Monthly Newsletter - November 2024
Hello ballers,
Hope you’re all enjoying the change in weather and survived storm Darragh!
Coaching over the festive period
I’ll be working pretty flat out over the Christmas break bar a few days here and there, so if you are looking for one to one coaching - get in contact asap. Reminder that we have a New Year’s Football Camp (click here) and Group Session Clinics (click here) coming very soon - I’m really excited for both and hopefully see loads of you there.
What’s been happening?
The football season has been heating up with quite a few surprises… Liverpool find themselves top of the Prem - somewhat of a surprise considering they struggled a little bit last year and with Arne Slot replacing Klopp. Probably more surprising is that Chelsea are in Second, ahead of both Man City and Arsenal. Arsenal still look good and I think will still be up there at the end of the season… but Man City are really struggling. They lost again in the champions League to Juventus and are on a really torrid run of form. I know they are missing some important players such as Rodri but you would still expect them to be doing better than they are!
Talking of Super Teams - Real Madrid have struggled a bit of late. I spoke about this before: having a super team isn’t always easy! Football is such a team sport and people seem to forget that when a superstar does well at a club, but Mbappe joining Madrid this past summer has really highlighted how important balance is in a team. You look at them on paper and you would struggle to find better players in each position in the rest of the world. I hope Anchelotti can sort it out, but I don’t envy him!
Ask me a question:
Eddie asks:
“Why are some players so erratic? Darwin Nunez is a great example - in particular, his finishing. Sometimes (but rarely) it's great. Mostly, it's awful. He obviously has the technique but he doesn't always manage to use it.”
Great question! One of the many reasons I love football and especially coaching is because there is an endless amount of things to learn about playing. We mostly talk about good players and their physical (speed, agility, strength…) and technical (shooting, passing, dribbling…) attributes but rarely about their tactical and psychological attributes. Each manager will want players to play slightly differently which falls under the tactical knowledge section. Psychological attributes are super important - think about when really good technical players have a poor run of form - take Rashford for example: you can almost see when he is low on confidence. I wold guess that Nunez struggles in two areas - self-confidence/self-belief that he can actually execute what he is trying to do and decision making: when to use a certain technique or where to shoot. The best players (Messi, Ronaldo) in their prime seemed to always make the right decision and then execute it.
This is why football is the hardest sport in the world - not only do you have to have incredible physical, technical and tactical attributes - you also need to be mentally strong with great self-belief and incredible decision making!
Worth a watch:
Anyone who is interested in Hashtag United, here is Spencer talking about the 3pm blackout:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZf2T9ZhHpw
I love behind teh scenes videos… Here’s a day in the life of Anthony Gordon:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Enyf7p59sZQ
Hopefully see you guys soon,
Jesse
Monthly Newsletter - October 2024
Hello ballers,
Welcome to the October edition of my monthly newsletter. If you missed any of the previous months, you can check them out here: https://strivefootballacademy.com/blog
The season is in full flow and we’re getting to my favourite time of year for football!
Football Camps
We had another incredible football camp at Ridgeway Academy and are already looking forward to the next one. Christmas is always tough to fit one in but we are looking at doing at least a few day camps around New Years.
All details, as always, can be found at the link below.
https://strivefootballacademy.com/football-camps
What’s going on?
Everything Strive is going well, we’re in full flow with the one to ones and the camps are so much fun to run alongside the private sessions. The next step is to hopefully add some group sessions during term-time to supplement team and/or one to one sessions - if you’re interested in this, let me know!
The Premier League is super exciting this year as it’s one of those seasons where anyone can beat anyone, which is great for the neutrals. Arne Slot continues to impress at Liverpool - they’re now 1st of the Champions League table and Premier League! Pep Guardiola has lost 3 consecutive games for the first time while at Man City, is this the start of his decline? Spurs look impressive for a couple of games and then abysmal the next and Man Utd… well, they’re being Man Utd. They have taken the first step to try and rebuild their club by sacking Eric Ten Haag - a bold move considering they extended his contract just a few months ago! Arsenal also seem a little lacklustre - it seems they aren’t quite sure on their style of play any more. They are playing longer balls more often and have become a lot more reliant on set piece goals… Jamie Carragher did a piece regarding this on MNF - I’ll link it below.
Real Madrid seem to be in a bit of a pickle with their ‘Super Team’ having lost to Barca’s ‘kids’ last week and to AC Milan last night in the Champions League. This is a great example of how important balance is in football - you can’t just throw the best 11 players together and expect it to work. Of course, on paper, Mbappe is better than Rodrygo but the energy and off ball work that Rodrygo brings allows Vinicious Jr, Bellingham and co to shine - take him out and replace him with arguably the best attacking player in the world (Mbappe) and that balance shifts. I always find it fascinating watching teams like this try to refind that balance.
Ask me a question
This months question from George:
Does playing Futsal improve my Football game?
If I had to answer in a word: yes. However, I think it’s important to separate the two… if you play Futsal on a Monday and go to play Football on a Tuesday expecting it to be the same game, I don’t think the results will be great. Futsal is great for improving short, sharp movements and ball control - in a similar way to how I think that playing 5 a side can improve your 11 a side performance. However, there are also so many differences between Futsal and Football - the weight of the ball, the surface, the size of pitch, the number of players, the size of goal and so many more.
There is a reason that Premier League players don’t play Futsal anymore - however, I bet a high percentage of them played futsal/five a side growing up… it allows you to get a lot more touches per minute and work on 1v1 situations more often.
At the end of the day, if you enjoy Futsal - play it!
Have a question for me? I’d love to hear it!
Worth a watch
Jamie Carragher analysing how arsenal have changed their style of play:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpazP3o92uI
Madrid are well beaten by Barcelona’s young team:
Monthly Newsletter - September 2024
Hello ballers,
Welcome to the September edition of my monthly newsletter. If you missed any of the previous months, you can check them out here: https://strivefootballacademy.com/blog
The weather has definitely turned - and we seem to have skipped Autumn and gone straight into Winter, yay!
Football Camps
The next camp is now only a few weeks away, they come around so quickly! October half-term starts Monday 28th October, for details and to book - hit this link:
https://strivefootballacademy.com/football-camps
What’s going on?
The Premier League is in full flow and has been interesting to watch so far with the main expected 3 at the top of the table; Man City, Arsenal and Liverpool. Aston Villa continue their fine form from last season and are only a few points of the leaders - they play some great football and Emery deserves a lot of credit for what he has done with the club.
The bottom of the table looks grim for Wolves, Southampton, Crystal Palace and Ipswich - all four of whom are without a win. Everton have actually looked pretty good in spells but seem to be struggling to get over the line - their 3-2 defeat to Bournemouth was brutal; 2-0 up in the 86th minute to go on to lose 3-2. They repeated their terrible form when in the lead when they played Aston Villa, who won 3-2 after Everton went 2-0 with two early goals.
