What is the "quality" of stopping, kicking, and carrying? Basic technique training usable from beginners to advanced players

This time's theme is "training to improve the quality of stopping, kicking, and carrying the ball." The coach teaching it is Kazuya Mori, representative of MORI FOOTBALL ACADEMY.

Mori experienced national championships at the Inter-High and the Takamado Cup during his time at Tokushima Municipal High School, then went through Keio University and played for Kawasaki Frontale.

After retiring, he was involved in launching the same club's academy, mainly in charge of the junior youth, and coached players who are now active J.Leaguers and Japan national team players. After that, he went through Kawasaki Frontale, the Nagoya Grampus top team, and Tokyo United FC, and currently serves as manager of Nankatsu SC U-15.

How does Coach Mori, highly regarded for technical instruction, teach "stopping, kicking, carrying, facing forward, and your own position," and how does he apply it to actual matches? (Text by Tomoyuki Suzuki)

Stop the ball in the same "own position" every time

The first menu item is a "stopping and kicking" training done in groups of three arranged at 90 degrees. What Coach Mori checked was whether the ball stopped dead still.

"If your foot and the ball make contact at an angle, the ball won't stop. If you want to stop it, you touch the opposite side from where it's rolling in from. If you touch under the ball, it will pop up, so if you compare the ball to a face, the image is touching around the forehead with your big toe."

In the one-touch passing that followed, he demanded passes that let the receiver avoid moving even a single step. While demonstrating, he asked for "devising the way you contact the ball and the angle, and delivering it to the targeted spot without it shifting."

After that, he taught "the technique of carrying" and cited "moving as one with the ball without separating it from your body" as the key point.

"When the opponent closes you down and you panic, and the ball separates from your body, it turns into a contest. If the ball and your body move together, you can beat the opponent."

Here, through the movement of controlling the ball so it returns in the direction it came from, he shared the key point: "If you touch the ball after it crosses your navel, it becomes harder for the opponent to tell which way you'll go." They sharpened their feints through game-format play.

The difference between "looking forward" and "facing forward"

The second one is training in groups of three lined up in a straight vertical line, stopping a ball coming from behind, turning to face forward, and passing with the inside of the foot that stopped it.

The reason for setting up the vertical relationship is that he considers carrying and turning your body to also be technique.

"Even with your body turned sideways, you can see forward. However, facing forward means 'pointing your navel forward.' If you do that, your teammates can start running all at once, and you can create a situation where the opponent can't tell where the pass will come out from."

Since the assumption is that an opponent is behind you, if you let the ball run, you'll lose it. By stopping it firmly and facing forward, distance between you and the opponent is created.

Once they get used to it, the key point is to shorten the time from stopping the ball to passing.

Coach Mori's words, "If you panic, the ball won't stop and it actually gets slower. If you do it accurately, it gets faster," hit the essence of speed in soccer.

Kick differently from a position where you can kick either way

The third one is training where you form a triangle, point your navel to the center of the line connecting two people, and pass to whichever side raises their hand first.

As a rule, once the pivot foot is set, it cannot move. Since opening your body toward the direction you kick makes it easy to read, you kick with the inside or the outside at the last moment on the ball placed at your position.

The last part of the first half was a "two-person cone-hitting showdown." While having fun in a showdown format, they did technical training.

Coach Mori says, "Just creating drills won't raise quality; it's important for the coach to show it in a demo."

"Children are good at watching and imitating. Showing, making the quality visible, and continuing to communicate are indispensable for improving technique."

In the second half next time, he will introduce training for carrying the ball from the movement of stopping it and facing forward, and 3-on-1 ball circulation.

[Instructor] Kazuya Mori / Played for Tokushima Municipal High School, Keio University, and Kawasaki Frontale, and experienced national championships at the Inter-High and the Takamado Cup during his high school years. After retiring, he was involved from the launch of Kawasaki Frontale's academy and started his career as a coach. Mainly in charge of the junior youth, he was involved in coaching players who are still active J.Leaguers and Japan national team players. After Kawasaki Frontale's top team, Nagoya Grampus's top team, and Tokyo United, he currently manages Nankatsu SC U-15 while also coaching as representative of MORI FOOTBALL ACADEMY.