Competencies of a coach-teacher in the process of sports selection in football

The article presents the basics of the competence approach to the professional activity of a football coach-teacher in a process of sports selection. To train and teach children, teenagers and young people to play football is a difficult, from many points of view, professional and pedagogical task. It is necessary, first of all, that the coach-teacher as a football specialist was able to combine the understanding of technical, technical-tactical, tactical-strategic, on the one hand, as well as educational, communicative and psycho-physiological qualities on the other. In this case, the trainer-teacher must always take into account the age characteristics of the development of their players. It is known that the early transition of young talented players to professional football teams has, in general, not entirely predictable consequences. At the same time, the objective reality is that it is impossible to predict the future professional level of young players. Therefore, an important professional competence of a coach-teacher is the ability to "hold" and then "push" your talented student in the transition from one level to another. The competence of a football coach should cover all areas of teaching the basics of physical education and sports at school age and provides in-depth knowledge in many areas to address issues related to the dynamics and specifics of learning to play football. Particular attention should be paid to the development of creative game thinking and the formation of coordination skills, which are the basis of movement techniques and game actions. For a coach of young football players, who is endowed with such characteristics, it is a determining factor in achieving results that bring professional satisfaction and creative success.

A Case for Cognitive Entrenchment: To Achieve Optimal Best, Taking Into Account the Importance of Perceived Optimal Efficiency and Cognitive Load Imposition

One interesting observation that we may all concur with is that many experts, or those who are extremely knowledgeable and well-versed in their respective domains of functioning, become “mediocre” and lose their “touch of invincibility” over time. For example, in the world of professional football, it has been argued that an elite football coach would lose his/her air of invincibility and demise after 10–15 years at the top. Why is this the case? There are different reasons and contrasting viewpoints that have been offered to account for this observed demise. One notable concept, recently introduced to explain this decline, is known as cognitive entrenchment, which is concerned with a high level of stability in one's domain schemas (Dane, 2010). This entrenchment or “situated fixation,” from our proposition, may act to deter the flexibility and/or willingness of a person to adapt to a new context or situation. Some writers, on this basis, have argued that cognitive entrenchment would help explain the demise of some experts and/or why some students have difficulties adapting to new situations. An initial inspection would seem to indicate that cognitive entrenchment is detrimental, potentially imparting evidence of inflexibility, difficulty, and/or the unwillingness of a person to adapt to new contexts (Dane, 2010). This premise importantly connotes that expertise may constrain a person from being flexible, innovative, and/or creative to ongoing changes. In this analysis, an expert may experience a cognitive state of entrenchment, facilitated in this case by his/her own experience, knowledge, and/or theoretical understanding of a subject matter. Having said this, however, it is also a plausibility that cognitive entrenchment in itself espouses some form of positivity, giving rise to improvement and/or achievement of different types of adaptive outcomes. Drawing from our existing research development, we propose in this conceptual analysis article that personal “entrenchment” to a particular context (e.g., the situated fixation of a football coach to a particular training methodology) may closely relate to three major elements: self-cognizance of cognitive load imposition, a need for efficiency, and the quest for stability and comfort. As we explore later, there is credence to accept the “positivity” of cognitive entrenchment—that by nature, for example, a person would purposively choose the status quo in order to minimize cognitive load imposition, optimize efficiency, and/or to achieve minimum disruption and a high level of comfort, which could then “optimize” his/her learning experiences. We strongly believe that our propositions, which consider eight in this article, are of significance and may, importantly, provide grounding for further research development into the validity of cognitive entrenchment.

Perfil y concepción de la enseñanza del entrenador de fútbol base de la región de Beja (Portugal) (Profile and conception of the teaching of the basic football coach in the region of Beja (Portugal))

La figura del entrenador es clave en el entrenamiento deportivo con jóvenes. Este estudio tuvo como objetivos establecer el perfil del entrenador de fútbol en las etapas de formación de los jóvenes jugadores de la región de Beja (Portugal), identificar la concepción sobre la enseñanza del fútbol que tienen, y conocer la forma de planificar y programar de los mismos. Con este fin se encuestaron a 124 entrenadores de fútbol base de la mencionada región portuguesa. Los datos mostraron que el perfil del entrenador de fútbol base de Beja se correspondió al siguiente: hombre de entre 31 y 40 años, con el duodécimo año de escolaridad completo, trabajando por cuenta ajena, sin curso de entrenador o con apenas el Grado I o nivel básico de la titulación de entrenador de fútbol. También destacó el hecho de que la mayoría de los entrenadores consideraran el fútbol un medio para educar a los jugadores, siendo los entrenadores más jóvenes los que más creían en el fútbol como medio transmisor de valores. Cabe destacar que los entrenadores manifestaron tener bastante claro los contenidos a trabajar en estas edades y que solían utilizar tanto métodos de enseñanza directivos como basados en el descubrimiento. Los entrenadores afirmaron que solían dar más prioridad a los aspectos técnico-tácticos con respecto al trabajo físico. Por último, gran parte de los entrenadores mostraron intención de entrenar en un futuro en categorías superiores. Abstract: The figure of the coach is key in sports training with young people. The aims of this study were to establish the profile of the football coach in the training stages of young players in the region of Beja (Portugal), to identify their conception of football teaching, and to know how to plan and programme them. To this end, 124 grassroots football coaches in the aforementioned Portuguese region were surveyed. The data showed that the profile of the base football coach in Beja corresponded to the following: a man between 31 and 40 years old, with the twelfth year of schooling complete, working as an employee, without a course of coaching or with only Grade I or basic level of the qualification of football coach. It was also highlighted the fact that most coaches considered football as a means of educating players, with younger coaches believing most in football as a means of transmitting values. It should be noted that the coaches said they were quite clear about the content to be worked on in these ages and that they used both managerial and discovery-based teaching methods. Coaches said they tended to give more priority to technical and tactical aspects over physical work. Finally, a large number of coaches showed their intention to train at higher levels in the future.

