General views:
Once I opined that at the age of seventeen, no Indian footballer would be so well built as Sergeant, the U-17 World Cup footballer of the USA. It would never happen. As it would never happen, Indian kids would not play football. Is it so?
According to general views, football is a body contact game, so our country has no scope for world-class football. But I always think that if Indian kids get the chance of world-class training facilities, then they can do miracles. As an example, the Indian U-17 team played well in the final round of the World Cup 2017.
But most football lovers in India believe that India would never play world cup football. Now our ranking is 108. In my opinion, if India plays more International matches, we can easily move above 95 in ranking. Now, 32 countries play in the final round of World Cup Football. FIFA may take the decision of allowing 48 countries in the final round of World Cup Football at any time. If the Indian Government and AIFF jointly take a project of Mission World Cup and take suitable steps to achieve it, it would not be impossible.
I discussed the problems of Indian football elaborately in my previous article. Now I want to discuss matters regarding the measures to overcome those problems from my experiences. These measures would cost nothing and can easily be taken but it depends on the goodwill of the football administrator of the country.
India in other games.
Before discussing, I would like to explain here the situation of some other games in our Country. I think there were mere some individual performances that glorified Indian Cricket forty years ago. India as a team never brought any success in cricket before 1983. It was never played as a team game then. And the overall scenario was not up to the mark. We could not bowl fast. We could not bat against fastball. We could not field well. We had some good spinners only. We played spin well in slow track and on the other hand, the other countries except for Pakistan, (then Srilanka was not there) could not play spin bowling well. We achieved some sporadic successes in Test Cricket depending on the spinners. But, now we are able to bowl fast, bat against the fastball in fastpitch abroad also, and field athletically. So, it means that Indians can. We have the potential to perform at the highest level. And now our country rules the whole cricket world and I think it will be continued for the next twenty years. We have now a good number of world-class cricketers. I think it was possible for IPL Tournament. Though it is limited to cricket, still it created a tremendous impact on the youth cricketers to perform in other formats also. Now an upcoming Indian cricketer gets the chance to play about eighteen matches with world-class performers in IPL Tournament. They have been practicing with the world’s top-class cricketers for three months every year. So when this Indian player plays an International match, he is not afraid of them. They have been automatically groomed and well acquainted with the temperament of top-class cricket.
Forty years ago our hockey team was the best. But now they did not even qualify for the world cup. Australia, Germany, Holland, and England easily beat us. It means, though we had potential in Hockey, we lost it gradually. The other countries adapted significantly to the changes in the game. But we did not change our style of play in Astro-Turf. Ultimately we lost our position. Our glory was lost. Now we are below 10 in ranking. It is a matter of dismay.
Significantly we are now able to perform in some individual games like Badminton, Boxing, Wrestling, Shooting at the highest level. The players, in these games, are nurtured in Academy, where they get world-class training facilities. The players, who can afford the cost of an Academy, are grown up and perform well in World-class competition. It means we have the world-class ability to perform if we are groomed up properly.
The Role of ISL
So why can’t we achieve the same success in football? Now ISL has been playing for the last seven years. Still, we are far from a success and our ranking is gradually lowering. We have seen many football coaches from different countries in the last thirty years. We have seen Spanish, English, Italian, and Brazilian Coaches in ISL teams.
I believe that the standard of our ISL is just at par with the fourth Division of La Liga, EPL, French, Serie-A, or Bundesliga or at par with the third Division of other European League. Is it a matter of despair? I think not at all.
Some football fans call this ISL a football circus. Initially, many aged players came and played in ISL. It lasted for two seasons. The organizers had no options then. They used those aged Merkie footballers just to promote a newly born Football League in an underdeveloped football country. Then the scenario has been changing and top-class performances were viewed in ISL, especially last year. Initially, we did not have enough quality Indian footballers to play in ten teams of ISL and ten teams of I-League. So the quality players were shared in ISL and I-League both. The organizer of both the leagues had to compromise. We need a pool of four hundred players to run these two leagues side by side.