The other mention down at that end of the table is Manchester United, they look terrible! Not only have their results been poor but so have their performances! They don’t seem to have any specific style of play, they don’t look exciting, they are struggling to score and keep clean sheets… it’s a terrible time to be a fan of the club!
In other news, Rodri of Man City spoke out about player burnout and how they are playing too many games only to go and get a long term ACL injury a couple of days later.
What are your views on the matter? Do you think they get paid enough to play however many games or should there be some kind of control?
Ask me a question
This months question from Ollie:
What do you think is THE most important attribute/skill a coach should have?
Great question! Most questions can be answered with ‘it depends’ but I will try to be a little more specific… A really important thing to be able to do is be able to analyse what the player needs in that moment to help them achieve their goals; is it a technical point, do they need to be motivated - whatever it may be, how quickly can the coach see that and implement it in a way that the player understands.
This also ties into communication. There is no point in being the best coach in the world, with all the best ideas if you cannot get the player/s to understand what they are saying. Whether this is a analogy, an example or a demonstration - being able to effectively communicate is such an import skill!
Have a question for me? I’d love to hear it!
Worth a watch
This extra view of the melee between Chelsea and Nottingham Forest is an interesting watch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEJAzR-D9jg
Phil Foden vs Cole Palmer, who should start for England is an interesting debate!
Monthly Newsletter - August 2024
Hello ballers,
Welcome to the August edition of my monthly newsletter. If you missed any of the previous months, you can check them out here: https://strivefootballacademy.com/blog
As the kids have all now gone back to school and the weather is terrible again - I guess summer is over. The good news, in my eyes anyway, is that this is perfect weather for playing football and pushing yourself to achieve your targets for this season.
Football Camps
I absolutely love running the football camps and this summer was no different. We had 91 (NINETY ONE!!!) different players attend, to which all I can say is thank you! The next camp will be in the October half-term which starts Monday 28th October, for details and to book - hit this link:
https://strivefootballacademy.com/football-camps
Google reviews
As a small business, positive online reviews are the number one thing that helps us grow. If you can spare literally 30 seconds of your day, click here to leave a review: https://g.page/r/CZoK4UumbFTXEAE/review
What’s going on?
The Premier League seemed to come back around so quickly and has started pretty similarly to what I expected… Man City look almost unbeatable with Haaland an almighty force on the goalscoring front. Arsenal have started well but having already dropped two points against Brighton, it’s not ideal for them. The surprise of the season after 3 games is Liverpool - Arnie Slot seems to have them firing on all fronts having won 3/3 without conceding a single goal, with Salah looking sharper than ever! Everton are still struggling - even though they looked really good for 86 minutes against Bournemouth, they still managed to concede three goals in the remaining minutes to lose 3-2!
We are already into our first international break, which for me is always a bit ‘meh’. Is there not a better way of having international games, such as having them all in a month at either the start, end or middle of the season? Maybe it’s just me that prefers club football.
Ask me a question
This months question from Eddie:
What can older players do to avoid injury and / or speed up recovery in between games? I find that I am always aching these days!
Everybody (and every body) is different and reacts in different ways so experimenting and trying different things will be the best way to find out what works for you.
Prior to games/training:
Find a routine that works for you, for me a mix of deep, static stretches and dynamic stretches to help get my muscles warm and stretched works best. The main thing you want to make sure is that you are prepared for what you are about to do; if you only do static stretches before a game in which you are going to do a maximal sprint - sounds like a recipe for disaster!
After games/training:
Stretches are super important here again but also light exercise such as a recovery cycle to flush out the ‘old blood’. If you can do this on the same day that would be ideal but within 24 hours would also suffice. Cycling and swimming after an intense football session are great because they are non impact - but a light jog also works.
Have a question for me? I’d love to hear it!
Worth a watch
Barca are starting to look dangerous again and trashed Real Valladolid 7-0!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVI6EAbINag
Everton conceded 3 goals in the last few minutes to throw away a 2 goal lead against Bournemouth…
Monthly Newsletter - July 2024
Hello ballers,
Welcome to my monthly newsletter, July 2024 edition. If you missed any of the previous months, you can check them out here: https://strivefootballacademy.com/blog
We have finally had some summer weather! The last few weeks have seen us finally have some sun which has obviously come with, in true British style, people complaining that it’s too hot!
Summer Football Camp
I’ve had such a good time running our Summer camp for the first two weeks. We have had 49 different ballers attend so far and can’t wait for the next two weeks - starting 19th August. If you want to sign up or after more info, follow this link:
https://strivefootballacademy.com/football-camps
What’s going on?
The Olympics are making all the headlines at the moment, and rightly so. It’s a nice change of pace from the normal off season of transfers and silly rumours.
That being said, the Premier League is back on the 16th of August and here are my predictions.
Winners: I really can’t look past Man City winning their 5th title in a row. Unless one of the other main competitors (Arsenal the most likely) over perform or City severely under perform, I think this season could be over earlier than usual.
Improvers: Spurs showed signs last season of what could be, but they also lacked consistency - with Ange now having a full pre-season with the team, I expect them to do quite well. I really think Man United will do well this year and could even ‘challenge’ (used very loosely) Man City at the top. Chelsea, in my opinion, still have way too many problems in house to do anything other than have a couple of big results here and there.
Back down: It’s always hard to look past the three teams being promoted out of the Championship to be relegated. However, I am really excited to see what Ipswich can do in the top league. I had the pleasure of being coached by Kieran McKenna at the start of his coaching journey at Spurs, so would love to see him do well.
Do you have any hot takes for the upcoming season? Let me know!
Ask me a question
This months question from Louise:
If you could make one rule change in football - what would it be?
I love this type of question! I know a lot of people are of the ‘if it’s not broken, don’t fix it’ mindset - however, the way players speak to referees is a real problem. Not only does it cause issues for the referees themselves, but the potential bigger issue is the trickle down effect this has on referees at lower levels and in youth football.
Young players see their idols screaming at referees, getting in their face and being abusive and think that it’s okay.
We only have to look at Rugby to see how a blueprint for how referees should be treated - as equals and with respect.
I don’t think it would be hard to implement… At the start of the new season, introduce a blanket rule that only the captain can talk to the referee and anyone that shouts at a referee is given an instant yellow card/sin bin - yes, even the billionaire Premier league players. We would quickly see a change of attitude from even the worst offenders.
Agree or have a better rule, i’d love to hear it!
Worth a watch
Liverpool beat Arsenal in pre season in this tight game in Charlotte:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItHrwGSHFiY
Australia beat Zambia 6-5 in the Olympics after being 5-1 down!
