Aspiring to the heady heights of football world domination, might seem leagues away for your youth football side, but, even the likes of Messi, Ronaldo and our very own Jamie Vardy all had to start somewhere.
If you’re wondering, could your youth player be the next Messi or Vardy, then sewing the grass roots is vital from the minute they begin to kick a ball around. And as parents and coaches, it’s us that can sew those seeds, which might eventually grow from seedlings into premiership superstars.
It’s not so much about one thing in particular, but more about helping to encourage the right mental attitude from a very young age (and of course, plenty of practise) that will ultimately give your youth player every chance of success. But how can you go about it?
Jamie Vardy nominated for Balon d’Or
Let’s start by looking at Jamie Vardy, for example, who, with his team mates at Leicester City last season, stormed his way to the top of the Premiership. A first for the unlikely side and not many years on from Vardy’s days of working in a carbon fibre factory to supplement his sport.
Vardy began by playing for the Stocksbridge Park Steels and scored 66 goals in 107 league games. He then moved on to Halifax where he saw immediate success as their top scorer and helped the team to the Northern Premier League title. After a move to Fleetwood, he turned professional and went on to be signed by Leicester City in 2012 for a record fee paid for a player outside of the football league. And as they say, the rest is history..
Season 2015/16 was his best so far, as he went on to score in a record 11 consecutive Premier League games, claimed his first England goal in a 3-2 friendly victory in Germany and by the end of his campaign, he had 24 Premier League strikes and Leicester had won the title.
A speedy ascent to superstardom you might think, but, according to Vardy, not without tremendous hard work and perseverance. Having booted his way to the title of leading premiership scorer for last season, it was recently announced that he was the only English player on the list of 30 names from around the world shortlisted to receive the 2016 Balon d’Or, otherwise known as the best player in the world.
The results will be announced in January, so watch this space!
Secret to football playing success
But what did the likes of Jamie Vardy put in to get them to the premiership title and the £75k per week pay packet? Here are some of the things that you could look for in your youth side, in order to encourage every chance of footballing success.
A positive attitude both on and off the pitch is a main one and these are the kind of examples you should aim to see:
- Players who think about what they want to achieve, rather than what they haven’t got.
- Players who focus on how well something could go, rather than what could go wrong.
- Confidence in their ability and a positive attitude towards situations.
- Desire to motivate others.
- Players who are undeterred by failure. Instead they have an understanding that learning from failure is an opportunity to be better in the future.
- Identifying and dealing with a mistake as an action that can be improved on, rather than a reflection on their abilities as a player.
And of course, an article about footballing success wouldn’t be the same without mentioning the importance of hard work, practise and determination to succeed!
Make Sure You Book Your Youth Team Place Today!
If you would like to help your youth football side on their way to success, why not consider enrolling them in a tournament such as the ESF Football Festivals? Book your youth team place for the competitions today!
