Receiving A Pass: The Most Important Skill - Dean Conway

Bicycle kicks ... flying reaction saves by the 'keeper ... diving headers ... instep drives from 25 yards that sizzle into the roof of the net. Compared to these spectacular - and occasional - elements of soccer, "controlling a pass which has been played to you" may sound a little dull. Yet soccer is based on this vital skill, which happens hundreds, even thousands, of times in a game. Soccer is a passing game. And at the other end of the majority of passes is a receiver, from one team or the other.

One of the things that always impresses me about high level soccer is how accurately and, it seems, effortlessly players receive the ball when it is played to them. And one of the things that always strikes me about youth soccer is how often players lose the ball or, worse, "give it away" when it comes to them. The Director of Coaching for the California North Youth Soccer Association, Karl Dewazien, has offered this astute advice: "If it happens in the game, practice it. If it doesn't happen in the game, don't practice it."

What happens most in our game? Passing and receiving! So let's follow Karl's excellent principle and devote plenty of time to activities in which players receive the ball as often as possible.

As a basis for our activities, there are a number of big ideas about receiving. First, let's call this technique "receiving" or "controlling" or "preparing." Anything but "trapping!"

Receiving is never an end in itself. It's always a means to an end: it always sets up the next action. Therefore, any activities which stress controlling a ball for its own sake are seriously deficient. Here is an exercise which is unfortunately still too common: one player tosses the ball to a partner, who cushions it with a foot or a thigh and settles it at his or her feet. This is unrealistic, and it is not relevant to "real soccer." Receiving the ball must have a context. Where is the receiver on the field? Who is around her? How much pressure is on the receiver? Can she play her "first touch" ahead, should she touch the ball sideways, or should she move it back in the direction of her own goal? The very moment of receiving the ball captures all four of the elements of soccer: technique, tactics, fitness, and mentality. Is your body coordinated and fluid, quick and relaxed as it touches the ball? Do you direct the ball correctly to protect it and insure that you can make your next play without any "break in the action?" Do you have the strength, flexibility, suppleness, and agility to carry out this soccer task? And can you summon up the required calmness, cleverness, and confidence in this split second of the ball's arriving?

Coaches should organize lots of dynamic activities and games which involve passing and receiving, and we should pay careful attention to the quality of the receiving. There are countless warmup activities and games which will sharpen receiving.

Use any keepaway game, such as 3 v 1 or 5 v 2. Also good: any small sided games such as 3 v 3 or 4 v 4 in which there is going to be a lot of sharing of the ball. Once the action starts, we can bring out some important coaching points:

"Try to keep moving toward the ball as it comes toward you, then slow down just before it arrives."

"Relax when the ball gets to you. Get into its line of flight (or the line it is rolling on), and keep your eyes on it."

"Soften the surface that is going to receive the ball. And if that is one of your feet, get balanced on your other leg."

"Stay with the ball. Move your body in the same direction as you move the ball."

"Keep your body between the nearest defender and the ball, and don't play the ball in the direction of a defender unless you're sure that she or he can't reach it."

"Control the defender!"

"Think about your next action and play your 'first touch' accordingly. If you're under pressure, keep the ball close to your body by deadening it with your first touch.

"If you're going to play a long pass next, play the ball out away from your body several feet so that you can take a couple of strong strides into the ball.

"If you're going to sprint away with the ball, play it firmly ahead of you, out from under your body, so that you can lean forward, get your legs moving and your arms pumping and get into your running stride."

"Sometimes you can think of receiving the ball as an opportunity to 'pass to yourself,' to get away from immediate pressure, or to flick the ball behind a defender and then beat the defender to it."

Let's keep trying to help our players receive the ball better. Their efficiency will improve, their enjoyment will grow, and the game will be more elegant and satisfying.

Dean Conway from the MYSA  site