"In Futsal you need to think quick and play quick so it's easier for you when you move to normal football (outdoor soccer)." This quote comes from arguably the greatest player of all time, Pele. As a 3 time World Cup winner, scorer of over 1,000 competitive goals in his career, someone who transcended the sport and is known as 'The King' in his native country of Brazil (read this story to see exactly how revered he is), it is safe to assume he knows what he is talking about. But what is Futsal and what exactly makes it so important for the long term development of young players?
Futsal was first introduced in the 1930's in Uruguay. With the national team fresh from winning the inaugural World Cup, Juan Carlos Ceriani, wanted to use this popularity of the sport in his homeland to create an indoor version to be played on Basketball Courts in local YMCA's. He took the basic elements of Soccer, and derived from other sports - Basketball (5 players), Water Polo (GK rules) and Handball (Goal size).
The sport, known as Futbol de Salon spread across South America and became immensely popular in Brazil, taking on the name Futebol de Salao (translation: lounge football). Brazil used it to keep players in shape all year long, as weather has no impact on the ability to play. Using a size 2 ball with limited bounce, players were able to work their footskills, tricks, flicks and flair - hallmarks of the great Brazilian sides since then.
Eventually FIFA would come calling, wanting control over the sport and with their ability to market it world wide, developed the term Futsal and introduced the Futsal World Cup. Increasing the size of the ball to a size 4 (for television audiences to see), this is the indoor sport we have now.
When discussing the long term development that Futsal can have for young players of the outdoor game, the mos obvious is the amount of touches a player will receive on the ball. Smaller numbers on the field allows players to receive the ball more often and as such, find themselves in situations similar to what they would in the outdoor game, with far more repetition of the skills required to succeed in these situations. Manchester United ran a trial program of their U9 players playing 4 v 4 instead of 8 v 8 and recorded the technical statistics from the games in comparison to the larger sided variety.
As you can see, players had more opportunities to pass, score, use 1 v 1 skills and be faced with 1 v 1 encounters. Although this was an outdoor version of the small sided game, comparisons with Futsal should be made. It is widely considered that between the ages of 8-12, players increase their technical skills the most, due to how their bodies grow in teenage years. Being able to paint the pictures of scenarios developing when on the ball on a smaller field with less traffic on the field of play can only be a positive for players still improving their confidence on the ball. The smaller field helps to eliminate the need to "kick the ball" as a lack of space gives the ball limited places in which it can go.
These skills and comfort in them are vital for a players development and transition to the larger sided game. Players have less opportunities to receive the ball (on average, players will have 90 touches per game), highlighting the need to make those touches be as clean and as crisp as possible. Increased repetition, especially in a game situation, will help eliminate mistakes on the occasions players receive the ball.
In Futsal, players are heavily encouraged to use 2 parts of their foot that are either neglected or frowned upon in the outfield game - the sole and (collective gasp) the toe. The game encourages passing, dribbling, turning and receiving with the sole of the foot. When it comes to the outdoor game, most coaches I have seen in the US (and I have been guilty of this too), talk about receiving with the inside of the foot, sometimes the outside. While these are certainly effective parts of the foot to use, the sole has it's uses in particular situations, such as playing with your back to goal and being tightly marked, or, in the case of this goal by Lionel Messi, wrong-footing a Goal Keeper to allow for a easier finish.
Use of the toe brings with it more controversy. Discouraging kids from using their toe to kick a ball at younger ages is understandable. Most perform an old fashioned "toe punt", swinging their leg back as far as possible in order to generate power with no sense of aim or purpose. This is obviously not a benefit for developing the player and it is something that will be found out the older the players get. A toe poke however, is a skill that is vital when it comes to the 11 v 11 game, especially for players in goal scoring situations. Disguising the finish when 1 v 1 with the goalkeeper by bending the lower part of the leg from the knee as opposed to the hip and poking the ball past them is a type of finish that is commonly used in the pro game. As mentioned in this video, there are times where the ball is bouncing around the penalty area and a player may have to stick a toe on the ball to send it towards the goal.
The use of these parts of the foot is highlighted and exaggerated even more in Futsal, with players encouraged to use them in practice sessions and games. For young players, becoming more comfortable using these extra parts of their foot will greatly assist their ball manipulation skills, especially when in tight areas of the field.
Spatial awareness is a key attribute for elite level players. Due to the smaller field and the fact that there is an out of bounds line (as opposed to the Major Indoor Soccer League which used rebound boards around the outside of the court) players have to work harder to make themselves available. Players cannot switch off and transitions are aplenty. Coaches may even set their Futsal formation to mirror that of a midfield 11 v 11 formation, giving players the opportunity to work on movements and spatial awareness in a microscopic area of the larger field. Not to mention the limited space really working on a players close control through the worry of losing the ball.
Futsal is a game that is growing a lot of attention worldwide. Close control, quick thinking and sharp movement are all elements that can be transferred into the larger sided game and a great tool for any aspiring elite player.
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