Thoughtful Soccer: The Think First Approach to Playing and Coaching

Rating:
Summary: Good laymen's book for inexperienced soccer coaches
Review: Thoughtful Soccer is good for the relatively inexperienced coach who finds themselves coaching a U8 to U11 age team. The book provides a good overview of technical and early tactical elements of the game. These elements can be transmitted to the kids in game related activities included in the book.

No real soccer knowledge is needed to apply these concepts. The book tries to take a common sense approach to elements of the game that don't require you to have outstanding personal soccer skills to teach the kids. It won't teach you to teach kids how to "bend" a ball. It helps you put kids in soccer related activities so they can learn the basics by doing it.

I'm not a big fan of the author's terminology, but I recommend it as one of the first few books you buy as a beginner coach.

Rating:
Summary: Good laymen's book for inexperienced soccer coaches
Review: Thoughtful Soccer is good for the relatively inexperienced coach who finds themselves coaching a U8 to U11 age team. The book provides a good overview of technical and early tactical elements of the game. These elements can be transmitted to the kids in game related activities included in the book.

No real soccer knowledge is needed to apply these concepts. The book tries to take a common sense approach to elements of the game that don't require you to have outstanding personal soccer skills to teach the kids. It won't teach you to teach kids how to "bend" a ball. It helps you put kids in soccer related activities so they can learn the basics by doing it.

I'm not a big fan of the author's terminology, but I recommend it as one of the first few books you buy as a beginner coach.