Activity

Hi Guys. I’m Jack from Happy Camper Live and I’m your soccer counselor. Today I’m going to teach you about control. There are 2 different types of control to talk about: Control coming down from the air, and control coming from the ground. These will work in game situations. A lot of times in soccer you’ll see the ball coming over the top and you’ll need to control it. Likewise, you’ll see the ball coming to your feet and need to control it that way also. When the ball is coming through the air, the ball will probably be spinning a little bit and moving, which means you have to adjust your body. You also need to figure out which surface of your body you’re going to be using. There are two main things you can use when the ball is coming through the air: Your thigh or your foot. Both are done in a way where you take away the momentum of the ball. There are two surfaces you can use on your foot: The inside or the top of your foot. To control with your thigh, your body has to be set because if it isn’t, the ball will bounce in directions you don’t want. When the ball comes to you, lift your leg up to a 90 degree angle and let it bounce straight up off your thigh. If your thigh is too far down, the ball will bounce too far in front. If your thigh is too far up, it will bounce over your shoulder. To control with the instep of your foot, you want your leg again at a 90 degree angle. To control with the top of your foot, you want to follow the ball backward as you receive it and bring it down. When the ball is in the air, you should follow it with your eyes the whole time. Don’t take your eyes off the ball and adjust your body to wherever the ball is going to be. When controlling the ball from the ground, you need to check over your shoulders to see where the defenders and your own teammates are. When receiving the ball, you want to use the instep of your foot stop the momentum of the ball. You aren’t trying to pass it, you’re just using your foot as a block to stop the ball. I’m your soccer counselor, Jack, from Happy Camper Live, kicking off with Soccer.