Monthly Newsletter - June 2024
Hello ballers,
Welcome to my monthly newsletter, June 2024 edition. If you missed any of the previous months, you can check them out here: https://strivefootballacademy.com/blog
The summer months are always crazy for coaching, with most teams winding down meaning people are looking for more personal coaching and or pre season sessions - and I’ve been loving it… despite the weather.
Summer Football Camp
For the first time ever, we are running camps for 4 of the 6 week summer break: two at the start and then two at the end. There are discounts available for bookings of 3 weeks or more - for details and to book hit the link below.
https://strivefootballacademy.com/football-camps
What I’ve been watching
It’s impossible not to talk about the Euros, which I have loved. Let’s start with the good - I think the only two teams who have looked as good as they hoped they would are Spain and Germany, with the latter being knocked out by the former. However, this is tournament football and many would argue that how you play is irrelevant - winning is all that matters, which England have managed to do thus far. England play against the Netherlands tomorrow in what should be a cracking game - my gut says that England will win but I do think it could be decided by a flip of a coin. In the other semi-final, the so far underperforming France play the in-form Spain side - Spain are the favourites, but if France can get Mbappe firing and at his best, anything is possible.
For those who follow me on Tiktok (https://www.tiktok.com/@the_jwl) you may have seen me do a couple of videos for Sure - and courtesy of them I will be going to the final this coming Sunday, which I am so excited for. Let’s hope England can make it!
In regards to the transfer market, it’s been pretty quiet - which is usually the case while major international tournaments are going on, paired with the fact that a lot of clubs are still trying to comply with financial fair play rules. It will be interesting to see if there will be any major signings come the start of the season. That being said there was one deal that I found interesting… At the end of June, Douglas Luiz made the move to Juventus from Aston Villa and just 6 days later, his girlfriend Alisha Lehmann also made the move to the same club from Villa - is this the first ever ‘couples transfer’?!
Away from football - Le Tour de France is currently on which I absolutely love. If you’ve not given it a go, watch a highlights package on YouTube, you might be swayed!
Ask me a question
This months question from Jerry:
You inherit a Premier League club with unlimited money and can sign ANYONE, who you getting?
This is a tough question… You could answer this in a few ways. Lionel Messi is my first choice; he’ll bring in the crowds, you will sell incredible amounts of shirts and you can say that you had the GOAT play for your team, but he only has a couple of years left at his level.
I think the three best options player wise would be: Haaland (guaranteed goals), Bellingham (spine of the team, work horse) and Mbappe (electric pace and play style). For me, I would go for Mbappe - in an age now where the top level is all about electricity and ability to create and finish off chances - Mbappe is the most well-rounded option.
It’s crazy to me what Real Madrid’s team will look like this coming season - and if they will all be able to gel and work together… as we’ve seen in the past you can’t always throw the best players together and expect results.
Agree? Let me know…
Worth a watch
Here is a highlights package of one of Le Tour de France stages, give it a go…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oATe-1TYihY
Arne Slot has started his role at Liverpool, I love these behind the scenes videos:
Monthly Newsletter - April 2024
Hello ballers,
Welcome to my monthly newsletter, April 2024 edition. If you missed any of the previous months, you can check them out here: https://strivefootballacademy.com/blog
It’s been a crazy couple of months with some exciting things happening; I launched the online course which has been well received, released the first ever Strive Football Shirt and continued to coach as much as possible with both football camps and one to ones. If any of the above interests you - all are linked.
May Football Camp
We are back for four days at the end of May for the last half-term break before the summer holidays. There will be good vibes and good weather (vibes guaranteed, weather not so much).
https://strivefootballacademy.com/football-camps
Pre-Season training
As this season comes to an end for a lot of players out there - pre-season is just on the horizon. If you are looking for a technical plan to really try and improve over the couple of months before next season then try our Online Training Plan. It’s been created to be effective with players of all ages and abilities and, even better, if you would like a whole group of players or a team to complete it at the same time, we have multi subscription discounts available. https://strivefootballacademy.com/onlinecourse
What I’ve been watching
As the end of the season comes in - we have a really exciting title race. Liverpool seemed to have excused themselves from it, which leaves Man City to battle it out with Arsenal - the latter being one point clear having played one more game.
Man City will always be the favourites in these situations, having years of experience just winning every single game. I honestly don’t mind who wins it, but as a neutral I hope for some a couple of twists and turns along the way just to make it interesting.
I’ve been absolutely loving the Champions League this season, with some of the best knockout games in recent history happening. Again, I don’t really mind who makes it to the final - however, I’ll always have a soft spot for Dortmund, who produce so many good players and always play exciting football. Maybe we will see a repeat of the 2013 Champions League final between Bayern and Dortmund which oddly enough was also at Wembley, coincidence?
Ask me a question
This months question from Kate and Eliza is:
Who do you think is the best Left Back in the WSL?
The three teams I’ve watched the most, probably because of their coverage on TV, are Arsenal, Man City and Chelsea. Arsenal's Stephanie Catley seems an absolute machine when she plays, although she has been competing for the left back spot with Katie McCabe, who has had a meteoric rise from the lower level of Irish football.
Demi Stokes for Man City is equally as impressive as the two previously mentioned, although seems a little more defensive - which is actually a breath of fresh air. In the men's game, full-backs seemed to be judged on their ability to attack rather than defend…
Finally there’s Niamh Charles of Chelsea. I’ve been really impressed with her ability to take players on, aggressiveness on the ball and work-rate. I have also seen her in action for England and been equally impressed.
For me, Charles is the pick of the bunch. In these situations I always think ‘Who would I most want to play like?’ and in this case, it’s her.
Agree? Let me know…
Worth a watch
CBS is the show that keeps on giving! Watch Carragher deliver an interview after 8 pints in Dortmund!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2HSTt6sDZI
Spurs have really struggled of late - Ange’s interview sums up how he feels about it…
Monthly newsletter - February 2024
Hello ballers,
Welcome to my monthly newsletter, February 2024 edition. If you missed any of the previous months, you can check them out here: https://strivefootballacademy.com/blog
February was great, we had the half-term football camp and loads of one to ones. The only negative was the amount of rain we got this month, which I know caused a lot of games to be cancelled, so hopefully you all get more gametime in March.
Easter Football Camp
Easter marks one year since I started running football camps post COVID. I plan to make this the biggest and best camp yet! For more information or to sign up, follow this link: https://strivefootballacademy.com/football-camps
Shirts and online course
Two exciting things to look forward to for the die hard Strivers out there (I don’t think the term Strivers will stick).
I am in the design process to get some Strive football shirts made. I want these to be completely unique rather than an off the shelf design. As soon as these are ordered and I have them, you’ll be able to buy one and I’ll even offer the service of having your own name and number on the back!
The second thing, my Online Football Coaching Course, which has been in the works for months now, is almost ready to go. I want this to be the best it can be hence why it’s taking a little longer than expected.
