’s call it the Village effect. I’ll talk about it later. “It takes a whole village to raise a child” – African proverb.

How can we use the holistic approach when designing sessions? Let’s break the concepts for easier understanding:

 Technical/Tactical

·        Unopposed-technique practice

·        Opposed practices

·        Uneven sides-skill practice e.g. 2v1, 4v2, 3v1, etc…

?·        Even sides-games 3v3, 4v4, 5v5, etc…

·        Game craft, game as a teacher

All the technical skills need to be linked necessarily to the tactical aspects of the game. https://hub-soccer.com/2019/04/15/how-to-develop-smarter-soccer-players/

For example, in a game a good pass, needs all the right technique to execute it (Use the inside of the foot – that’s the area from the base of the big toe to the central area of the heel, Under the ankle bone.)

?                     Encourage players to try new skills in practice and work out where they can be used in games,

?                     Practice should replicate the demands of the game and encourage players to think and make decisions just as they would in a match.

?                     Match the needs of the individual by altering the difficulty using the STEP principle (Space, Task, Equipment, Players).

?                     Use the “stop, stand still” intervention but not too much and make coaching points during a suitable break in play, letting players experience the flow of the game.

•  ?                     Kick foot at right angles to the ball.
• ?                     Belly button should be facing the player receiving the pass. ?                     Non-kicking foot alongside the ball.
• ?                     Knee and ankle joints held firm.
• ?                     Body over the ball.
• ?                     Head steady, eyes on the ball.
• ?                     Use the arms to keep balanced.
• Hit through the ball’s horizontal midline – that way it will keep low.
• ?                     Kicking foot follows through towards the target.

But, it’s not enough, if not linked to the Tactical aspects of the passing, when, where, how and why, (timing, Weight/power and purpose of the pass). We can make 10.000 passes against a wall, if we don’t understand this questions it would be just ball movement, and never a good pass.

Target: Developing different range of techniques on and off the ball, and ball mastery.

Psychological

·        Understanding ·        Decision-making ·        Confidence ·        Concentration ·        Commitment ·        Practicing, learning, experimenting ·        Learning styles ·        Relevant to the needs of the player

Use different methods of communication to engage with different types of learners:

·        Visual (seeing) – session plans, tactics boards, cue and prompt cards as well as cones on a pitch.

·        Auditory (hearing) – Speak with players, ask questions and encourage discussion among team-mates to solve game related problems.

·        Kinetic (doing) – demonstration to the team by a coach or by a player to their team-mates.

 Target: Increasing learning

Filipe Teles

Soccer Coach at Benfica Soccer School of Toronto; Soccer HUB content specialist and.... Founder of Canadian Soccer Coaches Network!

Koach Karl’s Notes: 

Thank You! Coach Teles for sharing your insights with FUNdamental SOCCER!

Coach Teles wants you to know that, "All his articles are based on his opinions and beliefs." And we both encourage you to give us your thoughts and points of view on these subjects!

 Finally, We both pray that everyone will take care of themselves and their loved ones!

 Your FUNdamental, Koach Karl (Karl Dewazien)

• Emeritus State DoC of California Youth Soccer Assoc. 1979-2012
• Author - FUNdamental SOCCER Books Series
• Producer - ‘FUNdamental SOCCER -Practice’ DVD.
• Clinician at: www.fundamentalsoccer.com