How Much of Soccer is Mental?

How Much of Soccer is Mental?

Growing up coaches always told me, "90% of the game is mental."
I'm willing to bet you've heard that from a coach or too also.

But do you know what it means and how it can help you?

I know the coaches that told me the game is 90% mental were well
meaning.

In fact they probably even thought they were doing me a favor
telling me that. But NEVER did any of the coaches I have support
their quote with an
explanation that made a difference in my results.

So I thought it would be helpful if I shed some light
on how your player can use the mental game to get
better results in practice and in their very next game.

Personally, I don't believe you can measure whether the game is 90,
95, or even 99% mental.

Maybe I should invent some sort of "Mental meter" that measures the
percent of the mental game and retire to an island.

But anyway... What I do know is that visualization is a part of the
mental game.

In fact it's the most underused portion of the game I see today.
Yet, the players that do use some form of visualization
(consciously or unconsciously) always tend to be the exceptional
players that get the best results
on the field.

What I want you to gather from today's Newsletter is this... adding
30 seconds of visualization to your practice can help you double
your skills.

Let me give you a recent example:


At my last "How to Fake Defenders Out of Their Cleats"
training session I asked my student what his juggling record was.

He told me and I helped him set a goal that was 40% higher than his
record.

He looked at me and said, "I don't think I can do that many."

I reminded him to take a deep breath and then to visualize himself
achieving his new juggling goal.

About 30 seconds later he tossed the ball in the air and began.

I watched as the ball stayed close to his body and bounced straight
up and down time after time. He remained calm and kept his eye
focused on the ball.

After about 30 seconds he approached his previous record and easily
passed it.

He was counting out loud and I could hear the excitement in his
voice as he surpassed his previous record. He lost his focus and
the ball
fell to the ground.

A huge smile crossed his face.

Immediately I suggested he set a new goal.
I reminded him to breathe deeply and visualize
himself surpassing his old record and achieving the new mark.

30 seconds later he launched the ball in the air and began bouncing
the ball off his knee, foot, head, chest, and thigh.

Two minutes later he was again all smiles as he easily set a new
personal best.

With the power of visualization and deep breathing I helped my
student double his juggling record in about 7 minutes.

Now let's take a look at YOUR soccer player.
I'm betting they want to improve. I'm betting there is at least
one area of their game that visualization could double their
results in.
I'm betting they would be ecstatic to become a better goal scorer
because they learned how to visualize themselves as a goal scoring
machine.

There is so much growth available to young soccer player
who learns how to use visualization and mental pictures.
And there's no time like NOW to get the ball rolling.

In my Gold Medal Training Program I show students how to program
their mind for success on the soccer field at a deep, deep level.

The results players get are truly amazing.

If you'd like to learn more about how much of soccer is mental you
can secure your spot in my Gold Medal program by sending me an
email at
nberentis@gmail.com

Best,



Coach Nolan