cognitive development
TALA Soccer Training provides the structure for holistic player development through the intentional design of age-appropriate activities that connect a player's learning, development, and improvement within the technical, tactical, physical, social, and cognitive pillars of soccer to the larger context of the game. We believe that coaching is teaching and that teaching is a partnership that requires the identification of shared goals and learning outcomes to create a transformative environment.
TALA Soccer Training believes the game of soccer is best learned and played through a problem-solving mindset where players are encouraged to gather information and fluidly make decisions based on the various moments of the game and their understanding of how a player's action may influence a team outcome.
"I learned all about life with a ball at my feet."
Ronaldinho
Brazilian soccer player
two time fifa world player of the year
The goal of TALA Soccer Training is to develop players and people who better understand the 'why' behind the decisions and actions they make on the field, within the position or role they are playing, and in consideration of what may best help the team. Each session is designed to provide the player(s) with an understanding of the who, what, when, where, why, and how of the soccer-related topic, principle of play, and key player actions of the session. We believe that soccer is a thinking game that is best learned through game-like activities that develop technical skills and tactical awareness through reflection, decision-making, and self-correction. TALA Soccer creates an optimal environment for players to focus their effort and energy to consistently improve their personal best by meeting each player where they are at in their phase and stage of development. Our coaching and training style is developmental in approach. We believe the game of soccer is best played and learned through a solution-focused mindset where players are presented with game-like challenges and supported in finding and creating
a variety of solutions to most positively impact the game.
​
Experience - Reflect - Connect - Decide- adapt
​
TALA Soccer Training is intentionally designed to create a transformative person-centered environment where players develop and improve their technical skill acquisition while learning a deeper understanding of the game and the various moments of decision-making and problem-solving that it presents through adaptive, progressive game-like activities. By connecting moments of the game to past experiences to new information through critical engagement and experiential session design, players develop a deeper level of topic-specific understanding while acquiring technical skills and tactical awareness associated with cognitive development and fluid decision-making. TALA Soccer Training provides players the opportunity to recognize and relate new information to their current knowledge of the game by facilitating unscripted activities that mirror the fluid and ever-changing nature of a competitive game. Each session is uniquely designed to promote and develop intrinsically motivated players who possess a deeper understanding of the game while improving their technical skills through topic-specific sessions leading to increased competence, confidence, self-awareness, self-regulation, and a high-performance mindset.
understand
decide
act
reflect
Connect
repeat
"Always believe in your ability and your goals. This is the only way you will be able to reach them."
Mohamed salah
Egypt national team
Liverpool FC
understand
what is currently happening on the field?
where is it happening? when does it happen during a game? who is involved? Why is it happening? What are the potential outcomes based on player actions? how do my player actions create player interactions in context? What are the cues and clues and triggers to act?
​
decide
What player action(s) is most appropriate based on my understanding of the game? how will my player action(s) change the game? how can I help my team accomplish the current goal of the game?
What information have I gathered to make an informed decision? How do I gather information to add context to my decision-making process? how will my decision influnece the decsion of others?
act
execute a player action based on a current understanding of the game developed through the gathering of information and applied knowledge of the situation.
​
reflect
What player action did I make? how did it change the game? what can I do differently next time? how might a different player action influence the game? how did my process influence the outcome? What did I learn through the process? How did my decision influnce the decision of others?
Connect
Develop a deeper awareness and perception of the interdependence that action(s) have on interaction(s) within the various situations of the game in context.
Repeat
modify decision(s), process, and Player action(s) based on individual reflection, assessment, and understanding of the current situation or game in reflection of previous outcome(s). Adapt through awareness. Develop a deeper understanding of how action(s) influence interaction(s).
"Making the right decisions in football is very difficult, which is why we must train in a way that looks like the game and looks like the intensity and demands of the game."
josep 'pep' guardiola sala
winner of 31 major trophies
Manchester city manager