Now we have enough good footballers. Now we have a pool of more than four hundred good footballers. It is a positive sign for Indian football and it was possible for ISL. ISL spent huge money on quality Indian footballers also. About four hundred Indian footballers earned an amount of more than one Crore in the last four years. The number of footballers earned in Crore is much greater than in any other sport in India. I think, more than fifty Indian players earned more than 10 Crores from ISL. It is much greater than the average income of a successful white-collar job holder like a Doctor, Engineer, Bureaucrat, or other professional. So a silver lining is found in the desperate situation and it is possible for ISL.
Philosophy of Indian football.
Can we able to define Indian football in a single word? I think, no will be the appropriate answer. We can define some football-playing countries in a word. Brazilian football can be described as the best example of attacking football. They believe that attack is the best defense. Dutch football can be described as total football. The Dutch players are able to play in every position except Goalkeeper. Spanish football is a combination of pass and support style of play. German football is known for its fighting spirit with power and never give up mentality. Argentina plays compact midfield-oriented football keeping balance in attacking and defensive zone. English play the high pressing game with high intensity now. They left their kick and run the football. Italy plays counterattack-based organized defensive football which is most popularly known as the Catenaccio system or door-bolt system. But Indian football has no specific style of play.
So which country should we follow and why we should follow them?
Our country is a big country with diversity in culture, food habits, languages, religions, etc. On the other hand, every European country is small in the area with one speaking language. They can easily build up a football culture around the country. The populace of the European country is very negligible compared to India. The infrastructural supports, logistic supports per hundred footballers in those countries are far better than our country in every respect. For Example, a group of twelve boys in Germany is trained by one Licensed Coach and two trained assistant coaches. It is not more than fourteen in every European country. But in India, the ratio is 40: 1.
So if we desire, should follow Germany, it would not be realistic. In fact, we should not adopt the philosophy of any other developed football country. We have to just take the right philosophy and system which would be suitable for our players. Every good feature of developed countries should be grabbed first and molded for using it in Indian climates and cultures.
We always talk about infrastructure. But we don’t know what this infrastructure actually means. Everyone discusses some ingredients/accessories like a cone, marker, mannequin, board, stick, etc. as infrastructure. But actually, the infrastructure primarily needed is a playable ground, secondly the boys of the same age group, and thirdly a knowledgeable Coach. I think these are easily available in our country.
Now I just would like to remind everyone that Belgium is now the No 1 position in FIFA ranking and this country just jumped to the no. 1 position from 66, in the last 20 years. Belgium, a small European country, spent twenty years reaching the no. 1 position from 66.
What is the vision of Belgium's philosophy for the development of football? The vision of Belgium's philosophy for the development of football is very simple. It is based on one plan, one vision & one mission for the whole nation.
Coach education is the keyword for their development. All types of coaches like the head of coaches, academy coaches, regional coaches, referees, talent coaches, children coaches, and school coaches will follow the same principle and objective. They meet, collaborate, exchange their experiences, and share their views in the same direction.
Their coaches are asked to stop thinking about their teams. The coaches are asked not to take care of winning the game only. They are asked to start thinking about the individual players. Their main focus is on performance. They do focus on support to develop players, especially creative players.
Their motto is that no talented player can be missed. The coach will only be a mentor with a helping hand. They coach to develop today for performing tomorrow. Their approach is always player-centric. They believe that leadership quality will grow bottom-up. The jobs of the coaches are as elevators and coaches are to give children roots to grow and wings to fly.
They believe that the freedom of play is a license for all creativity. Their philosophy is that every child is born full of creativity. During the development stages, winning every stage, they have an emphasis on the development of technical, tactical, physical, and mental skills according to age and level. Step by step, they begin to see the process. They take the game as a tool, not a goal. It is not about winning but about learning. Their philosophy is never they lose; they win, or they learn.
A win is not their main objective. They develop beliefs, and values to change behavioral attitudes to sustain their Culture. They emphasize quality control of coach education and implementation of realistic coaching. They seem, that the coach is not the norm, the player is the norm. The coaching switch is all about the individual players. They believe first of all that players are human beings. They create a free environment to maximize the playing potential. They extend physical and psychological support to their players before, during, and after the game.
They consider three pillars; Fun, Formation & Attitude. Making mistakes simply means the player is learning faster. They are instructed to avoid match coaching with a focus on the winning of the team. They are instructed to stimulate match coaching with a focus on individual development. Sometimes one wins sometimes one loses, it matters little to them. They never indulge in the unequal battle between early and late mature footballers.