What I’ve been watching
We’re coming towards the business end of the season now - when the top teams really start to show what they are made of.
Arsenal are showing that they may have learnt from their shortcomings last season with a great string of results - they have one 6 Premier League games in a row scoring 31 goals and only conceding 3 goals in the process! This puts them 3rd in the league with a far superior goal difference over the rest of the pack.
With Liverpool having the ‘Klopp’s last dance’ effect and Man City, well, being City the run-in should be really exciting to watch for the neutral viewer.
Over in Spain, Real Madrid have started to run away with the title. Real had a hugely controversial game over the weekend against Valencia - they were 2-0 down and pulled it back to 2-2 going into added time. The ball went wide and as they were about to cross it into the box, the ref blew the whistle for full time. All the players seemed to play on and Bellingham headed the ball into the net - obviously the goal didn’t count and two Madrid players were sent off for their protests after the game.
What’s your view on the ref stopping play during a promising attack, should they let it play out?
Ask me a question
One of the readers suggested that I do a ‘Q&A’ section (Thanks Eddie!) So here it is…
What's the most memorable half-time team talk you've witnessed? - Eddie
The first one that pops out at me comes from my time as a Spurs U18’s player in 2010 (back in the dark ages for a lot of the players reading this!). We were playing against Leicester and were losing 2-0 at home. We weren’t playing very well but just before half-time there was a goalmouth scramble where two of our players bundled the ball into the net.
The coaches were already in the changing room ready to deliver their analysis (rant is probably a better word) as we walked in. The two players who scrambled the ball over the line were still arguing over whose goal it actually was as we all took our seats. I won’t name names here but the big, tough, Northern coach picked up an orange from the fruit pile and launched it at the two players arguing - it hit the wall above their heads and exploded on impact. The room fell silent and we then had to ensure 15 minutes of hell as we got ripped into - albeit not as bad as the two that were arguing over the goal got it!
I don’t remember specifics of how we played in the second half but we ended up drawing so it wasn’t all bad.
If you have any questions, shoot them over!
Worth a watch
Here’s a link to that crazy Real Madrid game if you haven’t yet seen it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xt740rgPvM0
I love Henry as a pundit (as much as I did as a player!) - watch his analysis of Mbappe:
Monthly newsletter - January 2024
January 2024 Blog
Hello ballers,
Welcome to my January 2024 Newsletter - the first of the year! If you missed any of the previous months, you can check them out here: https://strivefootballacademy.com/blog
It’s been a pretty good January for me - relatively cold weather but pretty dry and lots of positive, enthusiastic training sessions.
February half-term
We are back for the February half-term at Ridgeway Academy from Monday 19th to Friday 23rd. We were lucky enough to have Eman SV2 (over 3 million YouTube subscribers) join us at our January camp, which everyone loved! For more information or to sign up, follow this link: https://strivefootballacademy.com/football-camps
What I’ve been watching
This is always an interesting part of the season; clubs are starting to get desperate about pushing on or staying away from promotion along with players being bought and sold.
Spurs seem to have done some good business bringing in Timo Werner on loan from RB Leipzig and Radu Dragusin from Genoa. The rest of the Premier league clubs have been relatively quiet, although there is still time as the market closes tonight (1st Feb). I really thought Arsenal would try to boost their squad for the remainder of the season. They were heavily linked with Ivan Toney, who is now back playing following his lengthy ban for Sports betting, although that deal looks like it’s dead in the water.
Liverpool looked great last night against Chelsea - who still can’t seem to put a decent run of games together. I worry how long the club will stick with Pochettino. Chelsea have a long history of not giving managers time, but now that Todd Boley is at the helm, maybe they will change tact and start to give managers a little more leeway.
On the note of Liverpool, they announced last week that Klopp will be stepping down as manager to take some time away from football. In his 20 plus minute interview he spoke about how he now longer has the energy to do the job justice and feels that for the club to move forward and prosper, they should have someone else in charge. I think it’s a brave move - managers who are lucky enough to not get sacked, seem to sometimes stick around too long at clubs, so for Klopp to walk away on his own merit deserves some credit.
Worth a watch
If you haven’t seen Klopps full interview, it’s definitely worth a watch: https://youtu.be/mHYsAgAx5I4?si=AgvRAV4_oAeUHP6E
Spurs vs Brentford was an exciting 5 goal thriller: https://youtu.be/fgwtTkZzZnU?si=dL178Nun6Gt5CSTy
Thanks for reading,
Jesse
Monthly newsletter - November 2023
Hello ballers,
Welcome to the my November 2023 Newsletter - if you missed any of the previous months, you can check them out here: https://strivefootballacademy.com/blog
November has been freezing and seen a lot of games called off - so hopefully you’ve all been keeping up with and doing extra training (worth doing just to stay warm!).
Christmas/New Year period
We will be back at Ridgway Academy for 3 days during the Christmas break. This will be from Tuesday 2nd Jan - Thursday 4th Jan. As always, all the details can be found here: https://strivefootballacademy.com/football-camps
I’ll be doing one to one sessions through the break with just a few days off here and there. It’s always a busy time of year so get sessions booked in early if you know when you want them!
Online training course
I am super proud and excited to announce that I will be releasing an online training course. I get a lot of requests for coaching from people outside the Hertfordshire area - so this will be perfect for people who aren’t as local to experience my coaching, albeit virtually. This course will also be perfect for people who already get coached by me in person as something to supplement their training with.
I’m hoping to release it before Christmas - so keep an eye out for details of that.
What I’ve been watching
There’s been a lot of football on recently and I’ve been particularly entertained by the Premier League of late. Spurs are a great watch - I especially love watching James Maddison, he’s the type of player that I would like to think I play like (although I’m nowhere near as good!). Spurs have clearly struggled without him although last nights draw against Man City is a good result for them.
Arsenal continue to impress and while I don’t think they are exciting to watch as they were last season, they also look a lot more solid at the back. Liverpool are back to their most exciting, edging out Fulham in a 7 goal thriller - back to Klopp’s ‘rock and roll football’ by the looks of it.
I’m really hoping that there can be much more of a title race this year with Arsenal, Spurs and Liverpool all hopefully challenging City come April/May.
Jude Bellingham continues to shine out in Madrid. He continues to score and just be an absolute machine in that Real Madrid team. He has now scored more goals than Ronaldo did in his first 10 games at Real… even more impressive that he’s a midfielder! Let’s just hope he stays fit and can perform next year for England at the Euro’s in Germany.
Worth a watch
If you are looking for some cheap laughs then check out this CBS Sports show best bits video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ub3SdocQ_-w
Liverpool vs Fulham could be one of the games of the season: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kznYQ1Ed07o
Thanks for reading,
Jesse
Monthly newsletter - October 2023
Hey Ballers,
Hope you’ve all had a good October and are enjoying the start of the winter months.
