7 Tips to Developing an Elite Soccer Mindset
Physical abilities will only get you so far in soccer. If you want to play in college or go pro, your mindset will be a key part of what will take you there. Plenty of young soccer players possess the physical requirements for success, but the mental requirements are few and far between.
There’s numerous components to an elite mindset. To help you build one, we’ve put together a list of activities geared towards developing each specific component. The overarching ideas are embracing adversity, stepping outside of your comfort zone, and playing with intelligence instead of emotion.
With this in mind, here are 7 tips for developing an elite mindset:
1. Play Multiple Positions
Playing a new position is scary and uncomfortable, but an elite mindset doesn’t run from new challenges. This is particularly important in soccer because of the high degree of uncertainty in each match. You never know what will happen next. By playing a new position, you improve your ability to adapt to increasingly extreme situations and become a more versatile, dynamic player.
But you are not a midfielder or a winger: you’re a footballer. Playing multiple positions also improves your soccer IQ so you can make better decisions, even in your original position. For example, a winger who has played outside back will do a better job anticipating the movements in a 1v1.
2. Pretend the Score is Always 0-0
The greatest soccer players don’t play with any more or less intensity based on what the scoreboard says. They play with the same level of intensity throughout the entire match because their mindset is too strong and focused on what they have to do in the next possession. So, whenever your team or your opponent scores a goal, don’t behave as if you are any closer or further from victory. Pretend the score is still 0-0, and continue playing your position to the best of your ability.
3. Listen to Your Coach
You might not always like what your coach says, but they know your strengths and weaknesses better than anybody. Yes, it hurts to be criticized. But an elite mindset isn’t afraid of the truth, and is always looking to improve. So, when you get benched or subbed off, don’t tell yourself that a mistake has been made. Ask your coach for advice, and they’ll tell you exactly what’s stopping you from becoming a more complete player so you can focus your training on improving this area.
4. Study Your Opposition
Another way to accustom yourself to adapting to new challenges is studying your opposition during play. If you’re a midfielder or a forward, what is the other team’s defense doing to prevent you from advancing towards the goal and setting up scoring opportunities? An elite mindset is capable of changing tactics based on the information it collects about the opposition.
Let’s say you are not on the pitch. This is a great opportunity to study the player you’ll be going up against when you go in. What are their strengths and weaknesses, what is your teammate doing that is or isn’t working? Use this knowledge to make a difference.
5. Use Positive Body Language
An player with elite mindset doesn’t let emotion control their actions. It does what’s best for the team. As far as your attitude goes, being positive is more likely to move your team forward because it gives your teammates confidence and helps them relax. So, even if your team is losing, be a positive influence by using positive communication and body language. Scouts and coaches look at a player’s body language very closely.
6. Compete Against Yourself, Not Your Teammates
High-level soccer players are always evolving. They’re constantly identifying aspects of their game that need improvement, which is only possible if you’re honest about your own weaknesses. If you’re the best player on your team, it might seem like you have no weaknesses, right? An elite mindset would reply with a hard “no.” Instead of comparing yourself to the rest of your team, compare the current version of yourself to your previous self, because no player is perfect.
7. Take Risks, Make Mistakes
Lastly, an elite mindset isn’t afraid of making mistakes. This is especially important in soccer, where mistakes are inevitable. When you’re not afraid to make mistakes, you take more risks during play. The more risks you take, the more you learn about how different situations unfold, allowing you to make smarter decisions when the same situation happens again.
At Beyond Goals Mentoring, we know that taking risks, being positive, and other components of an elite mindset don’t come naturally to every player. That’s why we’re dedicated to helping young athletes develop these components one-by-one. When college coaches or pro scouts look at players, they’re most concerned with how each player responds to adversity, and their ability to prioritize the team’s success above their own emotions.