 I'm going to start with the tip that a lot of you out there probably don't want to hear and don't want to agree with but it is extremely true and if you ask anyone who plays at the top level they would agree with this, off the ball movement is more important than on the ball movement. What you do when you don't have the ball at your feet is more important than what you do when you do have the ball at your feet. You will be a more effective player if you focus on your off the ball movement because most players never even think about that, they just think about what they're doing when they do have the ball. Did you know that the average player in a professional match is on the ball for 45 seconds to 1 minute in a 90 minute match? What are they doing the other 89 minutes, the other 89 minutes and 15 seconds? What are they doing off the ball? And that's what I want to talk about and that's what you need to start thinking about. If you don't know about me I used to be a huge underachiever but through obsessive self-improvement I found my success. Earned a college scholarship, played for my national football team, a YouTube channel with over 100 million views, I've helped players worldwide and I'd love to help you improve faster and achieve more. Thinking about. Okay, so like I said what you do on the ball it's it is important, it's very important, you got to take care of that ball, you got to be direct, you got to make things happen but you're not on the ball that often during the game. Most of the time you're going to be off the ball and we got to talk about what we're doing when we're off the ball. Okay, so two things, I either want you to support the ball, get in good position to support the ball, give your your teammate an outlet so if he gets trapped he has somewhere to go or you're trying to make a forward run so we can get into attacking positions and we can create goalscoring chances for ourselves but also for our teammates. Okay, so when my teammate has the ball and he's dribbling up the field a lot of us we're just watching him. We're slowly jogging up the field or we're slowly jogging up or even worse we're just standing there, we're just watching. Okay, we're saying hey buddy you got the ball go ahead, you got this covered, no you need to get involved in the play, you got to get up the field okay and again show for those passes or make forward runs or if he gets blocked off we need to be there to support him. Okay, let's say you're playing as a center back and this fullback has the ball here. Okay, if I'm in this position this isn't good he doesn't have an outlet he can't go backwards what if he gets trapped he's screwed. Okay, so positioning is what you want to focus on when you're off the ball. Am I creating a passing angle? Am I creating an outlet especially if I'm a defensive player or a central player like the center backs or a defensive midfielder? Am I creating an outlet for him to get out of trouble or am I screwing him over because my positioning my off the ball movement isn't good? Okay, on the attacking side of things am I getting space for myself? Am I making runs showing for the ball or am I standing still and letting the opposing team defend me making their life really easy? Okay, so when you're off the ball when you don't have the ball I want you active always finding new space always moving into new space when you my teammates are going forward am I making forward runs and I'm trying to go forward if my run doesn't work if I get blocked I'm not just going to give up and never make that run again I'm going to go find new space we're always going to be constantly moving off the ball movement that's how you get involved in the play if you're not getting on the ball right now it's not because your teammates aren't passing the ball or your skills aren't good enough it's because you're not active enough you're not making forward runs you're not supporting the ball you're not switching up your runs okay you're just standing still and you're hoping for the ball rather than working on your off the ball movement getting in good positions to ensure that you increase your chances of getting the ball okay so let's talk quickly about the defensive side of things because when you're defending you're not on the ball okay and this is extremely important I talk about this all the time but a lot of us aren't doing it especially our forwards okay their team has the ball and we're just watching what are we doing off the ball can we press to win that ball can we press can we close down these spaces okay can I anticipate where the ball is going to be played and close that gap okay so off the ball movement when you don't have the ball defensively am I switched on am I thinking about okay the ball is going to come into this space a lot of us the ball is getting there and then we're reacting okay you need to be think about reading the play if you can see that he's gonna ping that ball cross view like this okay I need to anticipate and I want to get there as soon as he gets there okay so off the ball movement defensively think about your positioning okay try to read the play don't just react to the play anticipate the play okay so can you work harder defensively to win the ball back for your team working harder when you don't have the ball how hungry are you when you don't have the ball everybody wants to work hard when we do have the ball a lot of us are willing to make those four runs you might not be doing it all the time or as much as we should but we're doing it a lot more than making runs on the defensive side of things okay so think about the next time you're playing what am I going to do when I don't have the ball am I making positive runs am I always active am I showing for the ball am I making forward runs am I supporting the ball defensively is my positioning good what positioning do I need to be in right now can I anticipate the play and read where the next pass is going to go and then get there and then when the defender or the attacker does have the ball can I close them down quickly and stay with