One of the most important skills a soccer player can develop is their ball control. This is important for obvious reasons. However, sometimes it’s difficult to get to an area with a lot of space or to get together with a team or with your friends to play. This is why juggling is such a great individual soccer drill!
You can juggle a soccer ball basically anywhere. You don’t need cones, a field, or a team. You just need yourself and a ball. Juggling helps you develop many soccer skills and abilities, but the following three are probably the skills that juggling most develops.
Juggling helps you develop your –
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Ball Control
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Balance
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Reaction Time (reflexes)
Juggling is a soccer drill that you truly can do daily. Spend 15 minutes a night juggling and you’ll be amazed at the improvements you see in your skills!
This video gives you 4 variations on juggling to help you develop various areas of your game.
Variation 1
Alternating feet – Juggle the ball back and forth between your left and right foot. Try to only touch the ball once with each foot before switching feet.
Variation 2
Right foot only – Juggle the ball in the air for as many touches as you can using only your right foot. This develops your touch with your right foot.
Variation 3
Left foot only – Juggle the ball in the air for as many touches as you can using only your left foot. Obviously this develops your touch with your left foot. Many players find this difficult because their left foot is their weak foot. This will be uncomfortable at first, but stick with it! This drill can be instrumental in helping you develop your soccer skills with your weak foot.
Variation 4
Juggling Ladder – Juggle the ball alternating between your left and right foot. Each time you switch feet, add 1 additional touch with each foot. You’d start off doing one touch with your right foot, one touch with your left foot. Then you’d do two touches with your right, two touches with your left. Then you’d do three, four, etc. Continue for as many touches as you can.
The nice thing about these juggling drills is that you don’t need to sink a lot of time and effort into doing them. Just take a ball outside and juggle it for fifteen minutes. Remember though, consistency is key. Don’t just spend one night training. Make it a habit and set apart just a little time each night to train. Before long, you’ll be playing better than you ever have before!
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