They make an environment that makes talent flourish. Potential is always preferable to performance. They don’t throw away any kids. They always give them time to develop. From U- 15 team to the senior team they spread one consistent message all over the journey.
Is it very hard for us to follow Belgium's philosophy? I don’t think so, because Belgium's philosophy is nothing but the basic principle of football learning which every developed football country follows. Nothing is new in it. It is plain and simple. But in India, the implementation of this philosophy is very tough.
We got success in Cricket in this way without following any other counties. Now we must get success in football also without adapting any country’s philosophy. We have to build up our own philosophy. We should take only the guidance of football experts from a single particular country of Europe for a long time. Some believe that India is a sleeping giant in football and I hope it will come true.
But what will be the philosophy of Indian football?
Football is played in different styles and formations in different states in our country. Punjab plays kick and runs football style, and Uttar Pradesh plays hit and run. Goa is fond of playing small passes, while Bengalis love dribbling. South Indians love mid-field-oriented wing play whereas the North East States are fond of continuous running. The National team consists of players from all the states. So what will be the style of play of the Indian National Team?
In my opinion, our country needs to be synchronized, possession-based, and consistent with performance-based philosophy. Passion, talent-hunting, and the right philosophy can help Indian football develop. India, with immense talent and passion for football, needs a positive environment, the right quality, and a number of matches. Two major Leagues, ISL and I-League have to be worked together in a system where all clubs co-exist. We should implement it across age groups, starting from the grass-root level, more specifically from six years. We have to make a database of kid footballers, so that age manipulation can be prevented.
We need to improve the coaching system and coach-education learning from the past. We need to focus on the same philosophy for the entire nation. We have to discuss, find the solution, and implement the same as a nation, obeying that philosophy. All the budding players bind to play with the same philosophy. The entire system should not breach its philosophy for an individual. We have to emphasize on principle-based coaching system like in a real match. Indian coaches should be given more opportunities of coaching in all levels.
We can’t play high intensity and high pressing football at a stretch, but we can play safe and the match is won by the team who played safe.
Role of Indian Coach.
I think there is no basic difference between U-10 level footballers. I have found many promising players in U-8 and in U-10 also. We have more quality kids than any other country at the grass-root level. Then the players’ performance deteriorates. The role of the coach is very vital here. In India, a coach generally nurtures 40 footballers of mixed age groups. This practice should be stopped first.
The Belgium model starts with the U-6 kids. The kids are allowed to play 1 V 1 first. They are allowed to dribble, run with the ball, and score only. The coach never instructs them so that the kids can enjoy the freedom of play. The duty of the coach is to look for creative players. They all have scored goals. In this age group, the kids only think about themselves and not about their team. The kids are allowed to play 2 V 2. One of the two kids is Goalkeeper. They prepare six pitches and each team is allowed to play for six minutes. Then the team and pitch are changed. Thus they can play against different players with maximum time. In this way, they train them for two years. Then the U-8 & U-9 kids are allowed to play 3 V 3.
What they learn in 2 v 2 and 3 v 3 games they now apply in 5 V 5 single diamond system. The concept of passing when dribbling is not possible is introduced. The passion for football is created at this stage. The laws of the game are also taught. In this way, they train them for two years. Then the U-10 & U-11 kids are allowed to play 8 V 8 in a double diamond system. After four years they switch to 11 v 11 games. Then there are five defenders and five scorers. The kids are allowed to play four quarters + time out (After 1st quarter and 3rd quarter). After every quarter all substitute players come within the field. In this way, all the players play at least 50% of the playing time. The size of the pitch, when the kids started was 20 Yards*12 Yards.
Then it gradually increases. In this way, they bind all different stages into a developing line. Everything will be the same but the change is in the size of the jersey. In Belgium's training method, learning is a compilation or accumulation of previous experiences. Football is a brain sport, it is not merely a body contact game in Belgium. So they develop the brain of a kid from the beginning. The players come to play the game. So they are given the opportunity of playing games. Without losing a single player during the course of the journey, the entire training procedure is continued.