him or work really hard off the ball to win the ball back for my team to be more involved in the play the second tip I want to share with you and this is so important I see this in young players and even experience older players all the time how do you respond when you make mistakes so say you receive the ball and you lose possession what do you do after that or you have a chance to score and you miss that opportunity what do you do after that how do you respond okay everyone makes mistakes the best players in the world make mistakes they miss five yard sitters they miss three yard simple passes but what's important is how do you respond okay most players as soon as they make a mistake head is down shoulders are down body language is down their negative self talks going off everyone else is getting on them like come on man what are you doing get yourself together and they just go down and down and down and down okay the only time they play well is if they make no mistakes what happens when you make a mistake you need to respond positively if i get on the ball and i lose possession of the ball okay i shake it off right away first of all i go chase that ball down right away i win it back for my team then i get then i play simple then i focus on my first touch a lot better next time i focus on taking care of the ball playing those simple passes and i work myself into the game okay if you miss uh easy's goal scoring chance or a difficult goal scoring chance you just miss a chance okay most players after that they don't want another chance because they're afraid they're gonna miss or they don't want to even make the run to get in front of the net because they know they might miss that opportunity if you miss a goal scoring opportunity you need to be hungry for the next one because you know you're gonna get it okay it's all about this positive response everyone makes mistakes but very few players respond positively and if you can start responding positively after you make your mistakes get over it learn from it if you like this content check out the soccer success planner you can download it for free there's a link in the description below and for advanced training check out the online soccer academy and over it learn from it get on to the next one you're gonna be a much better player and you're gonna stay involved in the game what happens is most players make mistakes and then they slowly disappear from the game because again they're afraid to get on the ball they're afraid to make more mistakes don't be afraid to make mistakes making mistakes is part of the game everyone does it and when other people your teammates yell at you for making mistakes don't take it personally okay because they're going to do the same thing five minutes later and you're not going to yell at them you're going to encourage them you're going to motivate them and then the next time maybe they won't do that to you okay but if you make a mistake let's say for example you lose possession of the ball you're dribbling you get tackle you lose possession of the ball or you receive the ball you have a bad touch you lose possession of the ball I want you to chase that ball down win it back right away get that ball play simple then as soon as the next play the next opportunity I want you to go searching for that ball get the ball again ask for the ball demand the ball okay even if I screw up 10 times in a row I'm going to go 10 more times and search for that ball get that ball on my feet and I'm going to play simple play myself into the game okay so ask yourself currently how am I responding after I make mistakes after I lose possession after I make a bad pass or after I miss a scoring opportunity does my head go down do my shoulders go down do I talk negatively to myself tell myself I'm no good why would you miss a chance like that or do I pump myself up shake it off learn from it and go searching for the next opportunity the next tip is move the damn ball move this thing right here let the ball do the work and I'm talking mainly to my really talented skill technical players because I find these are always the players who are taking too long on the ball yes there's the type of player who's just they're a bit slow they're a bit nervous their touches aren't the best their decision making is not the sharpest and they're playing too slow okay they need to play a bit quicker to receive that ball pass that ball move and get it back but it's our talented players who are having the most problem with this idea it's because you have all the skill okay and you need to be honest with yourself are you this type of player are you making this mistake because they have so much skill because they have so much talent and ability they want to show that off every time they get the ball they want to impress their coaches their teammates they want to show their skill and they want to use it to create chances but the truth is these players are taking way too many touches and honestly I love defending that type of player I love coming up against that player any time that player gets the ball I love just pressing them quickly clipping at their ankles going in hard to tackles and winning the ball because they think they're because they have so much skill they have to show it off like I said and they take too many touches they're on the ball way too long okay my defender might come to press them and then I just get in there right away and what happens is they lose the ball they do it again they lose the ball their teammates start yelling at them getting down on them they start getting frustrated with themselves head goes down and they just play worse and worse and worse okay but the truth is this player is way easier to defend than the player who really keeps it simple this guy here always plays two touch he doesn't have as good of skill but when he's on the ball he just gets it he moves it he moves into space this guy's way harder to defend than this guy who has all the skill in the world but he takes too many touches and he takes way too long to make decisions okay if you're