Extra Time - Skill Acquisition and Technical Development Interview - West Canada Soccer Academy

The Inner Huddle - The Football (Soccer) Development Podcast for Parents & Coaches of Young Aspiring Players

During quarantine I was asked if I would do a video interview for the West Canada Soccer Academy as part of their Player Development Master Class Series as a technical development expert.

I was interviewed by my old friend Jason Blake who I worked with at Southampton FC. Jason went onto work at AFC Bournemouth, Burnley and now is Technical Director at the West Canada Soccer Academy and Red Deer Dome.

The audio was taken for this Extra Time (The Inner Huddle) podcast and all 15 questions with timings are below. I hope you enjoy it.

1. (2:40) We know each other from when we both worked at Southampton FC. Can you just give us a little insight to who you are and your journey that’s got you to where you are today from a coaching point of view, and what’s really got yourself a good knowledge and experience around technical development?

2. (5:50) When we were young we used to play in the street. What does street soccer look like now for young players?

3. (8:39) With your background of working in the pre academy at Southampton FC, how young does that go down to initially?

4. (9:03) With players of that age what would you be encouraging the players to be doing in the foundation phase and pre academy?

5. (11:03) At the risk of name dropping, I want to mention some of the players I know you’ve done some work with, 3 England Internationals, Adam Lallana, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain & Jay Rodriguez. With Adam Lallana in mind, how would talk about the basics of what Adam did with you and how does it trace back to work you would do with a 6 or 7 year old?

6. (14:41) How important is technical competence to help you through the challenges of maybe not being a physical size yet when you’re playing against people that are perhaps a bit bigger?

7. (18:32) Can we pick your brains about futsal and also what would the main reason be to use futsal balls as opposed to normal soccer balls?

8. (21: 25) If grass roots clubs are training in a school gym or sports hall, is that sufficient to do futsal training?

9. (23:04) Is there a difference in the type of ball used for futsal and does it make a difference when learning new skills and practicing them?

10. (24:30) How appropriate is technical training across all age groups, is it equally important regardless of what age they re up to adults?

11. (27:53) With regards to pitch sizes, we have a wide range of size within the FIFA regulations for 7 v 7 pitches. What are the benefits or challenges of being on the smaller side of the regulations?

12. (32:41) For the younger players in our region, how should they think about their technical development depending on the position they play in?

13. (37:30) A three part question: When is it ok to teach children tricks with the ball? Once we learn those new tricks how can we be confident enough to do them in games? How can we as players train during quarantine time so that we can keep getting better?

14. (40:46) For the older players that might be a central defender should they be given a different type of technical work during this period?

15. (45:37) Summary for coaches, parents and players and key messages to take away.

If you have any further questions then please contact me at [e-mail] or visit www.pezzazstreetsoccer.com