Is it very difficult to follow this principle of learning in any country? Actually in a small country, with a single speaking language, it is easily developed. In India, it is very difficult. But I think it is not for the size and diversity of our country, the coaches are very much responsible for this. Most Indian coaches focus on winning and winning by unfair means also. They even indulge in corrupt practices like age cheating and it is very common in Indian football. As a result, we use to lose the promising kids before blooming because of this unequal battle of actual aged and forged age.
I think if we scrutinize the system or philosophy or school of thought of different countries, then we find that the basics are almost the same. We should not indulge enough in tactics, fitness level, mental condition, etc. at the junior level. We have to emphasize on their individual freedom, individual skill development, scouting talents and player for the future, and give them sufficient time to grow up, to bloom with a specific attitude following the ultimate philosophy of playing for the nation.
So we should emphasize bringing all types of coaches under the same umbrella. Frequent exchange of experiences amongst themselves, and collaboration of thoughts, will develop a football culture of a specific style and type throughout the nation. We should avoid the ego-centric renowned football persons, who are always engaged in bullying others and trying to be in the searchlight of media. Most of them are still in their playing ages. They always try to judge everything with respect to their time frames. Some of them feel jealous of the boys getting opportunities in modern football and present status of successful players.
We just follow the above process step by step consistently to sustain success. To follow a particular country, whichever may be, will not be appropriate for us for different reasons. We did not play in World Cup football. We are not among the leading football countries in Asia. There is a dearth of a good number of trained coaches. But we have a huge number of talents. So we should emphasize the basics with those talents for ten years as the primary step.
It is unfortunate to say that our licensed coaches, attaining the license, forgot the aim of the coach education program. They forgot what they were taught in the course. They use to behave like a driver, who while training was several rules and techniques, drives in his own style and breaks the traffic rule in a frequent manner. The educated coaches are just following the car driver. Most of coaches have no specific plan for coaching. They just come and start training. They behave mostly like a physical trainer. They spend most of their coaching time in physical exercises without the ball. They use to do it in grass root level also. They are more familiar with static ingredients than football. The coach sometimes forgets his main ingredient which is football. As a result, most of the kids lost their interest in football and they are forced to leave the game.
But the coaches were taught a different thought. We are lacking not only in good coaches but also in the right philosophy. According to Belgium's philosophy, without a good relationship bonding, there is no learning development possible. A coach needs to see learning through the eyes of the players. And the best coach is the best inspiration. The Coach always makes a kid feel special. This quality of a coach is his own specialty. It has an immense impact on the kids.
Now everyone in the football world watches YouTube Videos. There are thousands of videos on YouTube. The presentations of these videos are very good. Watching these videos, most of the coaches try to practice it in their school. But they never think about external factors. They never take into consideration that the climate, the weather condition, the age group, the aim, the period, etc. are different from the contents of the video he is following. His brain is already polluted by these types of football videos. He can only be properly guided by frequent exchange of experiences amongst themselves, a collaboration of thoughts, etc.
In the football world, people think that experience of higher order is knowledge. In India, there is a strong belief in everyone that the coach must be a good footballer. A footballer who played many matches for his National team has lots of experience, but he should not be placed as a knowledgeable person in the football chain. And knowledge should always be placed in higher order than experience. There are several instances in modern football where the most successful coach did not play much football at the youth level also. Presently most successful coaches are very young. They have taken a coaching career at the age of 19 or 20 years. They are now performing very well.
If this general opinion is admitted then every teacher should be a Ph.D. degree holder in the Education System also. But in our primary and secondary education system, there are so many knowledgeable teachers, who did not have a graduation degree. They might be called less qualified but they built so many successful careers. The subject of football is not like Rocket Science. It only needs knowledge and that knowledge might be acquired by anyone, who is intelligent, passionate, and with a pleasant personality.
Coaching is nothing but the subjective application of objective knowledge because subjective knowledge is true for everybody. If it is not true for everybody, it is an opinion. Coaching knowledge is such a thing that is the same for every coach. Playing football is practical and an ex-footballer may perform better in this practical, but everything else except playing football is theory. The ex-footballer may not be the best in this field. One’s subjective opinion is theory but it is of little value. So intelligence should be welcomed. Our mission is to improve football coaches, the level of coaching in football.
