Effective communication between players is at the heart of every successful soccer team, especially during a soccer match . Without accurate, sincere, and precise exchange of information on the soccer pitch, the chances of a team triumphing on the day might be slim, if not impossible. Have you ever wondered how soccer players communicated?
Soccer players, during a match, communicate amongst themselves in various ways. Today we will be examining some of the ways soccer players communicate.
Verbal Communication
This is the most obvious way players use to communicate on the pitch.
This kind of communication ranges from literal spoken words or coded language form to call a play or strategy without hinting at the opposition.
Sometimes you will see players call out to their teammates about their availability for a pass or a goalkeeper give a loud shout to his colleagues to leave a high ball for him to catch.
Verbal communication is probably the most important means by which players can pass across their intentions, and it’s imperative that teammates are on the same page regarding the language being used to communicate.
However, when soccer players move to new country, they learn the new language before they begin to communicate verbally. You can find out how soccer players learn new languages.
Hand Signals
This is another form of communication that comes in handy, particularly when the noise from the stadium can barely allow players to hear themselves.
Hand signals can be used to indicate a type of formation to be used if the coach has made a switch of players.
Sometimes during a set piece, you will see the person kicking the ball indicate the kind of kick he will take by raising his hands or making hand gestures.
It’s not uncommon also to see goalkeepers using their fingers to show the number of players they want in a defensive wall.
Even soccer coaches use mainly hand signals to relay their tactics to their players in a match.
Eye Movements
Eye gestures are another good means through which footballers talk to themselves on the pitch.
Sometimes by looking at the eye movement of a teammate, a player can know where he should be positioned or which run to make.
In most occasions, during a free-kick routine, players can look at each other in the eye to guess how it will be executed.
Sometimes a teammate might frown his eyes to communicate his displeasure with how his colleague is playing.
In essence, eye communication is very good in situations where you don’t want your opponent to guess your next move or line of action.
Body movement/touch
A player can also communicate using his body movement.
For example, if a player decides to make a run, he’s communicating to his teammate with the ball to make a long pass.
Other times a player could touch your arm or shoulder to communicate to you that you should slow things down or make a quick pass to catch the opponent off guard.
These are some of the useful ways players can communicate in a match.
