Minggu, 24 April 2016

Getting Ready to Play Soccer

New soccer moms often commented that one of the best things about this game is the lack of equipment they must buy to equip their children. No shoulder pads, knee braces, helmets and mouth such as football, and not even a bat or glove baseball as they are called to play this playground and park popular sport. Although the low cost of equipment is one of the advantages of organized football, there are certain things that parents will need to purchase the safety of their child as they play this game of international renown.

Guard shins

The requirement for almost every league is shin guards. These come in a variety of styles and are essential to protect the shins players errant balls or a kick that is not designed to connect with them, but somehow did. A good shin guard protects the player from below the knee to the ankle and has a removable ankle plate protection. It should be made of a flexible plastic outer shell and a soft coating for comfort. An uneasy shin guards often find themselves sitting back of the pickup time Thursday The kind of guard with adjustable straps is also wise to buy young players, because it can reflect changes in muscle size and more and more girls and boys often change of scale. To protect your child’s legs and ankles, invest in a quality pair of shin guards is a must.

Warm muscles

Another advantage of a football compared to other sports is its ability to play all year. In places with mild winters, soccer leagues autumn term in December, leagues and spring may begin February. Simply because it is hot enough to play, does not quite hot outside in shorts. Warm up suits are useful to players when the summer months are long overdue. Even if the player will wear their uniforms team on the ground, according to warm up before and after the game offers comfort and protection. The muscles are less prone to injury when they are warm and loose. A nylon warm-up along with pants with flared legs that can be used with spikes and shoes help keep the muscles warm and soft until play is launched. Some players who sit on the bench wear warm jacket, if approved by the league to keep warm while they wait their turn.

Beware of hands

For most footballers hands are a false problem because this is the only body part that is not supposed to come into contact with the ball. However, in the hands of goalkeepers must be protected as well as the net. Gloves for goalkeepers are an important piece of safety equipment. If one considers the speed at which kicked a leather ball comes flying toward the goal, it is easy to see why some cushioning between bare hands and the ball is necessary. Good gloves are generally insolated rough leather on the outside and have a strong filling in the hollows and each finger. Another important feature is the wrist band so they will not fly hands with the first shock. When your child becomes an accomplished goalkeeper, he or she will have to learn how best to use their hands for Security and competence. Until then, a good pair of gloves for goalkeepers are a necessity.

Invest time, energy and expertise to put your child in a sport is a useful exercise that gives your family a lot of memories and esteem. Make sure that investment pays off with a good experience using the proper clothing to ensure the security and development.

Automotive

Ever get overwhelmed by all soccer positions. What do actually midfielder, forward or sweeper means? Well you are not alone, believe me. The positions of soccer players are often misunderstand, especially if you are pretty new to soccer.

When I started to play soccer it took me one year to learn what every position actually means and how to play on it. So what soccer positions are there actually In this article we will take look at the most common positions in soccer. Lets start…

The Sweeper
The position of sweeper requires good understanding for the game of soccer. As a sweeper you will be responsible for controlling your defense. You need also to pose good heading abilities.

Center Fullback
Your task as the center fullback is to stop your opponent forwards from scoring. To accomplish this you will need to be fast and pose good heading abilities. You need also to start offensive attacks by playing the ball safely to your midfielder.

Left or Right Fullback
As a right or left fullback you will need to be fast, react quickly and pose good technique abilities.

Left or Right Midfielder
Good passing and fast running abilities are crucial if you want to perform well on this position. As the left/right midfielder you will have more time and room comparing to the center midfielder. This gives you more time to receive the ball and figure out what to do with it without having an opponent chasing you all time.

Defensive Midfielder
Your main task is to act in front of your defenders. Having good passing abilities is a requirement on this position. You should always try to play safe and to provide your defending line with support.

Central midfielder
As a central midfielder you will need to have good ball skills. Beside that you need to support your defensive midfielder during the attacks of your opponent’s.

Forward and Striker
The forward and striker are two similar positions where scoring is only thing that counts. Your job as forward or striker is to score goals and you must try to do it on every chance you get in front of your opponents goal.

The Soccer Goalkeeper
Your main mission as soccer goalkeeper is to prevent your opponents from scoring. Beside that you will also need to encourage your teammates.