In the football world, there are always some heated debates. No one easily admits that two plus two makes four. Everyone has the trend to disagree with everything other than him. No one is flexible. There are some incompetent coaches, who are unaware of the fact that they don’t know. They never try to anticipate external factors. They never evaluate their experiences. They don’t know that theory can’t be evolved without critical evaluation. They always evaluate their players, not their coaching style. Coaching is constant and players are variable to them. They have one-season experience and they repeat it for years to years. They survive only by changing their job from one club to another club.
We have to eliminate these types of coaches. We have to hand over the baton to the mature and stable person who has sound football knowledge and focuses on our philosophy. He may be less experienced but knowledge is a must criterion.
In our country, we have 437 AIFF Grassroot Leaders, 43 AIFF E License Coaches, 5775 AIFF D License Coaches, 285 AIFF C License Coaches, 329 AFC B License Coaches, 22 AFC PRO License Coaches, 21 AFC Goalkeeper Level 3 Coaches. The data has been collected from the AIFF website. It might be that there are some overlapping and some coaches, who did not register yet. Most of the coaches have no work. They got training spending their hard-earned money. Those who got jobs get a very poor honorarium. It is a more astonishing matter that more than 95% of coaches were not experienced, footballers. The experienced footballers are either less interested in coaching or licensing process is very hard for them. But these experienced ex-footballers had been easily engaged in club coaching before the introduction of licensing process. Someone says the language is the main bar for licensing courses. But I think if a regional language is introduced, the scenario will not be changed.
Proper Scouting.
To search out those talents, proper scouting is necessary. In India scouting is a new concept. Here it is done in a most casual manner. There are no professional scouts in any club or any team in our country.
The players are called to a trial. No match performance is considered. The coaches and officials play the role of a scout. Sometimes big players send the names and those players are placed in the squad without showing performance. No one knows the minimum norms for finding the player who has the potential for the higher or next level.
I believe that some of the best talents may not even be playing for a club or a grass-roots team. At least three competitive matches are required to find a talented player. But we always select players from trials. Trial means gathering lots of footballers. There are promising footballers, tested footballers, and also some mediocre ones. Most of them are from different age groups. We select players from those five hundred footballers in a most unscientific way. Generally, in this process, the coaches always look for height and they eliminate the promising young player, who is skillful but not well built. This is just because the fact that coach did not watch him. The best potential may be overlooked. Thus most of the young players are nipped in the bud by the so-called coach cum scout.
Some of the European countries followed this principle of finding height first in the recent past and they faced a huge setback in the long run. Now the developed countries leave this concept of finding footballers with height. If the height is the ultimate, then the football world is dominated by the Scandinavian countries. There are no scopes for Mexico, Spain, or Argentina. The football world could never see Maradona if he was eliminated for height in his childhood. If only power is considered then the African countries will rule over the football world. We could never see Lionel Messi, as he was some hormone deficiency in his childhood and he was treated properly.
In India, football agents play the role of a scout, and the former player plays the role of a scout and earns a commission from the club for supplying footballers. They are not salaried. They are just like a Commission Agent. In Europe a leading club has about seven hundred scouts, can we imagine?
We have seen that the nonresidential Indians in different countries are able to play quality football. So it is established that the Indians have the ability to play quality football at the highest level. We just have to find the unpolished diamond and polish them properly.
We always criticize our footballers. But no one tries to understand that the developed football countries are far ahead of us and we can’t reach their standard overnight. Japan has taken a 100 years project in football. We know that Japan is the most disciplined country in the world. Still, it has no remarkable performance in football. They just qualify regularly in World Cup and have been eliminated in the first round. (Except once).
The bodies of average Indian kids are very flexible. I think every Indian kid can perform a dance. This quality is an inborn quality found in an average Indian kid. I have watched several dance programs on Television and watching the dance performances, I am simply overwhelmed. Football also needs a flexible body, which the Indian kids have. While scouting, this quality is to be judged and taken into consideration. These kids will be trained easily in football techniques.
Academy
We see that nowadays academies/football schools are built in India by some leading football clubs of Europe. But these types of academies/football schools are nothing but commercial ventures of that club and part of their business policy. In this process, their clubs will be benefited but not Indian Football.
