Carli Llyod – Even the best have to face down doubt in their football career.
Looking back on the rise of USA attacking midfielder Carli Lloyd, the current FIFA Women’s Player of the Year, it is hard to believe that she came close to quitting the game she loved.
Johan Cruyff (1947-2016) was one of the most creative and intelligent footballers of all time
His performances for the Dutch national team, Ajax (Amsterdam), Barcelona and Feyenoord (Rotterdam) throughout the 70s and 80s revolutionised football.
World class violinist Kai Kight developed confidence through his deliberate use of errors during practice
Confidence doesn’t come from being able to do something perfectly well when it doesn’t count.
Mastery is the never-ending quest to be better than what you are today
For the young athlete mastery is born from a desire to learn and improve. Hunger for progression is what inspires an individual to put in the hours needed to grow a base of technical capability.
There is no one pathway to achieve mastery, but to become exceptional that technical foundation has to be built. From a football perspective that means a player has to spend time with a ball.
“It is your brain that makes you a player.” Peter Beardsley was always thinking three passes ahead.
Peter Beardsley was one of the marque English players of the pre-Premiership era. Part of a thrilling attack at Newcastle that included Kevin Keegan and Chris Waddle, he won the championship with Liverpool and almost won it again (twice) with Newcastle in the Premier League.
all young players should view development as a journey, not a destination
Rather than focus on achieving a big goal, Top Flight Football Academy advocates young players committing to continual development by hitting short term targets.
There are two reasons for this approach.
