SOCCER NEWS - One major theme we hope to get across here on SoccerTrainingSolutions.com is that in order to get better at soccer, you need to put in work outside of official team practices. Individual training is just as big a part of improving your game, if not more so.

Here are 5 ways you can improve your soccer skills in your backyard, and you won’t need any fancy equipment.

1.) Juggling

Just because you can do cool tricks when you juggle does not mean that you are going to be a great soccer player. What juggling can do, however, is help perfect your touch. You need to be able to feel just as comfortable as you are juggling in the backyard as in a league or championship game. I am not saying that you will actually be juggling the soccer ball in a game, but you will have to be able to control it. If you can juggle with ease in your backyard, then you will be able to control the ball much better in the game.

When juggling, try manipulating the ball in different ways. For example, try juggling the ball without spin, with side-spin, with backspin, and topspin. If you learn how to control the ball when and how you want to, you will be able to manipulate it when you make passes in a game. For example, there are times when you need to make a pass with backspin on it in order to keep the ball in play. You might need to be able to bend the ball around a defender’s leg in order to complete a pass.

Also, try to catch the ball on top of your foot and then start juggling again. Make sure that you are able to catch the ball on top of both feet, not just your dominant one. All of these juggling skills will help you in another very important area in soccer: trapping.

2.) Trapping