I love this time of year, perfect weather for getting a sweat on while playing football!
Christmas/New Year football camp
We will be back at Ridgway Academy for 3 days during the Christmas break. This will be from Tuesday 2nd Jan - Thursday 4th Jan. As always, all the details can be found here: https://strivefootballacademy.com/football-camps
Toy Collection for charity
Ridgeway Academy has been helping a local Children's Charity in association with the Lister Hospital for the past 7 years - and I would love to help. If you would like to help: all items must be brand new and in original packaging due to hygiene reasons. They should be suitable for 0-15 year olds and do not need to be ‘Christmas themed’ as they are distributed throughout the year. I’ll be collecting any toys donated and dropping them at Ridgeway in early December - so if you would like to help, drop me a message.
What I’ve been watching
Messi won his 8th Ballon D’Or and it seems to have divided opinions… My argument would be: at the best competition in the World (the World Cup) he was the best player on the best team and therefore deserves the trophy. Other people would argue that Haaland was more consistent: performing for a full season in the hardest league. What do you think?
I’m really enjoying the start to the Premier League this year. I think the gap between the very best and the rest has been reduced and more teams are enjoyable to watch. Special mention has to go out to Spurs - for me, they are the most exciting team to watch at the moment and I love their style of play. The way they entice teams to come out and try to win the ball before quickly making a few passes to be through at the other end is remarkable.
A club that I would be concerned about is Manchester United. It is still up in the air what is happening in regards to their ownership but it’s the on field problems that are more worrying. I watched their 3-0 loss to Man City and the way some of their players, most notably Bruno Fernandes - their captain, walked around the pitch showing almost no care is an insult to the supporters. A club’s captain is a player that teammates should be able to look to in times of need - not a crybaby who looks to feel hard done by at every moment.
Jude Bellingham continues to impress the world. His latest feat was scoring two goals in a 2-1 win over rivals Barcelona in the El Classico. His ability to score goals and get into scoring positions for a classic ‘number 8’ is ridiculous! Paired with the fact that he is only 20 years old is frightening.
Worth a watch
I have started to upload my coaching videos to TikTok, Instagram and now YouTube shorts. Watch them here: https://www.youtube.com/@The_jwl/shorts
Join the Football World in trying to figure out who this ‘Premier League Rapper’ is… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rUjutzCUKZY
Monthly newsletter - September 2023
Hi Ballers,
Hope you all had a great end to your summer and are enjoying the start of Autumn weather, the start of the football season and colder, darker nights…
For me, this summer was incredible! I had a great time running the summer football camps and did plenty of one to ones. I love hearing how players I coach are doing during the season so please send me updates during the season.
October Half-Term
Reminder that the October half-term is now less than 3 weeks away (where is the time going?!). It’ll be at Ridgeway Academy in Welwyn Garden City on their brand new 4G astroturf pitch, click here for details or to book.
What I’ve been watching
Let's start with the controversial game this past weekend between Spurs and Liverpool. Both teams have had exciting starts to the season; Spurs are finally playing some exciting, attacking football with new manager Ange Postecoglu getting much of the credit (Maddison should get a lot too - I love watching him play!) and Liverpool seem to have built a great midfield after many departures although still could do with strengthening their defence in my opinion.
It was a crazy start to the game with both teams looking to create chances and the first controversial moment came after 25 mins when Curtis Jones stretched for the ball and inadvertently went over the top of the ball and onto Bissouma’s ankle. I’m torn on this one - while I think that players should be protected from bad tackles, I do believe that this was unfortunate for Jones. Sure, if you slow it down and freeze frame the contact on Bissouma, it looks horrible. However, when you watch the full clip you can clearly see all of Jones’ weight goes on to the ball which then makes him roll over it and onto Bissouma… I personally as the ref would have given a yellow for this - what do you guys think?
Only a few moments later Mo Salah puts Luis Diaz through and puts the ball in the goal with a great far post finish. This goal was looked at by VAR and announced offside… For anyone watching the game live like me, may have been surprised by this. I like to play the VAR game of when they show the offside pictures before applying the lines you try to work out whether or not it is going to be given or cancelled - this one I was sure was onside. Spurs go on win the game 2-1. The refs association immediately after the game released a statement saying that for some reason both VAR and assistant VAR missed the offside decision. For me something like this should not be possible - there must be some kind of backout technique to use so that decisions like this can’t be ‘missed’.
What else?
Jude Bellingham. That’s the sentence. I’ve watched a few of Real Madrid’s games recently and he is a sensation. If I was building a team built around one player, it would be him. He’s athletic, has a great temperament, can defend, creates goal scoring opportunities, scores goals… bar going in goal (which he probably could do) he can do everything!
Luton Town became the first of the newly promoted teams to the Premier League to win a game this season by beating Everton 2-1 at Goodison Park. I’ve not been too impressed with Luton this season but 3 points can do amazing things for a team so I hope that Luton can kick on from here.
Harry Kane continues to do what he does best - score goals. He now has 8 Bundesliga goals in just 6 games with a goal every 66 minutes. It will be interesting to see how Bayern do this season as obviously he has gone there to win trophies - but have they got enough to win the Champions League, I’m not so sure.
Worth a watch
This clip from ‘That Peter Crouch Film’ is a pretty entertaining watch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nv1OKdS3Rzk
This James Maddison interview offers some great insight:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwN9oz6WmhQ
Thanks for reading,
Jesse
Monthly newsletter - August 2023
Hi all,
there’s a lot to cover this month from the Womens World Cup, specifically Englands run to the final, the final week of our Summer Camp and some massive transfers.
Lets start with Harry Kane
To my surprise, Harry Kane made the switch from his boyhood club to the flashing lights of German giants Bayern Munich and if I were Spurs, I’d actually be glad…. the fact he left now for a massive fee of around £100m means that he doesn’t leave for free at the end of this season. He did everything he could for Spurs, including staying a lot longer than I originally thought - if you remember, he was heavily linked to a move to Real Madrid back in 2019. The only surprising element is the fact that he is ‘only’ 48 goals away from becoming the Premier League all time record goalscorer, which begs the question; will he return one day to try and break it?
Summer Camps and onto October
We just finished the third and final week of our summer camp - which I had an absolute blast running! We start to instantly look forward to the next camp which will be in October. The big news is that we will be moving 2 minutes up the road to Ridgeway Academy, who have a brand new 11 a side astroturf pitch! We will be there in the October half-term from 23rd-27th Oct. click here to book your space now.
What I’m liking at the moment
Let’s start with England’s run in the Women’s World Cup
They played an absolute blinder to make it to the final - a special mention has to go to Serina Wiegman. To take England to back to back major finals, winning one of them, is an incredible feat! The major news to follow the tournament is that she is now being linked with the England Mens job, something I would be very intrigued to see.
