The odds of becoming a professional soccer player are quite small, with the number of potential soccer players available. This is one of the major reasons that scouts or coaches are very interested in the talents of potential soccer players.
Having soccer talent ensures that the player can still be relevant in soccer even after ten years of being scouted and signed. The term soccer talent is often referred to as skills that soccer players acquired previously.
Though some people are exceptionally gifted with the capacity to learn soccer fast, no one is born a good defender, dribbler, or attacker.
Some of the best dribblers or players like Ronaldinho did not get to their level by being talented alone, practicing as a part of their talent.
Most people are not aware of the continuous sessions that professional soccer players have put to get to where they are now termed as having “natural talent.”
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How to know if you have talent in soccer?
Over time, research has shown that though practicing is very important, it does not sometimes compensate for natural abilities and talents such as intelligence and technical ability.
This is why intelligence such as memory and other natural qualities are very important
You can discover your talent for soccer when you participate in soccer competitions and other soccer scrimmages. Here you would be able to show your skills.
When you can consistently perform at such competitions, then you can be assured that you have the soccer talent.
Soccer is a team sport, therefore your technical ability, your ethics, attitude, and your contribution are important aspects in assessing your talent level.
Apart from maybe genetic situations where the player is born with certain talents like good reaction and others, a majority of soccer players are at their level because of their dedication and practice.
Talent in soccer is the player’s various learned abilities or innate ability to combine various factors that would make him a successful player.
The big question then is how can you know if you have soccer talent? Some various qualities and signals indicate to a soccer player that he or she has the talent for playing soccer.
In the following sections, you would be introduced to some of these signals and qualities that can tell you if you have soccer talent.
Checking out your Physique
Soccer is a game of physicality. To shoot, dribble, pass long or short balls, win balls in the air or the ground, or defend against other players, you have to make use of your body. This is why one of the qualities that scouts watch out for is the player’s physical fitness.
Every soccer game lasts for more than 90 minutes, therefore having physical talent is very essential. To know if you have the talent for soccer you have to look at your body and develop or condition your body.
There are areas that your Physique can be developed towards including, endurance, agility, speed, stamina, strength or power, coordination, and balance.
You have to be able to accelerate and decelerate properly and not only in a straight line. Your speed at changing directions quickly without or with a ball is also another factor.
You also have to check your stamina level since it determines the rate at which you get fatigued and make decisions. Soccer is a fast-paced game, therefore players who get tired easily or have low stamina are not usually welcomed.
You need to develop your ability or talent to be able to play for about 90 minutes for every game. This is one of the qualities that scouts are looking for in every talented player.
Endurance is the strength or ability to continue to play soccer despite the odds, stress, or fatigue. This is another attribute that you need to check to know if you have soccer talent.
Endurance is not only your physical fitness level or your ability to be able to play an entire 90 minutes game. Endurance also has to do with your mental strength to continue playing while the odds are stacked against your team.
Another important physique talent is your strength and your power. It does not necessarily have to do with your physical size but your ability to use your strength or power to overwhelm your opponents.
Having good coordination, balance or agility is another way to know that you have the physical talent for soccer. This is good because soccer contains a lot of movements. Such movements include shooting, passing, dribbling, turning your body, and jumping.
Checking out your Techniques
Techniques have come a long way to determine the talent level of a soccer player. Whenever coaches or scouts are considering a player, one of the obvious qualities they look at is your level of technique.
Therefore assessing your technique level is very important. Every sports enthusiast can spot a good technique. What you should ask yourself is am I a good dribbler? Can I work well with my feet? Am I fast with the ball on my feet? If not, you have to practice your techniques.
Various areas determine your talent in techniques including ball control, passing, dribbling skills, and others.
Is your ability to manipulate, collect or control the ball with various parts of your body except for your hand very good. How well can you run or dribble with the ball? Can you perfectly move the ball in various directions at different speeds while ensuring that the ball is in your full control?
You also have to ensure that you can move your body very well without or with the ball while having proper coordination or balance.
Checking your technique level is a very essential part of knowing your talent in soccer. Though you might not be very proficient in some techniques, having a rudimentary level will give you an assessment of your level.
You would have to practice and train for countless repetitive hours to improve your technique level.
Assessing your Mental Attitude
Another way to ensure that you have talent in soccer is by gauging your mental attitude. Soccer is more mental than it is physical, therefore you need the right mental attitude to ascertain your talent level.
Metal talent is quite broad in soccer. Your mental attitude determines how you play soccer. You have to ensure that you have the right mental attitude towards soccer before you can be sure that you have the soccer talent.
You have to assess your drive and passion for soccer. Do you have the ambition to become a top-class player or an elite player? How is your passion whenever you are on the pitch?
How well do you perform or how do you react in hard times? For example, your team could be down 3 goals, do you still have the drive to turn it around or you have lost your drive. Soccer is not a smooth sailing sport.
Even some of the top soccer teams have lost badly at times. What matters is how well you pick yourself from these defeats, these are the mental talents or qualities that coaches or scouts want to see.
Part of a mental attitude is your ability to lead. Can you lead by example similar to Lionel Messi or Steven Gerrard or organize your teammates like John Terry and Tony Adams.
Other than these, you have to be able to receive criticism from coaches, teammates, or fans. How you react to these suggestions, criticisms, and instructions speaks of your talent level. You have to be open to learning new things.
Self-motivation is another mental attitude that speaks of your soccer talent level. Ronaldo and Messi for instance are known to always train longer than some players. This is their motivation to become better soccer players through continuous mastering and learning of skills.
Another important mental attitude is about responsibility. Every soccer player has his or her position to play on the pitch. How well you can perform your position responsibly also speaks of your talent in soccer.
Assess your ability to play as a Team
Another easy way to Gauge your soccer talent level is to know how well you can perform in a team. Soccer is a team sport where what happens to one happens to all.
Though there are occasions where a single player can carry his entire team or lead his team to victory like Diego Maradona when he was in Napoli in the 1980s, or like the recent Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo.
Such occasions were only able to occur because every member of the team decided on an action of bringing their team to success through one player.
Soccer is a team sport, therefore your ability to maximize your skills or ability to improve your team game is an important quality that coaches and scouts are also interested in.
It might be your skills, your passes, dribbles, or even scoring excellent goals. Your effort would run off your teammates and in return make your team perform better.
Therefore, assessing your ability to play soccer as a team is important if you want to know your talent level.
Conclusion
Assessing your talent in soccer can be done by checking the qualities listed above. But it is also important to note that you can develop your talent level from adolescence to youth and adulthood.
Even extremely talented players have to train their skills to become successful or top players, therefore after assessing your talent level, you must work on them.
Discovering your talent and working on improving them is the best course of action to take your game to the next level.
Hi there, I’m Jay.
Soccer is everything in my life! My friends and I have created this blog with all our enthusiasm, passion, and understanding after years of playing pro soccer. Hope you will enjoy it!