No European club deputes their scouts in the South East Asian countries. If they have the motto of developing Indian football, instead of establishing an academy in India they may scout Indian kids and train them in their own academy. But they never did it. They might also have a philosophy but their philosophy does not suit India. So I think that it’ll have negative effects on our national team in the long run.
Now many academies/football schools are established by the Indians also. But they are also doing business like the foreign clubs. The use of drugs in the adolescent period is now a very common phenomenon in North-East states and Punjab, Haryana. The working parents have no time for their children. They know that their children will never be a Doctor, Engineer, or Academician. Hence some of the guardians send their children to these football schools just to detach them from the filthy atmosphere and just to engage them in Sports. We could not get any quality footballer from these academies/football schools. In this way, the parents like to get rid of the daily life tension.
But now Reliance Foundation is doing very well. It has been performing just like MRF Pace Academy in cricket. We need more academies like Reliance foundation instead of commercially running Minerva Punjab. In India, such types of hundred academies are to be established. It is not very difficult in India. There are so many Commercial houses, that want to spend money but they are afraid of spending money in this unprofessional football environment in India.
Academy is a must because the footballers are nurtured in a disciplined manner to some extent in the academy only. Highly developed football countries are welcomed but they should not be allowed to spread their philosophies. If we allow them to follow our own philosophy then it will be beneficial to our nation. Otherwise different philosophies of different countries create conflicts at every level and will have negative impacts and spoil our national team in the long run.
Now time is very short. We can ask our Govt. to allocate money for fifty promising kids and send them to different football schools in a particular country. If I have to prescribe them, they should be sent to Belgium, because Belgium has developed tremendously in the last twenty years.
There are other types of football institutions that may be termed coaching camps. Actually, these types of coaching camps are playing a key role in Indian Football. Academy accreditation is a major thing and accreditation is taken to run it commercially. It is the actual fact because if the academy has accreditation, then the packaging will be lucrative. But if we encourage these coaching camps then it will be beneficial more. If all the kids are registered through its coaching camp, and when he will be selected for a club or academy, these coaching camps must be paid for that transfer. As most of these coaching camps are run by a devoted football lover, he must be paid an honorarium for scouting the potential.
The Sports Authority of India did a commendable job in football, especially in the North East States. We got T Aao, our Football Captain from the North-East states Then Akum and Kiran Khongsai performed well in the national level. But these North East States were out of National Football Map. Whenever SAI started its operation, the North East States are the main supply line of Indian Football. But I think; now SAI has been running in a casual manner. All the coaches are doing their jobs like other Government employees. Their scouting process is very bad. Most of the players are selected by recommendation. SAI may provide national-level footballers but we should expect international footballers from SAI.
Tata Football Academy initially performed a great job in Indian Football. But now it is running casually. The facilities of training for international level have been withdrawn. Perhaps the management had lost their Focus. I just want to remind everyone that I M Vijayan and Bhaichung Bhutia were not scouted for Tata Football Academy. These two instances are sufficient to prove the problem in Scouting in our country.
Relation between coach and players.
So many Educational reforms took place in our country. Some of those reforms were very good; some of them were not so good. We know why kids dropped out; we know why kids did not learn. We know, it is either for poverty or negative peer influences.
Recently a new Educational reform is accepted. The outer world is changing continuously. Today will be back-dated tomorrow. But can we ignore values, relationships, and human bonding? We rarely discuss the values and importance of human connection and relationships amongst the kids. We should not forget that no significant learning can occur without significant relationships. Learning is nothing but understanding relationships. Kids don’t learn from people they don’t like.
In the football academy, we have to recruit knowledgeable football coaches who can build relationships amongst the kids of different states, of different castes and creeds. If it is not followed, our national team will not succeed.
So it is the first job to find out those people who have passions for football and dream of football. Football coaching is not like other jobs. A football coach will always coach the kids in a joyful manner. A football coach must be analytical and critical of himself. He praises them for their goods, never criticizes their bad, challenges the players but extends supportive hands to them to achieve their targets. He always uses football language and is careful about their individual problems.
He always maintains what he preaches. He always tries to be a role model like a champion and behaves what he expects from his students. He encourages them to take risks, to think anew. He tries to make a difference in every aspect.