I can only hope that the women bounce back to defend their title at the 2025 Euro’s in Switzerland. If they do go on to win that they would undoubtedly be the most successful England team ever!
Each of the prem teams have played their first couple of games. For Man City it seems to be business as usual, just as it is for Erling Haaland too, continuing where he left off in regards to scoring. Arenal have also started well and, as a neutral fan, we can only hope they push Man City as much as they did last season. The surprise team so far for me are Spurs - obviously having lost Kane they are a bit of an unknown entity this season. However, the signing of Maddison will be massive for them in my opinion - he’s a class act!
Worth a watch
VAR have started to publish their inner working during games
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrmZNz4qtoI
This video is a good insight to Luton’s renovations
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37qux5eK2So&t=31s
Thanks for reading,
Jesse
Monthly newsletter - July 2023
Hi all,
Quite a lot has happened in the last month: we’ve run our first week of the holiday camp, the Women's World Cup has started, more signings and rumoured signings and more - so let’s get into it.
I’m taking a break…
After 20 or so years of playing for a team every year I have decided to take a break from playing (for a while at least). I don’t see this as a negative or sad, one of the main reasons for this is so that I can focus more on the coaching, something that I absolutely love! This means I’m a little more flexible for one to ones and I can put more focus into the holiday camps and hopefully bring back term-time group sessions too.
I’ll be spending my spare time trying to emulate Tour de France riders, minus the incredible fitness…
First week of our football camp done
After a great first week of the holiday camp, where we had the typical English summertime weather, I’m already looking forward to the next one! We still have space on the next two weeks (Monday 14th - Friday 18th Aug & Tuesday 29th Aug - Friday 1st Sep) - click here to book your space now.
What I’m liking at the moment
Let’s start with the Women’s World Cup.
The two favourites have started well; England and USA both winning 2/2, while Germany, my pre tournament dark horse to win it all, surprisingly lost to Columbia - I’ll link to Colombia's first goal at the bottom of the blog - it’s a stunner!
I’d like to touch on injuries for a moment… Kiera Walsh picked up what looked like an ACL injury which, after having a scan, turns out that while still somewhat serious, thankfully isn’t an ACL injury. Many female players have spoken out about the lack of research into injuries in the women’s game - in December 2022, 5 of the 20 female Ballon D’Or players were out with ACL injuries, I could only speculate in saying that if that was in the same in the men's game that something would be done pretty quickly….
Many of the Prem teams have gone over the USA to compete in the inaugural ‘Premier League Summer Series’ and I would say it was a big success… it was a good chance to see how some of the teams might fare this season. One team I am very excited to watch is Brighton - De Zerbi has done an incredible job and the all seem to have really bought in to his style of play. Another team I think could do really well this season are Aston Villa - the signing of Moussa Diaby could prove to be one of the signing of the season! The other great thing about the Summer Series is the player a ref cams, it’s great to see a first person perspective!
Finally, Mbappe… numbers seem to have just gone out of the window when you are talking about players going to Saudi now; 700 million euros for a one season deal. At what point is enough money enough? I mean, what is the difference in him earning 50 million a season and 500 million a season? And, before you say ‘450 million’, I would ask you what can you buy with 500 million that you can’t with 50? Surely things like legacy and competition should be more important to a player who some regard as the best in the world.
Worth a watch
As mentioned above - this goal by Colombian player Linda Caicedo is ridiculous! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGObrEOiB3g
Great view of Yuri Tielemans ‘player cam’ during a game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2K-oDLfOiA
Thanks for reading,
Jesse
Football Camps - why use us?
Football Camp - a typical day with Strive Football Academy
Strive Football Academy has been running football coaching camps for boys and girls aged 6 to 14 for the past four years. We work to develop football skills and confidence, keep fit, and have fun with friends.
What makes our football coaching camps different?
I am often asked ‘what is different about your camp?’ by parents and players deciding whether to book with us for a coaching camp. As a company who specialises in elite football coaching, we take this ethos into account when planning coaching camps too.
Our days are structured, with focus on improving players rather than just ‘games all day’. We pride ourselves on this focus because it means that each player will learn something new every day.
What does a typical day look like?
Each day has a specific topic that we will focus on; this could be anything from shooting to passing or skills.
The schedule of the day breaks down like this:
8:45am - 9am arrival
9am - 10:30am morning drills with that day’s topic as the focus
10:30am -10:45am morning snack
10:45am - 12 pm focused drills in a match like scenario
12pm - 1 pm lunch
1pm - 1:45pm recap of the morning’s focus
1:45pm - 3pm matches with focus/restrictions to maximise that day’s focus
3pm pick up
For example, at our most recent Easter camp we focused one of the days on ‘skills to beat a defender in a match’. When doing any drills in a group setting we think about maximising the time that each player has with the ball at their feet.
So, we would start the day with breaking down how we are going to beat a defender. We’ll look at the following skills:
Do we have disguise to unbalance or shift the defender?
Can we change direction to prevent the defender getting the ball?
Do we have an explosive touch in to the space to get away from the defender?
First we cover our objective and how we are going to establish the skill. Next the players will practise the skill unopposed, as we find this is the best way to get the hang of new skills.
The second part of the day will be about putting this into practice in a controlled environment. For example, we’ll look at trying to beat a defender in a small grid or with a time limit. This is to get used to putting the aforementioned steps into action without the pressure of 5 defenders running at you! It also maximises the amount of repetitions we can do.
Finally, we will play matches with restrictions in place that emphasise what we are trying to work on.
Here are some of the scenarios we’ve used before:
You must beat a defender in a one vs one situation before you can score
If you do a skill to beat a defender you get a goal
We have found, through running camps with this structure for the last 4 years or so, our players not only make improvements but also enjoy the day and stay engaged throughout.
If you have any questions about or camps or want to sign up - get in contact by clicking here.
Hope to see you soon,
Jesse.
Monthly newsletter - June 2023
Hi all,
Welcome to the June edition of my blog, let’s get into it!
Football camps during the summer holidays
I’m super excited to let you all know that we will be running multiple weeks during the summer holidays! At the moment, we have three weeks planned, with the possibility of another week being added.
Please note the change of location - we will now be at Gosling Sports Park in Welwyn - 5 mins away from Cotlandswick leisure centre. It’s easily accessible by the A1 and A414.
All of the details including dates, cost and any other details can be found by clicking here.
What I’m liking at the moment
All of the talk at the moment is about signings…
Let’s start with my favourite player, the GOAT, Lionel Messi… much has been made of his move to Inter Miami which took most of the footballing world by surprise. Other than the reported $150m deal, the decision itself is an interesting one. I am actually looking forward to seeing how Messi handles it - is he going to find the will power to prove himself or will he just sit back and cash in his cheque?
