Developing Creative Players

Coaches seem constantly in pursuit of 'creative' players. But how do we produce this type of player?
The word ‘creative’ is used more than any other it seems in youth football, the development, the pursuit and the need for it, however what does this mean? And importantly, how do we actually develop it?

Creativity is defined as “the state or quality of being creative. The ability to transcend traditional ideas and to create meaningful new ideas”. In this respects the word creative implies going beyond the norm and setting new boundaries, developing new ways of doing things. When we consider a ‘creative’ footballer it is these ideas which come into our mind; the ability to beat players with great skill in 1v1 situations, the ability to dribble the ball at speed, the vision of a pass which “no-one could see”, the scoring of a goal which seemed 'impossible' or even just a subtle flick or touch which shows awareness, vision and confidence. All these examples highlight what we regard as a creative player. 

This type of player appears to transcend the game itself, showing moments of brilliance and ‘genius’. It is a type of player which in todays market is worth millions. He is a player which can win games, create goals and help a team succeed. He can be that key player who can unlock strict defences, provide moments of magic which can determine games and who can make fans sit on the edge of their seats, captivated by his brilliance. This creative genius is seen as a special talent, unique, original, almost…'natural', meaning he hasn’t been ruined, limited or another word for it had this 'innate' talent ‘coached’ out of him. 

Across the history of the game football has seen many genius’; Maradona, Cruyff, Best, Matthews, Zidane, Riquelme, Hagi, Pirlo, Laudrup, Iniesta, Ronaldinho and Messi to name a few. Interestingly there are a number of these players who have at some point played for Barcelona, a surprise? Perhaps not. In England we marvel at the talent of these players, players who appear to possess such “natural” football skill and talent. We wonder how they became so great and, importantly, we ask why England does not produce more of these players. 

Well you know, England has produced some genius’; Matthews, Beardsley, Keegan, Gascoigne, Hoddle, Waddle, Scholes and Rooney. The problem hasn’t always been developing them (although we do some to produce only one a generation), but perhaps knowing what to do with them when they come into senior football and particularly the national side. This issue highlights the greater concern which unfortunately trickles down to the grassroots and youth football, the issue of culture. 

My biggest concern has been that our culture appears to have distrusted skill and creativity and we have suffered because of it. It seems that we have not been able to fully appreciate or nurture creative talent, and this is worrying.

All are artists, until they are told to be robots

I love this quote; “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.” It seems that England has a problem when it comes to ‘adult’ football that a sense of ‘growing up’ and being ‘rational’ and ‘functional’ when it comes to playing football. This rational thinking seemingly negates the need for skill and expression, looking at it as a problem and hindrance, with the commonly heard phrase "keep it simple". The truth is that the safety first approach which categorises England has limited the development of many little ‘artists’. 

Why have many of our 'creative' genius' struggled to impose themselves? Well, while other cultures seem to embrace the creative genius, revolve the team around them and hold them in the highest regard, we seem to look at these players as liabilities. It is a real shame. 

Yes there is no doubt that the game, both at youth and senior level is changing, slowly I may add, but it is changing. The Premier League has some genuine creative talent playing week in week out in players like Silva, Aguero, Ozil, Alexis, Mata and Hazard to name a few. In the 90's the game and fans embraced players like Zola, Bergkamp, Henry and Cantana and marvelled at what they do, players who seemingly showed another way of playing. The question however is that while we marvel at foreign talent, we continue to struggle to produce these types of player ourselves. Why? Well, it all comes down to development and culture. 

If you've read previous articles from this blog then you'll know that I feel that our coaching culture (on the most part) distrusts skill and expression and fails to enhance young players technical skills and tactical intelligence. Thus we are often left behind other nations. Another issue is the amount of, and quality of practice time young English players experience. 

People talk of nature/nurture and while genetics plays a part it is without doubt the nurture of a young talent which makes the most crucial difference. Too often you hear these comments in reference to a talented player; “He’s a natural”, “It’s just so easy for him”, “He’s blessed”…well this is simply not the case. 

What we are seeing when you see a 'special' player is hours and hours of working on their game, honing their skills and talent. The talk of the 10,000 hour rule may be ridiculed by many as simplistic and simply not true but there is certainly merit in the idea of clocking up hours upon hours of work to improve. It makes sense surely? Put time into a specific area and you will more often than not improve.

Anders Ericsson who carried out the research into 10,000 hours found that it is not just ‘practice’ which will help develop elite players. Ericsson believes that the most dramatic improvements in the level of performance found in sports are associated with an improved quality and quantity of practice; he defines this as ‘deliberate practice’. 