Automotive

This weekend was full of sporting action, Boston Marathon, NBA playoffs and much more. We also enjoyed watching some major upsets in the FA cup soccer semifinal games played at Wembley stadium in England. For those of you not aware the FA cup is the premier soccer cup competition in England and is watched throughout most of the world.
In this years semifinals, we saw Chelsea defeat Arsenal on an unforgivable goalkeeping error, but in The Video Analysis of Sports this week we want to look at the other game where Everton upset the favorites Manchester United on penalty kicks.

Penalty kicks sound easy. The striker takes a shot at the goal with only the goalkeeper to save it and all the measurements are in the strikers favor. The international goal is 24 feet wide by 8 feet high, the penalty spot is 36 feet from the goal and the goalkeeper cannot move forward off his line before the penalty kick is taken. This means that he cannot close the angle.

Penalty kicks however are not as simple as they sound, especially at the end of a game in order to break a tie. There is a lot of pressure on the striker, he or she is expected to score the penalty and if he misses his team may be eliminated from the competition. In international and pro level soccer we see strikers often trying to fool the goalkeeper into diving in one direction and then try to shoot to the other side of the goal. When they score this way we all admire their skill and deception, but if you want to make sure of scoring then there are some specific techniques to use and we will discuss them here.

Below is some video of the penalty shootout between Manchester United and Everton on April 19, 2009. You can see evidence of much of what we will discuss today. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpd2RU2BR2M

Berbatov (the 2nd penalty taker) and Ferdinand (the 4th penalty taker) both of Manchester United try to deceive the goalkeeper but do not use good technique to shoot and see their penalties saved.

We see some examples of good penalty kicks in this game too. Vaughan of Everton takes the best penalty of this particular shootout as you will see in the video. So what makes this a good penalty. Vaughan does everything right here. He wants to place the ball in the top corner of the goal net with as much power as possible. By aiming for the top corner with power he reduces the chances of the goalkeeper making a save even if he does pick to dive in the correct direction (which he does in this case).

What about technique? Well Vaughan does that correctly too. Here are some of the points to look out for as you watch the video above. Pause the video if you can and look closer at some of these points.

  1. He picks the direction he is going to kick the ball and does not change his mind. Changing his mind might cause a miss kick and as he is going for the top right corner with power he is not concerned about the goalkeepers decision.
  2. He runs up and plants his support leg (left leg) on the side of the ball with the toes of his left foot pointing in the direction he is going to shoot. This gives him the support base he needs so that..
  3. He keeps his head down looking at the ball as he strikes it. This will keep the ball from flying to high. If he lifts his head, he is likely to get his foot under the ball and may lift it over the top of the goals.
  4. He kicks the ball with the inside toe part of his boot (see time 4:28 in the video). He does this in order to create spin on the ball. He actually aims at the goal post but uses the spin to turn the ball back into the goal net. If he kicks the ball with his laces he may be able to create more power, but he will not be able to create spin and therefore he would need to aim more directly into the goal, giving the goalkeeper a chance to save or running the risk of missing wide.
  5. He follows through with his kicking leg, bringing it up to waist height while keeping his head down. This allows him to produce the power he needs to ensure the goalkeeper has no chance of saving this penalty.

So thank James Vaughan of Everton for that real situation clinic in taking a penalty kick in soccer. We are looking forward to a fantastic FA cup Final on May 31, 2009 between Chelsea and Everton. Hopefully there will be no penalty kicks to decide the champions, but if there are you know what to look for.



Soccer Positions

Ever get overwhelmed by all soccer positions. What do actually midfielder, forward or sweeper means? Well you are not alone, believe me. The positions of soccer players are often misunderstand, especially if you are pretty new to soccer.

When I started to play soccer it took me one year to learn what every position actually means and how to play on it. So what soccer positions are there actually In this article we will take look at the most common positions in soccer. Lets start…

The Sweeper
The position of sweeper requires good understanding for the game of soccer. As a sweeper you will be responsible for controlling your defense. You need also to pose good heading abilities.

Center Fullback
Your task as the center fullback is to stop your opponent forwards from scoring. To accomplish this you will need to be fast and pose good heading abilities. You need also to start offensive attacks by playing the ball safely to your midfielder.