Arsenal continue to make big noises with two marquee signings over the last week - firstly with Kai Havertz, who broke his own record as most expensive German player ever. The Gunners followed this up with the long awaited announcement of Declan Rice, who signed for a reported £100m+ fee. A lot has been made of this price tag, but I just see it as; that’s what players cost. Gone are the days where teams get a proven top level player for £10m, that’s just football now.
Jude Bellingham completed his move to Real Madrid. It’s been a while since Real made such a big signing. I’m really looking forward to seeing if he can play with the same amount of freedom and bite that he did at Dortmund.
I’m looking forward to the Women's World Cup, which starts on the 20th July in New Zealand. USA enter the tournament as the bookies favourite closely followed by England, who are coming off the back of their Euro 2021 win. My dark horses are Germany and Spain, both of which will be tough to beat in my opinion!
Worth a watch
‘The Coaches Voice’ youtube channel uploads some great videos, and this one featuring Cesc Fabregas talking tactics and playing under Arsene Wenger is no exception https://youtu.be/yIHnusixSgA
Missing football? Here are 10 of the best Champions League goals from last year:
Any other signings that I should b e taking more note of? Let me know!
Thanks,
Jesse
Monthly newsletter - May 2023
Hi there,
Welcome to the May edition of my blog - I’ve also written a blog about how to improve your first touch this month, which you can read here.
Half-term training camps and the summer holidays
We have just had our first day of the May half-term camp, with two more this week on Thursday and Friday. It’s at Cotlandswick leisure centre and we still have spaces - so if you are interested, either email me or you can book on here.
I’m also in the process of planning which weeks to run the summer camps - keep an eye on the website or these updates to know all the details.
What I’m liking at the moment
This has obviously been a massive month of football with all the leagues ending and some finals fast approaching.
Manchester City have peaked at the perfect time, brushing Arsenal aside to win the Premier League and have two finals left to play - FA Cup final against Manchester United and Champions League final against Inter Milan. To be honest, I can’t see either of those teams putting up enough of a fight to beat Man City, with Haaland, Kevin De Bruyne and co causing havoc up top and their defensive line finally clicking, I think it will be two relatively easy wins for them.
The big shock of the season for me was seeing Leicester City get relegated to the Championship only 7 years after winning the Premier League. It just shows how competitive the top tier of English football is. I’d love to see them bounce right back up, but with the amount of players that will leave, it’s impossible to predict what will happen - you only have to look at clubs like Sunderland who got relegated from the Championship the year after getting relegated from the Prem - it can be a slippery slope!
Local team Luton deserve a mention for getting promoted into the Prem - their rise has been incredible to watch. They are now the first team to be in the top English division, drop all the way to non-league and then make it all the way back to the top league - what an achievement. Special mention has to go to Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu who has been with them all the way from their Conference title winning season - Tier 5 of the English pyramid all the way to the 1st!
Worth a watch
Sky Sports have put a ‘best bits’ together which includes some terrible preidictions and funny moments of the season: https://youtu.be/B0LfSJqkIcw
Man City posted a video where Kevin De Bruyne tries to guess who assisted his goal: https://youtu.be/BUHtAal-PPQ
Let me know your thoughts on the end of the season!
Thanks,
Jesse
First touch drills - how to improve your football game in a few easy steps
I often get asked by players and parents, “if there was one attribute to work on most, what would it be?”
For me, the answer is simple: first touch. Think about playing in a match, you never magically just end up with the ball - 90% of the time you have to receive it from your teammate, the other 10% is an interception or a knockdown, and even then you still have to actively receive the ball.
In this blog I’ll outline the best strategies for improving your first touch on the ball and give you a couple of ideas for drills that you can use to practice your first touch. They will improve your first touch and make you a better football player.
Getting the ball under control
Let’s start with the basics - how to get the ball under control. The biggest issue I see when coaching is the ball ‘bouncing’ off the player’s foot while trying to control the ball. This is because their foot is too ‘hard’. Think about passing a ball against a brick wall - the ball is going to bounce off the wall because the wall is hard. So, how can you make your foot ‘softer’? I use catching a tennis ball as an example… If you throw a tennis ball up in the air and attempt to catch it - you would cradle the ball as it meets your hands. So this is the kind of movement we want to encourage when receiving the football.
The second most common thing I see with beginner players is them trying to use the sole of their foot to control it. In theory, with slow passes, I don’t have a problem with this. However, as soon as you start to receive stronger passes it can become really tough to control, not only that but if the ground is wet, the ball is way more likely to slip out from under the foot. The inside of the foot is the best place to start because it has the biggest surface area of any part of the foot and will give you the most control.
Best drills for practicing first touch
What’s the best drill to use to work on first touch I hear you say? Find a wall (or a friend) and stand about 10 yards apart. Pass firmly to the wall (I prefer using a wall because it takes out the human error of the second person) and as it comes back try to ‘kill’ (stop) the ball as close to you as possible using the inside of the foot. Repeat with both feet.
Okay, so we have the basics of being able to control the ball consistently. Now we move on to two areas: using different parts of the foot and pushing the ball in to different directions. We want to get to a point where regardless of whether the ball comes to our right or left foot, (on this point, let’s get away from using the term ‘strong’ and ‘weak’ foot) we can take the ball in any direction. It’s really important to practice first touch with your left and right foot, regardless from which is your naturally ‘strong’ foot to give yourself the best chance of being able to handle the ball effectively, in any given scenario.
Advanced drill for practising first touch
Using the drill above you can start to practise this. Once you get really good, set up ‘gates’ around you with different colours (shown below). As the ball comes to you, get someone to shout out a colour and you have to react and take your touch through that gate. The reactive element makes it a lot harder and is supposed to make it a little more realistic.
The final stage of this is to add a little bit of disguise prior to taking the touch in a direction - Thiago of Liverpool is the king of this.
Can you add a drop of the shoulder and then take a large touch in the opposite direction to accelerate on to? If the answer is yes, then you’re all set!
Monthly newsletter - April 2023
Hi there,
Welcome to the April edition of my monthly newsletter where I look back on everything that has happened this month at Strive and in the world of football.
Easter training camps
We ran two football training camps over the Easter holidays, which we had a great turn out for. Good to see lots of new faces and many older familiar ones returning too! We had some cracking weather, especially in the first week and we had a great group of players.
The next half-term break is already fast approaching (where is this year going?!) which means so is the next camp. We’ll be back at Cotlandswick Leisure Centre from Tuesday 30th May - Friday 2nd June, click here to book your space.
What I’m liking at the moment
A lot has happened in the world of football this month…
Let’s start with Wrexham, most recently made famous by superstar Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney purchasing the club. Well, Wrexham just got promoted into the football league which officially puts them only 3 promotions away from Premier League football! Despite the fears of many Wrexham fans - the Disney Plus documentary, which charts their promotion efforts, shows that the Hollywood duo really do care about the club and its fanbase. The show is a really good, heartwarming watch!
