Preface

The soccer field is a combination of chess match and theatre of war. On most teams there are usually multiple foot soldiers, a few officers and one or two field generals. Coaching Soccer Legends is a new and unique way of developing all players into great soccer players so that teams can enjoy many different ways of creating and scoring goals. A combination of educational theory, logic and physical education principles, plus 30 years of coaching experience has been used when assessing the best ways to teach the unique “Soccer Legend” function. Young players need tremendous skill, fantastic tactical speed and a high self-concept in order to dominate the game. Yet there is no in-depth information available that clearly demonstrates how to achieve this and, due to the prevalent focus on winning and team play, most players never realize their individual potential. Realizing the goal of becoming an effective “Soccer Legend” is not initially everyone’s cup of tea. The challenges posed by the role present numerous and significant problems that can seem overwhelming at times. For the great “Soccer Legend” to emerge, a large number of diverse yet complimentary physical and mental leadership characteristics have to become as natural as breathing. For anyone wanting to become a truly great player, or just to understand the challenges of the role, the information in this book will serve as a road map and a reference tool.

Reading this book can be justified in numerous ways. As a player, teacher, parent or spectator you will become more knowledgeable about the creativity, character, toughness, intelligence and physical fitness needed to be a great “Soccer Legend” and how to be a part of or create an excellent team. You will hone your understanding of what it takes to build instant perception, self-confidence, technical brilliance and amazing tactical speed. You will learn to appreciate how a team containing multiple players with these abilities will eventually dominate ball possession plus the creation and finishing of goal-scoring opportunities. The material in this book is a new and unique recipe for individual and team success. The “Training Soccer Legends” methodology is well explained, argued and easy to understand. Fulfilling the role of field general requires great creative technical ability and an understanding of when, where and how to penetrate opposing defenses. In the chapters that follow you will find a complete description of how to maximize physical and mental learning factors with optimum motivation and fun along the way. Optimum growth depends on constantly treading the right path. An athletic career is already shortened to great degree by aging so there’s not a moment to waste. The fastest improvement depends on constantly refining the technical, tactical, physical and mental aspects of performance, in the manner that gets the player from the starting point to the objective, in the quickest time. When reading and evaluating the material in this publication you will gain a totally new insight with regard to the challenges of, and solutions to, the complex role of the ball wizard field general. If the end result is that you are a better soccer player, parent or coach then any effort to spread the “Training Soccer Legends” word has been worthwhile.

The ability of the ball carrier is unquestionably the biggest single positive factor in a great team’s attack. It is an indisputable axiom that the more talented the ball carriers and finishers, the better the team’s attacking chances. Teams without talented ball carriers and finishers find it almost impossible to win at the highest level. What’s more, the player without great ball handling and striking skills finds it almost impossible to progress to a higher level by earning a college scholarship or stepping up to the professional game. The ideal ball carrier should be a mix of the great football quarterback, the baseball “no hit” pitcher and the high scoring, deceptive dribbling point guard in basketball. He merges the coolness of the assassin, the tactical foresight of the chess maestro, the creative artistry of the grandmaster painter plus the combative spirit and skilled execution of the champion gladiator. He is confident and self-assured under pressure and believes in his ability to make the big plays that win games. The team with the most “Soccer Legends” will enjoy the greater opportunity for success. Developing a team stacked with great dribblers and finishers increases the chance of dominating games. When in possession of the ball, the field general is the engine of the car and nerve center of the team. He is the crucial factor, the hub of the wheel. He is the hard drive, microchip and motherboard of the computer all rolled into one. He fuses players to each other, links the defense to the midfield, the midfield to the forwards and converts possession in the final third into goals. There is no other role in soccer as stressful, important and ultimately crucial as that of the ball wizard and a team stacked with ball wizards is one to be feared.

"You are not here merely to make a living. You are here in order to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, with a finer spirit of hope and achievement. You are here to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget the errand." - Woodrow Wilson

There are no shortcuts to becoming an exceptional ball wizard because that responsibility involves ever-changing circumstances and solutions. The game is a continuous, fluid, ever evolving, fast moving equation that requires years of study, experience and practice with ever increasing creative problem solving at speed. Becoming a field general demands commitment, dedication and a passionate desire to lead that constantly grows as the player feels his ability to dominate each game growing and expanding. More importantly, becoming a field general involves pursuing a course of action that wastes no time on unnecessary training with marginal positive consequences. A total commitment to the “Training Soccer Legends” approach is guaranteed to develop all the essential characteristics and components of the field general to the maximum possible potential of each individual involved in the minimum possible time. Open your mind and leave your biases behind because you are about to encounter the training philosophy of the future. After reading “Training Soccer Legends” your soccer perspective will never be the same again.

"It is change, continuing change, inevitable change, that is the dominant factor in society today. No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be...This, in turn, means that our statesmen, our businessmen, our everyman must take on a science fictional way of thinking." - Isaac Asimov