10 Mistakes That Make You a Bad Player

In football, there are certain mistakes that, if you make them often enough, will basically make you a bad player. So today, we've identified 10 key mistakes that make players look bad. You're watching AllAttack. Mistake number one. Not keeping your eye on the ball. In football, amateur players often take stops in the game, like free kicks, goal kicks, or even the goalkeeper holding the ball, as an opportunity to get back into position. I'm going to run back to my position. But the problem is, when they're running, they're not watching the ball. And so they're not paying attention if the game restarts quickly. Where'd he go? Because here's the thing about football. It never fully stops. Players might take a quick free kick or a quick throw or make a mistake. You never know what's going to happen. So whenever you're running somewhere, you still have to make sure you've got your eye on the ball. Number two. Running into someone else's space. A common sign of a low-level player is when they move to receive the ball, but move right in front of their own teammate. Because good players aren't just aware of the defenders, they're also aware of where their teammates are. And the last thing their team needs is for two players to be in the same position, making it easy for a defender to block two players at once. And so when they see a teammate near them, they immediately move into a different space where they could receive a pass, giving their teammate multiple options. Number three. Shooting from everywhere. There's always that one player who shoots no matter where they are on the field. But it's a throw-in. It's annoying. But more importantly, it's usually a bad decision for your team. Because no matter how good you are at shooting, if you're more than 10 yards outside the penalty area or near the goal line, you're pretty unlikely to score. And on top of that, when you're in these positions, you almost always have other teammates in better positions than you. So while it's okay to occasionally try one from distance, just remember that most of the time, the best decision is something else. Number four. Playing a stupid one-two. The one-two is a great passing technique, where you pass the ball around a defender with one touch. But the problem is some players learn the one-two pass, then do it even when the situation doesn't call for it. So here's what you should do. If your teammate is close to running past the defender when you receive the ball, then this is a good situation for a one-two. But if the defender is ahead of your teammate, or their defender is covering the space behind, then it's probably better to do something else. Number five. Having a useless weak foot. A common problem young players have is that their weak foot is not just weak, but basically unusable for even basic things like controlling the ball, which leads them to adjust their body awkwardly. That way they can control the ball with their strong foot, leading to bad touches and making it more likely that they lose the ball. So that's why you need to practice your weak foot, so that at the very least you can control the ball and make basic passes with it. Six. Turning into defenders. We all know that player who constantly turns into defenders. It's almost like they get the ball and have zero awareness of anything that's around them. Oh wait, that's exactly the problem. Because low-level players don't check their shoulders or scan their surroundings. And so they're essentially just turning blindly and hoping that a defender won't be there. So if you don't want to lose the ball, you either need to check your shoulder before you receive it, or pass the ball right back to the player who just gave it to you. Seven. Taking bad throw-ins. Very few things look more amateur than a poor throw-in. So let's make it clear. The rules of a proper throw-in, according to the official laws of the game, are this. One, you have to face the field of play. Two, you have to have both feet touching the ground, either behind the line or on the line. Three, you have to throw the ball with both hands. And four, you have to throw the ball from behind your head and release it over your head. Eight. Letting the ball roll under your foot. When beginner players first start controlling the ball, it's common for them to try to control the ball with the underside of their foot. But the problem is they're beginners. So it tends to lead to this. Which definitely makes you look like a bad player. And so that's why if you're new to football, we recommend first starting to control the ball with the inside of your foot. Number nine. Power over placement. In our experience, young players have a tendency to value shooting with power over the placement of the shot. But here's the problem. While real powerful shots are great, if you hit them near the goalkeeper, they're probably still going to be saved. Whereas if you place the shot perfectly in the corner, then you'll probably score, assuming the shot has at least moderate power. So that's why you should focus more on the placement of your shots first, then focus more on power later. And number 10. Not running. The bottom line is if you don't run enough, you won't be a good player. Because football doesn't just require running when you have the ball. It also requires running into positions to receive the ball, running into positions to defend the ball, and in general, running to keep up with wherever the game is. And so if you can't keep up with all this running, you'll basically be useless. So if you want to be a good player, you have to run at least two to three times a week. And whether you get that from games or a mixture of sprints and long distance running, the bottom line is running is the foundation of your entire game. All right, everybody, we hope you liked that video. If you did, make sure to leave a thumbs up right down there. Make sure to subscribe if you haven't. And make sure to check out our other videos if you want to learn more about football.