Dribbling is one of the most important soccer skills you need to master. Simply, if you don’t know how to dribble your opponents you will not know how to play soccer. So, to help you out I have created this guide where you will learn everything you need to know in order to become a true dribbling master (like Ronaldinho and Maradona). Ready? Let’s start…
Using Your Dribbling Skills in Right Situations
Dribbling is not just about cool soccer moves and you should never use this skill just to increase your personal glory; instead, use it to your team’s advantage. Never dribble if you have an unmarked teammate near you. Passing the ball safely to a near teammate is more effective than a dribbling solo raid. The optimal rule is to never dribble in your own half.
However, you should try to dribble often in your opponent’s 18 yard box. The advantage with dribbling is that your opponents will not know what you aim to do next. To stop you, opponents will need to figure out which way you will most likely go.
Try to Relax
Dribbling is not just about how skillful you are with the ball; you need also to have a lot of confidence in yourself. When dribbling you must really think that you can get around your defender. Try not to panic while receiving the ball. Instead, be calm and try to figure out the best way to get around your opponent.
Balance is Important
Your main mission when dribbling a soccer ball is to get around your opponent and make him/her lose balance. At the same time you need of course to maintain your own balance as well.
Equilibrium and Dribbling
Equilibrium is an advanced subject, but I will try to keep it simple. You and every human on the earth have something called “center of gravity”. This gravity center is situated (on every human being unless you are from Mars :-)) in the middle of your torso (your torso is located just about at your navel). Your body will be in equilibrium whenever an imaginary line from the center of gravity falls in the middle of the support area.
In your and every soccer player’s body the space between your feet is what we call the area of support. If your feet are together, the equilibrium of your body will be less. This is because your center of gravity may fall outside the area that is created by your feet.
Here is how you can try this out:
- Stand with your feet close together.
- Ask a friend to push you a little on the back (not too hard).
- In the next moment you will lie on the ground, but what have you discovered?
Well, you have discovered that falling over will be much easier than when you have some space between your feet. Squat down with your feet apart, then lean forward (just a little bit) and flex your legs slightly, and you will discover how easy it is to keep your balance.
Now Start to Dribble by Following These Steps:
- Have a space between your feet.
- Lean your body forward a little.
- Both legs should be flexed.
- You should also have your haunches down.
- Both of your arms should be relaxed and not moving.
What you are learning now is balance, plain and simple.
Do You Need Proof?
Every movement you make with the ball will move your center of gravity forward, backward, up and down. If you don’t really believe this place yourself on a large scale (if you can find one). Start to move your arms directly after the indicator of the scale stops.
The indicator will swing either up or down, and moving your arms faster will increase the swing of the indicator. What you have discovered is another important part of dribbling: rhythm! When dribbling you need to react and make decisions quickly, but your movement must still have a rhythm.
How to Find Your Opponents’ Weakness?
Your opponents will always have a weakness; it’s up to you to find it. But before spending many hours studying your opponents, let me give you a little hint: Try to check whether your opponent is right- or left-handed. Now you may wonder what your opponent’s hand has to do with dribbling. I mean, aren’t we discussing dribbling here?
Of course we are discussing dribbling but to locate your opponent’s weaknesses, you need to know his/her weak leg. How do you discover that? Well, if you dare, you could just ask him, or you could use another smart way to figure it out. Just check whether he/she is left- or right-handed. Now you may wonder how you’re going to know if your opponent is right- or left-handed.
Well, if your opponent is right-handed, his/her left leg will normally be weaker, and if he/she is left-handed, his/her right leg will be the weaker one. Your opponent will also have more problems in handling the ball using his/her weak leg, so watch out for this!
Don’t treat this advice as gospel! There are skillful opponents who can handle the ball pretty well with both feet; therefore, watch carefully before deciding what leg is the weak one.
Final Words…
Finally, don’t forget this one: Passing the ball to an unmarked teammate is much more efficient than trying to dribble through a wall of opponents. Yes, I’m spending a lot of time on teaching you better dribbling skills. If nothing else, take that as a sign of how important dribbling really is for your overall soccer game!