Left or Right Fullback
As a right or left fullback you will need to be fast, react quickly and pose good technique abilities.

Left or Right Midfielder
Good passing and fast running abilities are crucial if you want to perform well on this position. As the left/right midfielder you will have more time and room comparing to the center midfielder. This gives you more time to receive the ball and figure out what to do with it without having an opponent chasing you all time.

Defensive Midfielder
Your main task is to act in front of your defenders. Having good passing abilities is a requirement on this position. You should always try to play safe and to provide your defending line with support.

Central midfielder
As a central midfielder you will need to have good ball skills. Beside that you need to support your defensive midfielder during the attacks of your opponent’s.

Forward and Striker
The forward and striker are two similar positions where scoring is only thing that counts. Your job as forward or striker is to score goals and you must try to do it on every chance you get in front of your opponents goal.

The Soccer Goalkeeper
Your main mission as soccer goalkeeper is to prevent your opponents from scoring. Beside that you will also need to encourage your teammates.


Video Analysis of Soccer Penalty Kick

This weekend was full of sporting action, Boston Marathon, NBA playoffs and much more. We also enjoyed watching some major upsets in the FA cup soccer semifinal games played at Wembley stadium in England. For those of you not aware the FA cup is the premier soccer cup competition in England and is watched throughout most of the world.
In this years semifinals, we saw Chelsea defeat Arsenal on an unforgivable goalkeeping error, but in The Video Analysis of Sports this week we want to look at the other game where Everton upset the favorites Manchester United on penalty kicks.

Penalty kicks sound easy. The striker takes a shot at the goal with only the goalkeeper to save it and all the measurements are in the strikers favor. The international goal is 24 feet wide by 8 feet high, the penalty spot is 36 feet from the goal and the goalkeeper cannot move forward off his line before the penalty kick is taken. This means that he cannot close the angle.

Penalty kicks however are not as simple as they sound, especially at the end of a game in order to break a tie. There is a lot of pressure on the striker, he or she is expected to score the penalty and if he misses his team may be eliminated from the competition. In international and pro level soccer we see strikers often trying to fool the goalkeeper into diving in one direction and then try to shoot to the other side of the goal. When they score this way we all admire their skill and deception, but if you want to make sure of scoring then there are some specific techniques to use and we will discuss them here.

Below is some video of the penalty shootout between Manchester United and Everton on April 19, 2009. You can see evidence of much of what we will discuss today. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpd2RU2BR2M

Berbatov (the 2nd penalty taker) and Ferdinand (the 4th penalty taker) both of Manchester United try to deceive the goalkeeper but do not use good technique to shoot and see their penalties saved.

We see some examples of good penalty kicks in this game too. Vaughan of Everton takes the best penalty of this particular shootout as you will see in the video. So what makes this a good penalty. Vaughan does everything right here. He wants to place the ball in the top corner of the goal net with as much power as possible. By aiming for the top corner with power he reduces the chances of the goalkeeper making a save even if he does pick to dive in the correct direction (which he does in this case).

What about technique? Well Vaughan does that correctly too. Here are some of the points to look out for as you watch the video above. Pause the video if you can and look closer at some of these points.

  1. He picks the direction he is going to kick the ball and does not change his mind. Changing his mind might cause a miss kick and as he is going for the top right corner with power he is not concerned about the goalkeepers decision.
  2. He runs up and plants his support leg (left leg) on the side of the ball with the toes of his left foot pointing in the direction he is going to shoot. This gives him the support base he needs so that..
  3. He keeps his head down looking at the ball as he strikes it. This will keep the ball from flying to high. If he lifts his head, he is likely to get his foot under the ball and may lift it over the top of the goals.
  4. He kicks the ball with the inside toe part of his boot (see time 4:28 in the video). He does this in order to create spin on the ball. He actually aims at the goal post but uses the spin to turn the ball back into the goal net. If he kicks the ball with his laces he may be able to create more power, but he will not be able to create spin and therefore he would need to aim more directly into the goal, giving the goalkeeper a chance to save or running the risk of missing wide.
  5. He follows through with his kicking leg, bringing it up to waist height while keeping his head down. This allows him to produce the power he needs to ensure the goalkeeper has no chance of saving this penalty.

