One of the reasons to play sports is the excitement of winning. It takes more than dreams to win. Read these tips to become a great soccer player. All you have to do is get your ball and put these tips into practice.

If a defender is closing the distance between the two of you, it is time to pass your ball. Keep possession of the ball until you can advance towards the goal and send it along to a teammate. Another player can then have a bit of time before they’re attacked.

For short passes, use your instep to accurately direct the ball. If it is a long pass, then the front of the foot is better. This will give the ball more drive.

It may be pretty obvious, but you must keep your eye on the ball at all times. Soccer is an extremely fast-paced game, and the ball gets sent between players in a hurry. The opponent may possibly score a goal if you lose sight of who has the ball.

Work out a set of strategies and plays with your team. They should be aware of all of the moves you plan to make. For instance, you could cross each ball towards the right during a couple of plays, and the third time go to the left.

When you’re placed in the middle area of a soccer field, take some time to look to either end and watch what is going on. Be prepared to receive a pass and advance the ball up the field. You must always know where defenders and your open players are.

To get a position the the main team, show you have a combative spirit. You shouldn’t give up and should be willing to run around on the field, defend and attack, help out everyone on your team, and be inspiring. Devotion to your soccer team and a will to succeed helps your coach know to pick you.

Penalty Kicks

If you want to train better, try doing penalty kicks soon after you get done doing other types of practice. After a foul, you can focus on penalty kicks. Come up with several different types of penalty kicks that can be used and keep on practicing it until you master this skill.

Use the technique of surprise while playing soccer; it is an effective strategy. Changing directions is one way to surprise the other player. This can help to confuse the other teams players. While your teammates may initially be surprised as well, they will soon become accustomed to your playing style.

Rather than practicing with inexperienced players, practice with experienced ones. This will force you to improve your skills and stretch yourself as much as possible. Don’t hesitate to ask these players any questions you have so that you can learn from them. Soccer players enjoy helping each other since they are team-oriented people. If there are no highly experienced players at your club, consider checking out others to see if they can assist.

Soccer is a tough sport. You should not be afraid of running into someone. Getting physical doesn’t mean you’re playing a dirty game. Understand that actually aiming to kick an opponent is playing dirty; however, contact alone is not. If you are afraid of physical play, you need to face your fears. You can take measures to protect yourself, such as wearing soccer pads for your legs.

With any luck, you’ve learned some new tricks to practice in order to better your skills. You should always try to get better at soccer and practice what you’ve learned when you can. Get a group of friends together to practice your skills then go play a game against another team.