Player Reflection Tool
Assisting or setting-up goals
HOW IT WORKS
Complete the form
First, complete the 55 questions below as accurately as you can
Choose a topic area
View your results and choose an area to study
Identify two aims
Use video tasks to identify two specific things to work on
Practice to improve
Let your coach know what you are working on
This webpage has been especially designed to help you improve your ability to assist or set-up goals. It's an exciting topic, and we hope you have fun exploring the content below. Your mission is to complete all the homework tasks below and identify two key specific things that you want to work on and try to improve in your practice sessions, team training or on your own.
An "assist" is a pass to a team-mate to set them up to score a goal. A good assist needs to give them the perfect chance to score a goal. We will begin by looking at the weight, angle, timing and accuracy of the pass, studying two greats - Leo Messi and Michael Laudrup. Then we will look at crossing, and have a sneaky peak at the US Women's team training session on crossing. Finally, we will look at examples from futsal and consider the bonus of being unselfish in your play and helping others score.
HOMEWORK TASK 1
The video below shows the wonderful Leo Messi setting up chances for his team-mates. Watch the video and answer the questions below.
- Why is the weight of the pass so important?
- How does Messi disguise his passes so his opponents don't know what's about to happen?
When you see Messi (or other great, creative footballers) play, you will notice that they are able to move and control the ball with their head up. This allows them the chance to see runs of their team-mates and helps them to set-up scoring chances.
HOMEWORK TASK 2
Another great passer of the ball at Barcelona was Michael Laudrup. Watch the video below and find your favourite three assists. Notice how Laudrup's pass and his team-mates run are beautifully co-ordinated.
- Which usually starts first: The run or the pass?
Crossing
Crossing the ball is a common way of setting-up a goal. Good crosses leave the striker with an easy job, while poor crosses can give the ball away and leave your team open to a counter-attack.
HOMEWORK TASK 3
Watch the first video which shows explores some of the basic crossing techniques.
The second video of a practice session for the US Women's National Team. Watch the video and see if you spot:
- The crosser getting their head up to look towards the goal. What information are they are looking for?
- The timing of the cross to meet the run of the striker into the penalty box. Why does the crosser not wait until they are nearer the goal?
Our final video is a reminder that football and futsal are team games, and it doesn't matter so much who scores. Sometimes, when you are near goal, there is a team-mate in a better position than you to score.
Can you spot some examples which show really unselfish assists in this futsal video? Can you set up your team-mates like this?
Dear Learner,
Welcome to your HOMEWORK page! Here you will learn about your chosen topic. It is a good idea to save the URL for this page to your favourites so you can easily return to it when you need to.
You need to work through the tasks on the page, one at a time. This might mean watching videos, it might mean doing other tasks and activities. It may be a good idea to take notes also. Remember that the more work and effort you put into the tasks, the more you will learn and the better you will become.
For most topics, there will be a PRINT OUT at the bottom of the page. You need to print this, complete the questions, and take to your coach. You need to do this so the coaches know what you are working on and are able to help you.
If any of the links on this page are broken, or you have other ideas or suggestions, please get in touch at:
Contact
Mark Carter
mark@ministry-of-football.com
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Once you have completed all the homework, click on the 'Print the form' link. This will open a form which you need to print out and complete. Take this completed form to your coach.
Then click here to move onto the last part of the Tool.
Copyright Ministry of Football 2020 - All Rights Reserved
Mark Carter
mark@ministry-of-football.com
07772 716 876