So thank James Vaughan of Everton for that real situation clinic in taking a penalty kick in soccer. We are looking forward to a fantastic FA cup Final on May 31, 2009 between Chelsea and Everton. Hopefully there will be no penalty kicks to decide the champions, but if there are you know what to look for.

Top 5 – Mexico Soccer Teams

Mexico hasn’t been very successful at national team level, since they only managed to reach the World Cup quarter finals on two occasions (both in World Cups held in Mexico). However, soccer teams in Mexico gradually became more powerful and today they are considered a force to be reckoned with in American soil as well as on an international club level.

I was planning to make a top 5 of the Mexico soccer teams, but I decided against ranking them, because that might stir some trouble with the fans, such as a fan asking why is team over team in the ranking, since won more championships and so forth. Here are what I believe to be the most important soccer teams in Mexico, ranked by alphabet only :).

> Mexico Soccer Teams – Club America

Club America was founded in 1916, being one of the oldest professional clubs in Mexico, although the first league title was not to be won until 1956-1966. They’re currently the owners of 10 national championships, being only second to Chivas de Guadalajara, who have won 11 titles in their history. The two are the most successful soccer teams in Mexico from a silverware point of view and Chivas is the historical nemesis of America, so a match between the two is a derby that the entire country awaits.

Club America gets credit for discovering or highlighting players such as Cuauhtemoc Blanco, Enrique Borja, Carlos Hermosillo, Pavel Pardo, Zizinho, Claudio Lopez, Ivan Zamorano or Ilie Dumitrescu.

> Mexico Soccer Teams – Chivas de Guadalajara

The club’s official name is Club Deportivo Guadalajara, but every soccer fan in Mexico knows them as Chivas (the goats). Their tally of 11 league titles makes Chivas the most successful of all soccer teams in Mexico, trailing arch-nemesis America by one title. They’re also very loved for their Mexican-only policy, in that they never use foreigners and focus only on local Mexican players.

Their popularity reaches far beyond the borders of Mexico and into the United States, where a team called Chivas USA was formed. The Mexican Chivas have credit for launching players such as Salvador Reyes, Omar Bravo, Claudio Suarez, Juan Palencia, Gonzalo Pineda, Luis Garcia or Carlos Hermosillo.

> Mexico Soccer Teams – Pachuca

Despite being the oldest club in Mexican soccer history, being founded in 1901, Pachuca has only become truly competitive in the past few decades. Winning the Primera Division 5 times in the last 8 years and the CONCACAF Champions Cup twice, in 2002 and 2007, Pachuca rose to become a force amongst the soccer teams in Mexico.

The most notable players that got to play for Pachuca include: Jared Borgetti, Jaime Correa, Fausto Pinto, Damian Alvarez, Mosquera, Ivan Hurtado and Juan Arango.

> Mexico Soccer Teams – Pumas

Because of the team’s close relation to UNAM, the largest university in Mexico, the club became known as UNAM Pumas, although their official name is Club Universidad Nacional A.C. Although the Pumas don’t have the same history as some of the other top soccer clubs in Mexico, having been founded in 1954, they definitely made their years of existence count, winning 5 league champs, 3 CONCACAF Cups, 1 Interamerican Cup as well as several smaller silverware.

Amongst the players that wore the Pumas logo on their shirt in the club’s fifty-year existence, the most important are: Enrique Borja, Hugo Sanchez, Jorge Campos, Alberto Aspe, Luis Garcia, Esteban Solari, Emerson, Ailton da Silva or Dario Veron.

> Mexico Soccer Teams – Toluca

Toluca was a force amongst the soccer teams in Mexico ever since the 1960s, having won 8 championship titles since then. Ever since Toluca’s founding in 1917, they have been known as an offensive team who throws their dice on the attackers, somewhat neglecting the defensive part of the game. This philosophy was a double edged sword, as Toluca varied between relegation places and titles in the 60s and 70s.