a skilled player you need to move the ball even quicker you will have chances to use your skill okay but that's going to come from playing quickly so say I receive the ball in here receive pass find new space get that ball turn play that ball find new space suddenly you'll pop up and now I have space to attack now I can take a couple touches now I can cut inside get my shot on goal okay there will be times for you to use your skill but you need to understand when to do that and when to not and mainly in the defensive third in the middle third if it's in really tight areas here I got defenders around me you need to move that ball okay have a focus on having a really good first touch move that ball then get into new space turn good first touch move that ball can you play two touch move that ball move that ball move that ball move that ball so important the next time you watch professional football I want you to count the amount of touches each player takes on the field when they do take multiple touches I want you to think about what situations or what areas they're in okay did they pick it up on the wing and they had tons of space and they didn't just take ten touches they took ten touches but they sprinted up the field cut inside and then laid off a pass or cut inside and whipped across or cut inside and took a shot okay there will be times for you to use your skill when there's open space to exploit when you're one-on-one you just have to beat one guy to get a shot off okay but the majority of the time watch professional football count the amount of touches they take and watch how fast that ball moves around the field okay if you're a talented player your skilled player realize you're going to get more of the ball if you move it quicker if you take ten touches every time you have the ball no one's going to want to pass you the ball because you're a ball hub okay so move that ball quicker let the ball do the work when you get it pass it move to get it back and you're going to be surprised at how much more you get on the ball how much more you get on the ball how much more you are involved in the play and when you do have your space yes feel free to take those touches use your skills in those dangerous areas okay but the majority of time move that damn ball i want to talk about a very important idea and i used to do this a lot when i was younger and i see players do this all the time is you slowly disappear from the game you might start the game really well like you're really involved you're on the ball you're making runs you're getting involved you're playing really well and then as the game progresses 20th minute you're getting a little less on the ball 30th minute a little less 40th minute you're nowhere to be found second half starts you might start well again 5 10 minutes is good you're sharp you're on the ball you're getting involved and then slowly 70th 80th 90th you're nowhere to be found you haven't touched the ball you're not involved in the play you're not making any tackles you're not contributing okay so in order for you to stay involved in the play for the whole game you need to do a couple things and it starts right here in your mind keeping focused okay if you're not focused on your movement on what you're doing and noticing okay i haven't touched the ball in a little bit i need to change what i'm doing i can't make the same runs i can't stay in the same spot i need to change things up i need to be more active i need to get myself involved in the game okay so try to keep a mental tab am i involved in the game right now if not i need to change that because you'll find again it usually when you're starting the game you got lots of energy you're working hard off the ball you're chasing guys down you're getting involved you're demanding the ball and then as you get a little bit tired and tired and tired you slowly slip out of the game okay so you need to number one ask yourself mentally am i involved enough am i getting involved in the play so keep your focus on being involved in the play a couple things i want you to do number one go searching for the ball if the ball is not coming to you don't expect your teammates to find you you gotta go searching sometimes you gotta change up your runs say if i'm playing a striker i might have to drop a bit deeper into the midfield to pick the ball up or if i'm out on the wing i might have to come inside to get that ball okay go searching for that ball get out of your position a little bit i would much rather you'd be out of position and get on the ball then stay in your position out there on the wing and never be involved okay your coach might not agree with that but personally if you like this content check out the soccer success planner you can download it for free there's a link in the description below and for advanced training check out the online soccer academy but personally i think you as a player you need to be involved as much as you can and there will be times when you're staying really wide and you will get involved because you're demanding the ball you're getting your width early you creating space for yourself and you're getting on the ball but if you're not getting the ball do something about it don't make the same run switch it up okay go searching for that ball on the other side of things if you're not getting involved i want you to go hunting for the ball and what i mean by hunting is on the defensive side of things okay start anticipating the play when their team has the ball they're moving it around can you anticipate where the next pass is going to go and then go hunting for that ball and when i say hunt that doesn't mean you're jogging slowly to get that ball you're sprinting after that ball you're chasing you're pressuring that guy you're forcing them to make a mistake you win the ball back for your team and then you either exploit the open space that's given to you or you get that ball you move that ball and then you start playing those little passes getting moving around again go searching for the ball getting involved in the play okay