Now, what do I mean by “behave what I expect from my students”. Every teacher expects that his students would reach in time, they are properly dressed, the students do not make any noise during sessions, and the students do not use mobile phones during classes. His students will not be allowed to leave the class without valid reason and to be absent without prior information etc. These are the minimum expectations of a coach from his students. Now if the coach himself does not follow the same then the discipline would not be maintained and the kids do not obey me.
Now, what do I mean by “encourages them to take risks, to think anew”. In my opinion, improvisation is the keyword in football. Nothing new would have happened without improvisation. Football is a game of deception also. A coach should always encourage the kids to do something new, even taking risks.
Isolated method of training vs football technique training.
There is an age-old debate between coaches of two different schools of thought. One school of thought believes that technique training should take place in football training and the coaches belong to other schools of thought believe in isolated technique training. It is going for many decades in the football world. It is nothing but opinions against opinions or experience versus experience. Both the school of thought had been theorized. So the conflict is theory versus theory also.
Technique in football means executing a decision and not just executing a technique like in. There is no ideal stereotype technique because each game situation is different. In their whole life, they will never pass the ball twice in the same way, because the circumstances and the opponents are always just slightly different compared to last time. And these circumstances, opponents are called external factors. External factors are variable with respect to space and time.
In an isolated training situation without opponents, a player does not have to make a decision. They believe that children have to start with isolated technique training before they can do more complex football training. As it is obvious that there must be some external factors, in the isolated method these external factors are absent.
So players should develop football techniques in football situations because football technique means the execution of a decision. Players are not challenged and as a result, will not improve their passing. A child is not mature enough to take innovative decisions when he faces a challenge at that stage. He has been puzzled in matching realistic situations and committed mistakes.
A good footballer must have the following qualities while playing. The qualities are mainly
a) awareness b) scanning capacity c) peripheral vision d) dribbling technique e) receiving with a perfection f) good first touch g) art of body feinting/deceiving h) sense of passing safe side/safe foot i) sense of the weight of the pass j) concept of goal side and ball side k) sense of off the ball running l) concept of team formation m) application of offside rule n) his role in combination play p) strength of chasing or hard pressing in high-intensity gamer) the technique of avoiding the marker s) ability of transition to attack and defense t) improvisation against opponent u) shooting and heading capacity avoiding the opponents and v) power of taking momentary decision.
A goalkeeper must have the following qualities.
i) Timely outing power ii) good gripping technique iii) good distribution technique and iv) good reflex.
Developing those qualities in the isolated method is not possible. A mannequin can’t jump, tackle or run or act likes a footballer. So how do the kids learn what is tackling distance in the isolation method? A cone is not like a defender. So how do the kids learn how to chase or how to dribble past a footballer.
On the other hand, practicing in isolation may develop some bad habits. The habit of looking up while running with the ball will never be grown in the kids. The habit of calling/signaling teammates is not grown in the kids. No action in a football match is repetitive. So motor skills, the life-long companion of a footballer, have not been developed in isolation. As the kids do not face any problems in isolation, decision-making power can’t be developed.
The kids must be trained in a method where the brain, sensors, and motor system are synchronized. Practice in isolation is a stereotyped training process, and there is no scope of developing creativity power. The player will be predictable and no sense of team game is grown. He has no concept of the five “W”s ( Who, What, Where, When, Why). If the kid is able to solve problems, he will be motivated. But isolation method does not support him. Without an opponent, goalkeeping and situation practice are meaningless. In a single word, Practice in isolation is of no use in comparison to matching realistic practice. As there is no direction or aim to win, it can’t be a fruitful training method.
On the other hand, for those players who struggle even in the most simplified football situation, isolated technique training is the perfect exception to the rule.
So, we have to maintain the balance between the Isolation method of training and technique training. We should avoid isolation training up to the junior level. Small-sided games are the only method to develop technique and skills up to the junior level. I think the dribbling technique and receiving technique vary from player to player. The player did it in his own style. This style had been developed and it could not be incorporated from outside. At the junior level, these two qualities may differentiate two players.
Then we may have introduced an isolated training method for polishing the technique more. The isolation method is useful for a warm-up and pre-season conditioning also.
Written By: ©️ Jatin Tyagi
https://jatintyagiinfo.data.blog/2020/10/26/indian-football-my-view-%ef%b8%8fjatin-tyagi/
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