And for him the key to developing elite levels of performance is, “Primarily attributable to the environmental conditions necessary for its slow emergence, and to the years of deliberate practice required to develop the complex mediating mechanisms that support expertise.” 

He believes that players need to be pushed and stretched to achieve excellence and that deliberate practice requires much effort, focus, and involves making many mistakes along the way. Effectively he believes you have to challenge a persons skills in order to make progress.

Now, the question is do we live in a culture which nurtures & develops skilful & intelligent players? While many will say they do, there is a sense many players are not being educated highly enough on the game and that they aren't being challenged or stretched to high enough levels to help their development progress. This leads to periods of stagnation, or even regression for players.

Learning from the streets When we talk of practice time and challenging environments there is none better than the streets. However the 'death' of street football has led to a culture of ‘organised’ play for our young players, this is a problem. 

Many of the top players in football history have developed and honed their skills on the ‘streets’. Pelé, Maradona, George Best and Ronaldinho were all players who spent endless hours playing football, on the roads, as young children. These hours enabled these individuals to hone their skills, improve their awareness and vision, and enhance their dribbling skills. The ‘streets’ were a place to learn and develop skills and the best would excel in these environments. They found and exploited tight areas and attacked with speed and skill. 

This environment would be just what Ericsson would wish for elite development; focused, replete with hard work, and challenging. There were no coaches telling players what to do so they had to make decisions for themselves. And street soccer’ developed social skills too; confidence, leadership, expression, friendship and, importantly, competitiveness - areas of concern with the modern player in a world where social interaction happens more on phones and computers than face to face. 

Young children now are ‘blessed’ with technology and entertained for hour upon hour by computers and television, effecting both their physical and social skills. Children are becoming “weaker, less muscular and unable to do physical tasks that previous generations found simple.”  A generation dedicated to online pursuits has led to 10-year-olds with “declining strength and an inability to grip an object firmly.” From a football perspective – this is a major concern. Less activity means less skill being developed - resulting in young children wasting the key years of development!

John Cartwright makes the obvious, yet essential point that;
“If we want imaginative, quick thinking, skilful players then we must provide the means to produce them.”

Street football, or what we know of this has effectively gone, therefore we need to create new environments which help develop the kind of skills and character which those previous days did. I am talking now about coaching technical skills and developing the raw skills in young players. 

Possessing technical excellence is imperative to a game that requires an exquisite touch in tight areas and with limited time. With excellent decision making and a high technical level a player can deal with many situations with poise and composure. Technical skill development therefore is fundamental to developing players for the future game.  

Developing the skills

We watch Spain in recent years and ask ‘how have they developed such great technicians and decision makers?’ Well it's down to the ‘how’ of what they do. It is not luck but their coaching and footballing culture. They value a certain style of football and nurture the skills necessary to succeed playing this way. It’s simple. These players have been developed to deal with these situations. They are a product of their development pathway and, as proven, their pathway has shown to be very successful.

There is a new craze which people believe will develop the skills for young players; futsal. Futsal helps to develop creativity in players perhaps more than any other version of small sided football. By its nature it promotes imagination, inventiveness and skill, and also improves decision making and spatial awareness. It promotes players to learn and cope in tight spaces under pressure…a significant issue which many English players struggle with. 

As this quote points out, “The rules set the scene for a battle of technical ability and craft, the lack of space means that players have to be intelligent with possession, which encourages dribbling round the opposition or promotes the player to envision a creative pass they wouldn’t usually play in any average game of football.”

So if we agree that developing technical skills are important, either on the street, in organised environments, in cages or on the futsal court, the fundamental element is what the coach does with the players. 

Let us talk about creativity. Many argue that players are over-coached and need freedom to play and express themselves. I agree entirely. Our players suffer from over-coaching at a young age. However...when we talk about developing creativity some will ask “Do young footballers need to be taught to the game” The answer is yes. 

This sense of players playing and developing without coaching, without advice, without having their talent nurtured is just not the case. Whether it a coach, a parent, a brother or an older player, young players are taught and educated all the time. Nothing is natural in terms of skills, it is about development.  As John Cartwright says, and I agree wholeheartedly with him, “Footballers need to be taught the game properly. I do not believe that players are born footballers.” 

The key word here is properly, this is the issue we have. Our players are not being developed, on the whole, with the proper coaching enabling the development of exceptional talent. 

We seem to believe that we are behind other nations, that our players aren’t as good as other countries. Now this isn’t necessarily the case, however what I would say is that our players seem to lack the tactical nous and intelligence which true creativity and genius requires. This is down to the coaching young players receive. You see it would be unfair to blame the players, it is not their fault! Young footballers are simply the products of the environments they have developed in. 

