Filed under: Dave Clarke, Soccer Coaching, Soccer Fitness, Soccer Skills, Soccer Training | Tags: charlie davies, fast feet, michael bradley, pierre barrieu, running with the ball, team usa, US national team
By Dave Clarke
Fast feet, dribble, pass then finish. Now that would be impressive, but follow my tips for giving players fast feet, then get them to do the drill at the end from Pierre Barrieu the fitness coach for the US national team and you will find your players are able to do this on match days.
1. Obstacles
Use cones, kit bags, flag poles, players bodies, tracksuits and balls. Put them all on the ground as alternatives to specialist ladders. Make the players move through these obstacles, making sure they do not step on any.
2. Fast feet adventure courses
Set up courses which require lots of different footwork skills. Each player can be timed over the course, with seconds added for failure to complete a section correctly. For instance station one could be jumping back and forward over a kit bag six times, followed by a zig-zag through cones, then running backwards through some poles.
3. Slow, fast, slow
Sometimes footwork can become repetitive, without challenging the player. Change the rhythm of the footwork session by changing the pace of the activity. A fast foot exercise can be made harder by using small hurdles or poles laid flat on the ground and players have to go at different speeds through them.
Watch this clip of Pierre Barrieu the fitness coach for the US national team, with Charlie Davis and Michael Bradley from the US team. You can set this up and play it with your team:
