How to Play Soccer

How to play Soccer

            Do you know how to play soccer? If you think it's just kicking a ball around and trying to get it into the other teams’ goal, then you’re partially correct. The thing is, it’s much more than that. It takes technique, speed, adrenalin, endurance, faith, hope, desire, will-power, the tempo of the game and most importantly it takes team work.

            Of course here, in the United States we call this game soccer. But over in Europe and various other places in the world this beautiful game is called futbol. It makes no difference to what you call it because no matter where you are the game is all played the same. Some basic things of the game are; it is your team vs. one other team one the field at a time. There are two goals, one on each end line of the field; goals are often referred to as nets. The main object of soccer is to score on the opposite goal that you are defending, while trying to keep the ball out of your own net. There is one soccer ball on the field along with 11 players for each team, so a total of 22 players on the field along with one referee on the field and two referees on the sidelines determining whether or not the ball goes out of bounds.

            The positions in soccer can get a little confusing but once you get the hang of it they are easy to adjust to. On each there are 11 people on the field. The 11 players usually make up of one goalie, three defenders, five mid-fielders and two forwards. The goalie has a box in front/next to the goal that they are defending and they can use their hands anywhere in the box but anywhere else on the field they cannot. The job of a goalie is to not let the ball go in the net that they are defending. The defenders are really just supposed to be a brick wall that doesn’t allow the ball to get passed them so there goalie doesn’t have to make any saves. The mid-fielders have the hardest job on the field I would say. They have to run end line to end line, while receiving/giving the most contact on the field. The two outside mid-fielders especially have a hard job because they have to play defense when the ball is across the field on the opposite side of them, then as soon as your team re-gains possession of the ball they you are expected to get wide and make a run down the field over and over and over again, even if you get the ball once every ten times that you make the run. The forwards are basically the most selfish players on the team and they would even say so themselves. All they do is call for the ball (mostly from the mid-fielders) and try to get to goal and score. So basically the forwards get all the credit even though most of the time they just “cherry pick” the goals from the mid-field.

            In soccer there aren’t really plays like there are in basketball. Its more of a free for all, live game that is 90 minutes ling in high school with 45 minute halves and a 8 minute half-time with 0 time outs. Some close friends of mine that thought soccer was a total joke until I made them come to one of my really intense soccer game of mine and after the game the apologized because the had no idea that soccer was physical and difficult. They now have total respect for the players and the game itself because they realized they would never be able to run up and down the field for 90 minutes while getting shoved and getting kicked at, at their ankles all at the same time.

            I have convinced a lot of people that soccer is a tough sport but to them seeing is believing and after watching a game or two, they are still titled to their own opinion. (685)