so number one mentally ask yourself am i involved enough no i need to do something about it i need to switch it up i need to stay mentally focused but i need to stay physically focused and involved with my movement okay second go searching for the ball when your team has the ball go searching find new pockets of space don't always make the same run definitely don't stand still because no one's going to give you the ball but switch your runs up so you can search for the ball get that ball on your feet then play those little passes combination play get involved in the play and finally the probably the best thing you can do if you're not getting the ball is work harder defensively go hunting for that ball okay can you chase defenders down can you chase midfielders down when your defender is closing someone can you come and double okay can you go hunting for that ball win that ball defensively and you're going to get way more involved in the play okay so think about those things think about being involved for the whole game extremely important this tip will absolutely transform the way you play if you actually use it it does work as an extremely simple piece of advice but it's so powerful and that is i want you to be extremely direct what does that mean that doesn't mean i'm just going to kick the ball at the field direct as in going one pass to beat everything i'm still trying to play nice football i'm still trying to keep possession and move the ball but whenever i have space i'm trying to attack you need to score goals to win the game okay if i'm always getting the ball i'm going backwards i'm never going to score goals so whenever you can ask yourself get a head shoulder check look over your shoulder is there space get turned can we play forward can we move forward play forward move forward play forward move forward whenever i get the ball i'm trying to attack i'm trying to be extremely direct if they're not going to close me down if they're giving me all this space i'm not going to get my head up realize their space and then jog into this space okay i already know their space i receive the ball my first touches in the space i sprint at that net if nobody closed me down i just score the goal celebrate and win the game for my team okay most of us we're getting the ball like i said we're getting turned now we got our head up now we realize their space we're still a bit hesitant we're still looking for a pass rather than going forward and being extremely direct okay so the next time you play i want you to think about if i have space i'm always going to take my first touch into space towards the net okay if i have a teammate who's open in space i'm going to get him that ball as soon as possible if you were out here and you were in this if someone was out here and you were in this position and you were in open space you wouldn't want him to take a couple touches dribble up and then make a decision you would want him to get you that ball right away okay so when you're on the ball ask yourself can i play forward and then join in the attack or if there's no passing options can i dribble forward and be very direct either get to the sideline and whip across or get in the box and get your shot off okay but i want you to think about being extremely direct every time i get the ball can i score is there a chance to score is there a chance to help my team score is there a chance to get an assist i'm always trying to play forward saying that sometimes you can't play forward sometimes i receive the ball and there's three guys on me i'm not just going to turn into trouble because dylan said to play forward no okay you got to know when to play forward and when to keep possession of that ball maybe i just play that one touch and then i go find some new space receive okay this guy's off me now i can turn now i can dribble forward now i can play that pass but try to always go forward if you can if you can keep possession of the ball try to go and get that ball again and then play forward be extremely direct go for goals at every opportunity possible i think we can agree that there's sometimes when your teammates piss you off they really frustrate you because maybe they're not playing quick enough they're not playing smart enough they're not playing hard enough they're not playing with enough energy or intensity they're not playing with enough urgency okay certain things will frustrate you and it almost feels like you can't do anything about it and maybe even worse you start expressing that frustration verbally you start yelling at them you start putting your hands up in the air moaning groaning what the hell are you doing getting really frustrated and showing this emotion okay but guess what that isn't going to make them play any better now i know like especially in like english or those uk countries of different countries real hard working football countries if a guy makes a mistake his teammates are usually like what the f are you doing man they're all over him they're verbally just tearing him apart and they think that that's going to make him play better and for some players it might okay but personally i think there's a better way to motivate your teammates and make them play the way you want to play and that is by leading by example okay so if i want my teammates to play with more energy with more intensity i need to do that i need to be pressing guys i need to be closing the gaps down i need to be getting the really tense going in hard for tackles if my teammates see me doing that then they're gonna get a little pump of energy they're gonna say hey if he can do that i can do that or if he's gonna do that for the team i'm gonna do that for the team okay so instead of getting down on your teammates lead by example as well when you're on the ball if i'm on the ball i'm making sharp touches i'm playing quick passes i'm moving on the ball if you like this content check out the soccer success planner you can download it for free there's a link in the description below and for advanced training check out the online soccer academy