In other promotion news, my ex-club Hashtag United - got promoted into step 3 of the non-league pyramid, which is a massive achievement. For context, they would need 3 promotions to be in the same league Wrexham have just gone into - not bad for a club that only entered the non-league pyramid in 2018!
The Premier League had arguably its biggest game of the season this past Wednesday when Arsenal faced Manchester City at the Etihad. Without trying to upset too many Arsenal fans, I think the game highlighted the fact that Man City are just that step above Arsenal at the moment. Pep Guardiola’s ability to make slight adjustments in tactics or personnel gives them an advantage that not many clubs can cope with. I should say that I think Arsenal have been amazing this season - not only have they been an absolute joy to watch but they have also made the league a close contest (which they could still win!), without them City would have run away with it by now!
Worth a watch
Hearing Kevin De Bruyne speak just after the Arsenal game gives some insight into how Pep Guardiola and Kevin himself approach games like that one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8wR_9XCF89c
Ben Foster (ex Premier League goalkeeper), also known as the Cycling Goalkeeper, now plays for Wrexham and offers behind the scenes footage and wears a chest-mounted-camera in a game! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9kW_dUlTV0
Trent Alexander-Arnold has just released a ‘roundtable talk’ where he and other players discuss the academy system in England. Worth a watch for anyone who is interested in learning how the academy system works in this country: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HV3sUl10ZRY
That’s it for April! As always, please let me know if you’ve got any feedback or comments!
Thanks,
Jesse
Habits of professional footballers that could help you too
Many professional footballers have a set of habits, which have helped them to play at an elite level and beat the competition to get there. They say that it takes as little as 2 months to ingrain a new habit into your own routine, so the good news is that you could adopt some of these habits too!
A habit is a routine of behaviour that is performed often and many times over, so that it becomes subconscious. Many professional footballers have a set of habits, which have helped them to play at an elite level and beat the competition to get there. They say that it takes as little as 2 months to ingrain a new habit into your own routine, so the good news is that you could adopt some of these habits too!
Good quality sleep
Getting enough sleep is one of the most important habits that you can form, especially if you are under 18. Teenagers in the UK get an average of 7 hours sleep per night but actually 9 hours is recommended to help with development and recovery.
With that in mind, giving yourself the best opportunity to get the recommended 9 hours could be a habit worth making. Establishing a consistent bedtime is one of the best ways to ensure you get a long and restful night’s sleep - once it’s a habit, your body will know to wind down, relax and prepare for a long night of kip!
It’s often said, but minimise how much you use your phone just before bed. I used to be guilty of saying “just 5 minutes on my phone”, and still finding myself on TikTok an hour later! Now, I try to have a book by the side of my bed and read a couple of pages before I sleep, that way I’m forced to put my phone down.
As Thierry Henry once said,
“I eat football, I sleep football, I breathe football. I'm not mad, I'm just passionate.“
If it worked for Henry, it must be a habit worth making! This leads nicely onto our next habit…
Maintain a balanced diet and limit treats!
Maintaining a good diet is an important habit to form and can make a world of difference not only to your footballing game, but how you feel in general.
We all need a treat now and then, but try and limit these to once or twice a week. If this is hard for you, think about how you can restrict yourself in other ways, like having grilled meat rather than fried. Or a small portion rather than a large.
The rest of the time, focus on getting lots of fresh fruit and vegetables and a good mix of healthy proteins, like salmon and chicken and carbs like brown rice and sweet potatoes. Personally, I add hot sauce to everything I eat - I’m obsessed with spice and it makes even broccoli taste good!
Take feedback onboard
How you choose to receive feedback and what you do with it can have a huge impact on the quality of your game. It also influences how you develop and improve over time. The most effective football players actively listen to feedback and take it onboard - it’s actually one of the easiest habits in this list to adopt.
When I was younger, I would sometimes get defensive when feedback was given to me, but I worked hard to be more receptive and open. The more I worked on it, the more I sought out feedback as I found it to be one of the easiest ways to get insights and improve my game. Once you start asking for feedback, it can become weirdly fun and is almost like a secret power, giving you a way to supercharge your game!
To make sure the feedback is constructive, don’t be afraid to ask for details if it’s not given. For example, ask for an example of when you performed the behaviour that can be improved? Discuss openly with the person giving feedback how you could implement their ideas and practical steps to do this. Make sure it’s a good time for you both to discuss the feedback and it’s in an environment where you feel comfortable.
At Strive we provide feedback throughout our one-to-one coaching sessions, with clear examples and ideas. We’ll discuss this with you and help you form plans for how the improvement can be put into practice.
By staying open and asking for feedback frequently, you can form a positive habit that will have a huge impact on your game.
Train regularly
To make it as an elite footballer, make a habit of training regularly. This might sound obvious, but I’ve met so many players who train once a week and then have a game at the weekend and then wonder why their performance doesn’t rapidly improve. All players who have reached an elite standard are in the habit of training regularly.
This could be an extra gym session, getting out on the bike or a run. I’ve been cycling over the last few years and I try to get out into the countryside for a longer ride once a week. You can follow my progress on Strava here!
Learn how to cope with mental pressure
Many players struggle with their mental health and specifically, the pressure of playing in a professional setting. However, learning how to cope with pressure can really help your performance, on and off the pitch.
Firstly, know that you’re not alone if you’re feeling stressed. In a recent interview, Leah Williamson admitted
“I felt like I needed to win for my club and my country, and if I felt that was under threat, I’d be a wreck. I’d have thoughts like ‘well, when I retire, I won’t have to deal with these nerves’, which is f**ked! Like, I’m wishing away my career because I can’t deal with my own performance anxiety.”
This kind of feeling is normal and is strangely what also helps with matchday performance - it’s all the adrenaline building up. What’s important is that these feelings don’t overshadow your enjoyment of the game and your confidence to go out and give it your all.
One of the most important things in handling the mental load is identifying the best way for you to relax and release pressure. It could be watching a film, seeing friends or playing a game - make time for it and prioritise this as much as your training. Only you know how you like to relax, so take time to really think about how you can let off steam.
Another effective way to handle pressure is to talk about how you are feeling. It’s great to do this little and often so that it doesn’t bubble over. To help form a habit out of it, I find it helpful to talk about how I’m feeling every day - sometimes it’s really good and I have loads of energy and positivity. Other days I might feel tired or be in a low mood. Identifying these feelings and sharing them with someone close to you can help you feel better and know that you’re not going through things alone. Keeping a journal is another good way of doing this. Once you are in the habit of regularly talking about how you are feeling, bigger conversations about stress, fear or pressure can feel less daunting too.