Author: kevlfc123

In no way am I trying to imply I’ve played at the highest level, I’m still at a very early stage but I’ve been lucky enough to work with some top class coaches who have played at the highest level and I’ve been fortunate enough to witness world class defenders first hand. I would say I have a fair idea of what it takes to get there but it is definitely a lot easier said than done.

If your a young footballer you must be obsessed. In the modern day kids sit in and play on consoles all day but if you want to be a footballer, this will never get you there. Ironically enough I was just sat downstairs discussing this with my parents about half and hour ago and that’s what inspired me to write this. This is no exaggeration by the way, for as long as I can remember from the minute I woke up to the minute it got dark I was out on the street playing football. Funnily enough since I’ve returned home for lockdown I’ve found myself back outside kicking the ball against the same wall I did for all those years. All that was ever on my mind was football and I think this has to be the case if you want to make it to the top.

As you get a bit older this is when discipline comes into place. One of the best bits of advice I ever received as a young person was from a coach in Dublin named Jimmy Jackson, he said to me you if you want to make it to the top you have to learn how to say the word ‘no’ it’s as simple as that. What he meant by this was as you grow up you’ll be surrounded by other lads who aren’t on the same path as you and will want to do stuff that won’t benefit you, you have to be big and bold enough just to say ‘no.’ This has stuck with me and I use it in so many other aspects of life.

Young players do this and don’t get me wrong I have been guilty of it. You look at top defenders who play nice passes through the lines and play 40/50 yard diags and you think if you master this you’ll get to the top. If this is your mindset then get it out of your head immediately. If you haven’t mastered the art of defending then you’ve got no chance, people seem to ignore how good these players are at defending. What I’ve learnt is the first questions a coach asks himself when scouting a defender is, can he head the ball? Can he clear the ball? Can he tackle? All the fancy stuff is just a bonus, trust me. If you wan’t to get to the top master the art of defending first.

Finally, your mindset is key, you must cross that white line and believe in yourself. I’ve witnessed players over the years who may not have been as good as others but they’ve overtaken them solely due to their mindset. You might find that hard to believe but it’s true. I’m a big believe in the law of attraction and if you step on to a football pitch worried about making a mistake then from my experience your likely to make a mistake. Belief is key and you need to be bullet proof on the pitch. I’ve always found players who have an arrogance about themselves will get further than players who may be better but don’t believe in themselves as much.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this little insight and if you have any questions then don’t hesitate to get in contact!

I’ve always been a bit skeptical about change in football in general. Football is the greatest sport in the world (in my opinion and also many others), so why introduce something that might affect that? The idea of VAR has never really appealed to me, but I never anticipated it was going to be as much of a disaster as it has been. Football is a fast paced game filled with drama and sometimes decisions go against you and your livid but sometimes they go for you and your over the moon, the unpredictable nature of football is what I always loved about it.

Now with VAR, that should be eliminated but the worst thing about it is the video referee’s are still not consistently making the correct decision. At times they’ve spent minutes re-watching a scenario and yet they still don’t make the right call, firstly they’ve spent millions on this technology the least you’d expect is that their going to give the right call and secondly 2/3 minutes of uncertainty among fans just drains the energy in a ground. These added stoppages are certainly not what football needed.

From a football fans point of view, I’ll watch Liverpool games and when they score I’m hesitant to even celebrate as I’m anxiously waiting to see whether VAR will be called in. I’m sure many other football fans can relate and you can’t actually enjoy the moment of your team scoring without worrying if it will count or not. That thrill when your team scores, nothing in the world compares to it yet VAR is taking this away and over the course of the season my frustration towards it has gradually grown.

What to do now? Well in my opinion it should be scrapped completely. Leave football the way it was, yes there are controversial decisions and referee’s make mistakes but this is what the games all about. I can still remember sitting in my front room in 2009 the night Thierry Henry handled the ball in a World Cup qualifier and knocked Ireland out of the competition, it absolutely broke my heart and if VAR was in place, Ireland would’ve went to the World Cup but there’s been many times since when decisions have gone in favor of Ireland and Liverpool so I don’t still sit here and think I wish VAR was in place 11 years ago and Ireland went to the World Cup. LEAVE THE GAME THE WAY IT WAS.