Obviously, today this attacking mentality is a lot less noticeable and Toluca’s game has become more tactical. Some of the notable players that wore Toluca’s red and white shirt include: Enrique Alfaro, Zinha, Pedro Romero, Enzo Trossero, Dario Rodriguez, Jose Cardozo, Fabian Estay, Darko Vukic and Juan Antonio Pizzi.

Automotive

Mexico hasn’t been very successful at national team level, since they only managed to reach the World Cup quarter finals on two occasions (both in World Cups held in Mexico). However, soccer teams in Mexico gradually became more powerful and today they are considered a force to be reckoned with in American soil as well as on an international club level.

I was planning to make a top 5 of the Mexico soccer teams, but I decided against ranking them, because that might stir some trouble with the fans, such as a fan asking why is team over team in the ranking, since won more championships and so forth. Here are what I believe to be the most important soccer teams in Mexico, ranked by alphabet only :).

> Mexico Soccer Teams – Club America

Club America was founded in 1916, being one of the oldest professional clubs in Mexico, although the first league title was not to be won until 1956-1966. They’re currently the owners of 10 national championships, being only second to Chivas de Guadalajara, who have won 11 titles in their history. The two are the most successful soccer teams in Mexico from a silverware point of view and Chivas is the historical nemesis of America, so a match between the two is a derby that the entire country awaits.

Club America gets credit for discovering or highlighting players such as Cuauhtemoc Blanco, Enrique Borja, Carlos Hermosillo, Pavel Pardo, Zizinho, Claudio Lopez, Ivan Zamorano or Ilie Dumitrescu.

> Mexico Soccer Teams – Chivas de Guadalajara

The club’s official name is Club Deportivo Guadalajara, but every soccer fan in Mexico knows them as Chivas (the goats). Their tally of 11 league titles makes Chivas the most successful of all soccer teams in Mexico, trailing arch-nemesis America by one title. They’re also very loved for their Mexican-only policy, in that they never use foreigners and focus only on local Mexican players.

Their popularity reaches far beyond the borders of Mexico and into the United States, where a team called Chivas USA was formed. The Mexican Chivas have credit for launching players such as Salvador Reyes, Omar Bravo, Claudio Suarez, Juan Palencia, Gonzalo Pineda, Luis Garcia or Carlos Hermosillo.

> Mexico Soccer Teams – Pachuca

Despite being the oldest club in Mexican soccer history, being founded in 1901, Pachuca has only become truly competitive in the past few decades. Winning the Primera Division 5 times in the last 8 years and the CONCACAF Champions Cup twice, in 2002 and 2007, Pachuca rose to become a force amongst the soccer teams in Mexico.

The most notable players that got to play for Pachuca include: Jared Borgetti, Jaime Correa, Fausto Pinto, Damian Alvarez, Mosquera, Ivan Hurtado and Juan Arango.

> Mexico Soccer Teams – Pumas

Because of the team’s close relation to UNAM, the largest university in Mexico, the club became known as UNAM Pumas, although their official name is Club Universidad Nacional A.C. Although the Pumas don’t have the same history as some of the other top soccer clubs in Mexico, having been founded in 1954, they definitely made their years of existence count, winning 5 league champs, 3 CONCACAF Cups, 1 Interamerican Cup as well as several smaller silverware.

Amongst the players that wore the Pumas logo on their shirt in the club’s fifty-year existence, the most important are: Enrique Borja, Hugo Sanchez, Jorge Campos, Alberto Aspe, Luis Garcia, Esteban Solari, Emerson, Ailton da Silva or Dario Veron.

> Mexico Soccer Teams – Toluca

Toluca was a force amongst the soccer teams in Mexico ever since the 1960s, having won 8 championship titles since then. Ever since Toluca’s founding in 1917, they have been known as an offensive team who throws their dice on the attackers, somewhat neglecting the defensive part of the game. This philosophy was a double edged sword, as Toluca varied between relegation places and titles in the 60s and 70s.

Obviously, today this attacking mentality is a lot less noticeable and Toluca’s game has become more tactical. Some of the notable players that wore Toluca’s red and white shirt include: Enrique Alfaro, Zinha, Pedro Romero, Enzo Trossero, Dario Rodriguez, Jose Cardozo, Fabian Estay, Darko Vukic and Juan Antonio Pizzi.