International Perspectives of Strategic Team and Player Development in Diverse Amateur/Grassroots 60+ Small-Sided Football Contexts

Despite the significant growth of amateur/grassroots over-60s (60+) small-sided football in diverse indoor and outdoor settings around the world, scant attention has been afforded to related research, coach education, and strategic team and player development initiatives within these unique seniors‘ football contexts. Drawing upon case study methodology using multiple-case design, this paper examines whether and how Strategic Team and Player Development (STPD) initiatives are implemented in diverse amateur/grassroots 60+ small-sided football coaching contexts. Data suggest there is substantial interest among players and coaches for age-appropriate STPD initiatives, which require organization-specific support structures and integrated, progressive, and evidence-based activities customised for the unique needs and competitive circumstances of players/participants. STPD initiatives can significantly enrich participant experiences and maximize program outcomes such as player and team skills and sustained participation. STPD initiatives in these contexts are still in the early stages, both theoretically and practically. While there are many challenges and areas for improvement, strategic organizational support including a commitment to customised football coach education can be the basis for implementing STPD in diverse amateur/grassroots 60+ small-sided football contexts. Key challenges and implications for customised football coach education are discussed.

Practical Recommendations for Improving the Professional Performance of a Children’s Football Coach

The material for the study was the current situation in football in the Syrian Arab Republic. As established earlier, despite the popularity of this sport, the level of the football coaching staff in the republic remains low. The objective of the article is to develop practical recommendations for improving the professional activity of a children’s football coach. The article describes the principles of working with young footballers, gives recommendations to a football coach, including how to increase the motivation for training young footballers. The article provides recommendations for trainers taking into account the difference in the properties of their nervous system to improve their skills.

Satisfaction with Pedagogical Activities of a Football Coach in the Syrian Arab Republic and the Individual Style of Pedagogical Activities

The article analyzes the state of affairs in the Syrian Arab Republic in football. Despite the fact that football is one of the most popular sports in the country, there is no reason to talk about notable sports achievements. Of course, a whole range of measures should be aimed at achieving high sports results. The object of our consideration is the effectiveness of the management of the training process. It should be noted that in the Syrian Arab Republic, the system of training qualified football coaches is not fully formed. Many coaches work without a certificate and rely solely on their sports experience. The article attempts to outline the most obvious problems in Syrian football. The purpose of the article is to examine the correlation between the satisfaction of a football coach in the Syrian Arab Republic with the pedagogical activity and the individual style of pedagogical activity.

Print Media Narratives of Bullying and Harassment at the Football Association: A Case Study of Eniola Aluko

In this article we draw on critical theory to discuss how power frames the media “narratives” of Eniola Aluko, a Black, female footballer who accused an established (White) football coach of bullying, harassment, and racial comments. We critically discuss data analyzed from 80 print media articles from three British newspapers (with circulation figures ranging from 1.4 million to 135,000 a day), from August 6, 2017 to October 19, 2017. In our findings, we discuss the four dominant themes identified from our analysis to examine how race, gender, and belonging frame Aluko in ways that seek to position her as an outsider and question her legitimacy in the White male space of football. We demonstrate how frames are shaped by, as well as reinforce, existing power relations, and influence how bullying, and racial harassment are represented in media accounts. We argue this type of analysis has implications for our understanding of how the narratives bullying and harassment in sport can be reframed along dominant power lines that question the legitimacy of athletes’ accounts and experiences.

Review: Tactics from the Roots

Tactics from the roots is a book (ISBN: 978-84-617-5830-2) about soccer, written in English by Maor Rozen, a former football player and a professional football coach (UEFA PRO), and printed in Spain by e-Versus. This work is based on Maor’s life experiences, both playing and coaching, in many varied socials and sportive environments, from the poorest to the wealthiest, from the street and neighborhood clubs to clubs with large structures, both in Uruguay the country where he was born and grew up, and at the intercontinental level. This book makes just a formulation of tactical principles, concepts, football thoughts and a methodology to put into practice, because having different origins they managed to get a place in soccer, with a clear adaptation to the current times. In short, it is a humble and deep work coming from a soccer coach to colleagues, who have the spirit to continue extending their capacity of analysis and knowledge.