This blog is devoted to helping you, the soccer parent and beginner youth soccer coach, in finding the coaching material you need to feel confident while running practices and holding games in a safe and fun environment for your children.

Below you’ll find reviews on different youth soccer coaching books with ratings to make it much easier for you to decide which is the right coaching material for you.

FUNdamental Soccer For Clueless Parents
by Karl Dewazien – U.S. Soccer Federation “A” License

The very first thing you'll see would be that the whole e-book is written in a comic book format. My initial reaction was, "Aw, Come ON!" BUT...I soon saw that the cartoons in fact added considerably to the content, lending life to the text, which is 128 pages long. 

The author presumes that the parents/coaches know nothing in regards to the game of soccer and demonstrates not merely the fundamentals of the game, but of the framework of the typical soccer organization. I understand exactly where it becomes very helpful as preparation for a new coach's first get together with parents in the beginning of a latest youth soccer season. Since it is generic to all degrees of play, this works well for coaches of U5 players on upwards, as well as ANY mother or father needing to learn the basics of the game. 

The book covers the fundamentals associated with soccer in every aspect you could possibly need as a parent as well as new coach. Dewazien also assesses the essential equipment with regard to soccer and how to choose all of them. 

He makes clear the basic skills necessary for the players as attackers as well as for defenders. This section alone, I feel, will be well worth the price of the book to many brand new coaches (though it could have been priced just a little cheaper than $14.97). Along with each technique is a very clear diagram showing correct as well as incorrect technique, something I notice other coaching publications leave out, in addition to a detailed explanation of the diagram. He also shows the correct technique with regard to passing along with shooting the soccer ball. 

The ebook additionally comes with the "Modified Laws" of the game for U8 and U10 players, which, I understand, Dewazien was responsible for making the standard for the U.S. and Canada youth soccer in the mid-1970's. 

Looking past the comic book formatting of the book...for a parent and/or "volunteer" not used to soccer, I find this book to end up being an outstanding introduction to the game and also a marvelous primer for what it will take for the boys and girls to develop the basic skills necessary to be successful in the sport. 

Table of ContentsYour Child and Soccer
You, Your Child & the League/Club
How Safe is Soccer?
The Coach
The Manager
Understanding the Game
Learning Soccer Together
Playing the Game
Before, During & After – The Game
Modified Laws

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Organizing Your Youth Soccer Team

by Karl Nystrom – Swedish Soccer Federation

I find this ebook to be one of the more complete books on coaching youth soccer, in a single volume, of which I have run into in quite a while.

The ebook has 206 pages and includes just about all you'll need to know being a youth soccer coach. It includes all the drills and exercises you'll ever need for coaching a youth soccer team. In a way, I was feeling a bit overwhelmed with the amount of drills along with exercises that are offered, more than one hundred. Usually, more is better...however I've always found that working with small children (and also, new beginning coaches)...more is usually difficult and frustrating. It would have been better to select a smaller selection and focus on them as opposed to presenting so many choices.

The author geared the book towards youth players U-8 through U-15. The soccer drills and exercises are divided into two groupings, one intended for 7-9 year olds and one for 10-14 year olds.

The book contains some really good information meant for beginning soccer coaches. The basics for offensive as well as defensive play are discussed (and which one to coach first). How to instruct the children throughout drills and practice is outlined together with organizing and running an effective practice session.

Every exercise is thoroughly illustrated and contains instructions on how to coordinate the exercise, coaching points to make, suggestions for keeping score, and most times there are recommended approaches to continue enhancing the exercise or game to raise the difficulty degree and maximize what the kids are learning with the same drill.

I'm confident that just about any coach, from total beginner to seasoned vet will certainly benefit from this book. And, at $19.97, the price is certainly within reason. 

Table of Contents
PART 1 – Administrative Concerns
To Be a Coach
How to Organize a Coaching Program

PART 2 – Instructional Guide
To Play Soccer
Basics of Offensive and Defensive Play
Instruction in Play Practice
Organization

Passing
Feints
Wall Play
Leaving
Overlapping
Defensive Plays
Shooting
Heading
Goalie Practice

For more info on "Organizing Your Youth Soccer Team"...Click Here

 Attacking Soccer with the Neutral Player

 When I initially flipped through this particular manual, it looked just like any ordinary book on soccer games. That's fine. Soccer games have their place, particularly with regard to your very young players that simply want to kick their ball and have some fun. But, soon after studying what looked like simple soccer drills for kids it started to dawn on me that this is actually not really an ordinary book for soccer games. 

The title, "Attacking Soccer with the Neutral Player" doesn't quite say it all. In a nutshell, this book shows your players just how to use very aggressive tactics. It also demonstrates to the younger players how to do something that is universally the biggest challenge to youth soccer coaches...how to NOT bunch up on the ball. And, it does so by means of all these simple game-like drills. I ended up being very impressed with this unique training method and have not seen it anywhere. The manual is just 46 pages long, but yet it includes more than 30 of these unique game-like soccer drills for kids.

I must point out, however, in the event that you might be on the lookout for an all-in-one coaching guide book, this is not it! The book doesn't teach the actual mechanics of exactly how to control the ball, i.e. passing, trapping, dribbling, etc. It's strictly pertaining to game tactics and drills that will instill them, in a fun way, into the players. The age range is from U5 on up through the older players since the drills are scalable for virtually any age group.

The price of the book is $19.97. At first, I thought that was a little steep for such a short book on soccer drills for kids that teach aggressive tactics. However, on second thought, it really is these very tactics which win games...and the object of the sport is to win games. And, like I said before, I have not found this original technique taught in any other book.

For more info on "Attacking Soccer with the Neutral Player"...Click Here. 

 Be sure to come back to this blog as I will be adding more book reviews soon.