Football is a sport played and watched in every corner of the world. A football player will proudly be able to say, “yes, I play football”. Wherever you are, you will be able to find a pitch, football, and players. However, it takes a lot to make it to the international level and play for your country. But have you ever wondered if you have the skills and desire to be a professional soccer player? Well, here are the top 14 skills and tips that will make a successful footballer.
1. Be passionate to be a great football player
Some play for fun, whereas others play to earn. It would be best if you played for fun and to make a living out of it. If you have decided that you want to be a professional football player and want the world to watch the ball dance in your feet, strive for it. Be dedicated. Don’t change your mind again and again.
You should have that burning feeling inside you to do whatever it takes and stand out from the crowd. Be confident in yourself and look for opportunities to go for scouting. If you have this attitude, I assure you that the stadium will be full of people chanting your name one day. However, this shouldn’t be your desire; what you want is to have football skills that everyone will admire.
2. Know about the football player rules
If you have watched the professionals play, you probably will know the rules of how the game is played. But the question here is, do you know all the necessary football rules. Let’s say you’re just playing with your friends and you are fooled, but you don’t know much about the rules of the game, and hence you will not even be able to argue back. Maybe your opponent is not playing a fair game and just trying to take a free-kick. Therefore, you must study the rules before you step into the pitch. Knowing the rules is the key to a great football player.
3. Find a team
Most people nowadays want to be a successful football player but cannot find a team to play with/for because you can’t become an outstanding player just by playing in the back of your yard or the streets. Although you can showcase your skills by playing in the streets, remember that you want to be a successful footballer by playing full time. Playing with a team helps to motivate and improve your game to the next level as there are now other people with similar interests around you. Then you may have a chance to be recruited for international football or at least play for the national team of your country.
4. Have a football jersey
Every athlete has a proper kit and shoes to play the game they are interested in. A football player needs a jersey and the relevant football shoes according to the type of surface they will be playing in. without these items, football will be incomplete. At professional level football, you are provided all these items. However, if you have just started playing football, you will have to invest in these items by yourself. Not all of us are financially stable, so that you can ask for help from your family, relative, or friend.
5. Set goals for yourself
Goals are what keep you going on. In order to achieve even the smallest thing in life, we need to set an aim. Especially when you want to be a football player, you need to invest your energy wisely.
For example: if you are currently playing for an academy, you need to plan out your next goal, which can be having specific skills before you play for some other club. When you know what you’re supposed to be doing next, you’ll be able to work day and night for it. However, it is essential to remember that you have realistic goals. You cant start playing for an academy today and expecting to be playing in a world cup tomorrow. Having realistic goals also makes you have realistic approaches. This is the main quality of a successful football player.
6. Training is important
The most common mistake players make is that they do not repeat the drill again and again. As a quote says, “practice makes perfect.” Keep training until you become the god in it.
This may sound like an exaggeration, but to become a successful football player, you need to train, train, train again, and keep training. As Ronaldo, Messi, Mbappe, Ozil, Pepe, and Ibrahimovich, the most famous football players in the world, they all train until they master it and then apply the same skills in their game. This is what makes them outstanding and the pros of football. This makes players all around the world desire the skills they have. It would help if you always learned more in order to stand out.
7. Listen to the advice given by others
You need to able to listen to people pointing out your mistakes because they know something is wrong. Once you know your weakness, work on it. Practice it. Don’t repeat the same mistake. Most importantly, listen to coaches because they will only give you the advice to improve your game. You won’t be losing anything. You’ll only gain from this.
While you’re playing the game, the most important factor for a football player is the listening skill. Listen to what other players are saying. Do what they say. Don’t show them attitude and nag about the advice they suggest. However, you’re not always supposed to listen to them because everyone can talk and just say things, but you should know which things you’re supposed to listen to from one year and remove them from the other and which things you should work on.
8. Have the proper support system
It is important that you have the right people around you who push you to strive for your dreams and just do what it takes. The right people will not just motivate you when you are feeling down but also celebrate with you on your victories and help you get back on track when you are distracted from your goals. This can be summed up by the saying the people you hang out with say a lot about who you are.
9. Keep your body fit
Exercise, exercise, exercise! This is the most crucial part of good performance. The more fit your body is, the better you perform. Other than eating well, it would help if you also focused on working out regularly. The least you can do to maintain a healthy body is to go jogging at least five days a week so that you do not lose the stamina you have built all this time. Physical fitness is important as it promotes strong muscles and bones. It improves your overall health making you more active, and reduces the risk of sicknesses and diseases like cancer and diabetes. It also helps you to maintain your weight.
10. Do not smoke
Most people think that they can play football and also smoke. If you want to be a successful football player, QUIT SMOKING NOW! Smoking prevents oxygen from reaching your brain, heart, and muscles, making it difficult for athletes to breathe when they run for a long time. Hence this reduces a player’s stamina. Not only does this reduce stamina, but it also increases the chances of injuries.
11. Give rest to your body
When your body does not get enough rest, there are more chances of an injury—affecting your mental and physical health. Being a football player, your health should be your utmost priority. If you are injured in a game, the first thought in your mind may be to just forget about it and continue playing. No, absolutely not. This will only result in costing you and your team. If you think you are injured and need attention, you should immediately inform the coach and let the professional doctor look at it.
12. Eating unhealthy
Once in a while, we all crave some unhealthy food or drinks. It can be anything: fizzy drinks, pizza, burgers, or chocolates. Eating unhealthy makes you put on some unnecessary body weight making it difficult for you to perform well in your matches. On the other hand, if you eat healthy food, you won’t even gain unnecessary weight and also be full of strength while showcasing your skills.
The most admired players such as Cristiano have added powerful diets into their daily lifestyles. He is one of the greatest football player. However, you don’t need to eat healthy every day. It’s okay to have some fun once in a while. Out of all seven days, you can have a day off and enjoy life. But just once a week.
13. Attend training camps
You may not get a chance to attend one of the top training camps, but you can still learn a lot from the local ones. Moreover, many of these camps look for promising talents. However, if you’re not selected, don’t feel bad about it as some people don’t even get the chance to go to a training camp. Also, don’t forget that there is always a next time. Go home and think about the mistakes you made, analyze them, and think about what you can do to fix them. This way, you will be able to perform better in the next tryouts, and you may even get selected. And one day, become a great football player.
14. Patience
Patience is the key to success for a football player. If the coach substitutes you for another player, be patient and observe the game instead of feeling sad about it. Look at the game from the coach’s point of view. When you watch the game while you’re sitting outside, you’ll be able to analyze the game in a different way. This way, not only will your game improve, but you can also lead the team as you may have enough knowledge about how the game works. If you can practice this, you will surely have a really bright future ahead.
