No.8--Awareness of Important Factors for Soccer Coaches and Players--Fiorentina vs. Udinese & Women's Florida State Univ. Against North Carolina Univ.

by Soccer Coach Albert M. Luongo

I always stress that it is important with youth soccer training that skill development should come before winning games. However, since people are also naturally interested in winning games, both achievements must actually go hand in hand. But it must be remembered that in the long hall, skills are paramount for winning against competition. Let us then review some important skills that are a prerequisite for winning soccer games.

There are three important factors for winning against similar equally matched teams. While there are other factors, young players should be aware of these very important ones. These factors are as follows: to control the ball, to have a strong correctly trained defense and to develop endurance. With young players I always stress controlled play with accurate passing and controlled receiving (trapping and shielding)--for the ten field players. Along with this, dribbling must become second nature. With specific defensive player training, the goalkeeper must learn to command the team’s defenses. Finally, all players should stay in condition by running on their own. These are necessary skills for any player wishing to continue in this sport. As far as control, defense and endurance goes, the coach must assure that he or she knows what is both necessary and as well as what is unnecessary towards producing this aim. So with this introduction, I would like to discuss two games where the topics of this article apply.

Many skillful games either start off by playing a controlled passing game or settle down shortly after the start whistle, say in ten to fifteen minutes into the game. This was the way the Italian soccer match with Fiorentina vs. Udinese began on the Nov. 11, 2007 game—they were off to a slow start. Shortly after the slow start, the teams settled down into one of a controlled passing game--until about the last quarter of play. The first two goals were headers and difficult to defend against. But the second goal for Udinese, which came after about 63 minutes of play, should have been prevented by a Fiorentina defenseman obscuring the shot. Up to that last goal, both teams played a good passing game. Then in the latter part of the second half, the game became one where long-ball soccer dominated the game. With long kicks up field, the controlled passing game was in the past as each team endeavored to employ these long kicks to force another goal. It is my opinion that it is a fairly common occurrence to see teams switch from playing controlled ball soccer to kickball in order to force a goal. This is totally offensive soccer with little reliance on playing a strong defensive game of soccer along with controlled short passes: Defense soccer is the type of soccer that I strongly recommend. The score ended up with Udinese 2 and Fiorentina 1.

In addition to poor ball control in the last quarter, it often follows that roughness becomes the norm--as it did in this game. Unfortunately, excessive roughness seems to have become more and more commonplace in this sport, such as with serious fouls--tripping and pushing at high speeds from behind became common. As for myself, I see little in the way of gaining an advantage by substituting excessive fouls and roughness for good skillful play. The first yellow card was given out after about 34 minutes of play with only three given in total. I believe that more should have been given. A red card was given out after about 80 minutes of play.

On the same day, I watched the ACC Finals Women’s Soccer Championship game with FSU--Florida State University against NCU--North Carolina University. While roughness was not a problem, defense, control and endurance were issues. I will explain. It was a well-played game for much of it and a pleasure to watch: The women seem to have grasped onto playing a controlled passing game. However, as I often stress, correct defensive play is the way to win games and I believe it was a most important factor here. The North Carolina team had a super defense by maintaining correct positioning and as such only gave Florida a few good chances to get into good scoring positions.

After the second half began, Florida outplayed North Carolina with controlled passing and totally dominated the field of play, for a while a least. It was quite a start for the second half. However, they could not keep up the pace. While both teams played hard, the UNC’s control had slipped away; it appeared that the players were running out of steam. This was more apparent for the Florida Team than with North Carolina. The resulting play then became a game where both teams tried to force a goal with several long balls down field. But as usual with this type of play, goals did not come. However, North Carolina having more energy had a few good tries to score in the last quarter because the Florida defense was not holding itself in good form. The final score was UNC 1, FSU 0.

All three issues were at play here and a review of these important factors can help shed some light on the outcome of both games discussed. Many coaches stress attack soccer, but there is actually much more to the game then just teaching attack to the forward players as the teams defense is in reality the strength of the team. It behooves all coaches to accept and demand proper defensive strategy, insist upon short ground passes (whenever possible) for the whole game and close-to-the-body traps (shielded when necessary), and endurance. From experience, if all three factors are done correctly, more games are won then lost; but with the following clarifications:
1. The opponents are not in a higher classification (such as a second division team against a first division team).
2. The opponents are not made up of older players (naturally, the latter applies to youth teams only).

All of the above information is the author's opinion. This article in no way is meant to degrade, discredit or defame any team or person. Its sole purpose is to improve the skills of young soccer players, coaches and the game itself.