What it takes to be Successful

John Ellinger's Bio: John Ellinger is Technical Director for US Youth Soccer
One of the questions that we are asked frequently at US Youth Soccer is "what does it take to be a successful US Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program (US Youth Soccer ODP) player"?

The generic reply from most US Youth Soccer ODP staff coaches when they identify a player they like is to say, "that player can flat out play." There is nothing wrong with this assessment; in fact, the coach is paying the player a tremendous complement. What does the staff coach see in a player to merit such an accolade? Well, let's start with the technical areas that are necessary for a player to become a successful US Youth Soccer ODP player:

(1) Quality of the first touch—does the statement "the first touch is everything" mean anything to you? A player needs to have the technical ability to receive any type of service (pass) from their teammates and even the opposition for that matter, and to be able to handle it cleanly. The first touch can either take you out of a pressure situation or it puts you back into pressure from an opponent or space. One type of two-touch soccer that is not conducive to what people call "the beautiful game" is when the receiving player's second touch is the tackle to win the ball back after a poor first touch. Two Men's National Team players who have a flawless first touch are Landon Donovan and Michael Bradley (both former US Youth Soccer ODP players). Both always look and feel comfortable with the ball at their feet.

(2) The ability to strike a ball cleanly—it does not matter what surface of the foot we are talking about-instep or inside of the foot, the player needs to be able to put the proper pace on the pass. Can they drive a ball over various distances to the intended target (both diagonal and down the line passes), can they bend the ball into the open space in front of a teammate or around defenders to the feet of their teammate, can they execute a proper chip pass or lofted pass and can they play the ball with both feet? A good example of this technical ability is when you see a defender play a long ball forward in order to get his team out of a pressure situation—if that defender just played a 40 or 50 yd rope to his teammates' feet and he accomplishes this on a consistent basis, then this player has some talent and it is not an attempt to play "kick ball", "long ball" or "direct soccer". I have not worked with any defenders yet, who honestly do not feel that they can make that pass. The player who can hit this type of ball from the back or from one flank to another flank does have the ability to strike a ball cleanly.

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