Skill: what does it actually look like?

Asked this question, chances are you’ll think of a player with great technical ability – and you wouldn’t be wrong. But, in reality, skill is much more than a dazzling dribble here or a spinning turn there.
If you want to play football well, you need to master three things: your body, the ball and decision-making. Here, we examine what that means for your team.
Mastering the body
This is about physical literacy. In other words, how you move and control your body.

To be a skilful player, you need to do this well. Football is full of stops and starts, turns and dodges, switches in direction and speed... you can even use your body as a shield to protect the ball.

Getting good at this takes time and players, especially those who are young, need lots of opportunities to practice.

Luckily, this is easy to find. From Saturday football to chasing their mates down the park; trying new sports to playing tag in the schoolyard – it all counts. Engaging in varied and regular movement helps your players develop their physical literacy and lay the foundations for skilful play.

Mastering the ball
As your team discover how to master their body, they also start to learn how to master the ball – and the more technical aspects of the game.

For example, to be skilful, players must be able to pass, shoot, dribble, turn, intercept and tackle. They have to know how to receive the ball, control it and make their next move.

Just like physical development, this doesn't happen overnight. Your team need lots of play in a realistic environment: one with an opposition and clear objectives, like scoring goals – and stopping them too!

Mastering decision-making
By working on their mastery of body and ball, your players create a toolbox of skills: both physical and technical. Decision-making is about how and when to put these skills into action – and it’s rooted in a player’s ability to perceive what’s happening around them.

To be skilful, players need to be able to do things like:

• scan the pitch
• anticipate the actions of others
• assess available space
• get into a good position
• entice the opposition
• combine with their teammates.

And they need to be able to do these things at the right time.

Simply put, good decision-making is about spotting risk or predicting opportunity, and then working out how best to react.

Bringing it all together

Every player can have skilful moments.

They could be the striker who spots an opportunity to steal the ball and break for goal. The defender who anticipates the move and shifts position to block the shot. Or even the keeper who foils the attack with a perfect catch in the crowded penalty area.

Skilful players appear in every position, and they can be any age or level. But they're not created by accident.

To support your team’s development, sessions need to focus on mastery of the ball, the body and decision-making. Small-sided games with clear objectives are a simple way to do this. They provide fewer distractions than a big match – and players get more touches too.

Remember: when it comes to skilful play, the learning never stops. As a coach, your job is to help your team explore, discover and release their potential. To find out more, check out our article on how to develop skilful players.