And because of the style of coaching and the landscape afforded to many young players, practice conditions develop a certain type of player. Basically for too long our culture and practice environments neglected the ability to master short passing, 1v1 excellence & handling the ball under pressure. 

Cultural issues holding back talent

The major problem holding English football back has been the ‘win at all costs’ mentality. This mindset, and environment, created by coaches and parents has limited the performances  and development of players in their quest to win. Our youth game has become filled with a cowardly attitude where defeat means failure. Unfortunately this approach favours ‘functional’ play over expansive and creative football…and has ultimately led to a culture of ‘mediocrity’.

The obsession with winning has stopped education, learning and creating skilful and creative players. The problem is many of our young footballers are being placed in the hands of coaches who are not skill ‘developers’ but skill ‘destroyers’. For all the well-meaning coaches who proclaim their wishes to play good football and promote the use of skill…as soon as these coaches get in the ‘heat of the battle’ they forget that they are developers of talent and instead focus solely on the result.

So what should actually be happening at this level?  Well for me players should be developed who possess skill, confidence and creativity. What is needed are coaches who actually put player development at the forefront of their coaching and who think long term about their players and their objectives. 

The path to 10,000 hours is rarely because of the individual alone, and as Anders Ericsson argues - never ‘fortunate’ or ‘natural’. The development of expertise comes about in part due to strong support, from an early age, from a parent or coach and has clear implications for the future development of the child. Therefore having positive guidance and coaching at a young age is essential.

A coach should enhance a young players talent. Take Lionel Messi;  from a young age and upwards he was given the freedom to nurture his skills…which other players are often denied. He was given the freedom to express his skills, especially his ability to run with the ball and beat the opposition. This was promoted all the way through his development…it was never limited! And now look at the player we see today. 

And we wonder why we don’t produce our own magical players?! We marvel at the dribbling skills of players like Messi, Ronaldo, Neymar and Ronaldinho but the problem is English football is not producing players with confidence on the ball, players who can run with the ball, express themselves and beat opponents with skill and craft. The reason England is not producing dribblers, or creative players, is because… we are telling them from a young age not to!

The truth is that too many coaches distrust ‘skill’, they worry that it may lead to a mistake which could lead to conceding a goal. Instead of seeing the value in trying new things, too many coaches effectively forbid the use of skill in games. 

Look, the truth is players will make mistakes and young players will make many of them, yet mistakes should be viewed as a key learning tool, because they are very important for a player’s development. For players to develop they require a challenging environment and, of course, they need to make mistakes. 

The idea of stretching the player beyond their current levels, as Ericsson discusses with deliberate practice, is essential. And in doing so, players will make mistakes along the way!

Mistakes are not crimes; they not an indictment of poor performance but a necessary characteristic of skill development. Unfortunately a vicious cycle is produced where players are fearful of making mistakes, which results in a lack of development and improvement. We therefore fail to produce creative artists on the pitch, because they never get the chance to experiment & learn! 

The problem is compounded further because players do not want to try new things for fear of criticism and being shouted. Too many youth football coaches have created players who are fearful of making mistakes, as the coaches anger and intimidation has restricted and destroyed creative players, instead promoting physicality and fight over skill and creativity. Just imagine how many players could have been stars had they not been put in this kind of environment.

Creating the right environment
The best coaches are those who understand that mistakes and errors happen and who actively seek to challenge players in order to test and further them.

Ask this question to a young player training or a game, “Did you enjoy it?” I wonder how many do. Many environments seem to think you have to be hard and aggressive to be ‘elite’, ridiculous! Enjoyment fuels motivation which makes players want to work harder and practice more. You can create a demanding, hard working and challenging environment without shouting and screaming at the players. And this environment will produce more expressive players who play without fear. Elite development can still come about with this approach, in fact I believe it will produce more players of the level we require!

The truth is that the environment in academies is too critical for players to develop. Being competitive is important but the development of players is the key part of academy football. Unfortunately this is not always the case. Results are seen above performance and development, and too many players are asked to fill their specific role and are not allowed to express themselves in case of making errors.

The best environment for a young player is one which offers enthusiasm, enjoyment and which, importantly, allows for expression and creativity without the fear of being reprimanded if a mistake is made. If this kind of culture and environment is not introduced across our youth game then England will continue to suffer from a lack of creative and technically confident players. 

As Messi says “You must remember soccer is a game to have fun and you play for that.” Young players enjoy trying new things, learning new skills, experimenting and developing. Too many coaches however deny this enjoyment, restrict what they can do and limit the players expression and ultimately development. All for what? The result on the weekend?! How disappointing.

If we wish to develop creative players then creating the right environment is one of the most importance roles that a coach has. This environment is hugely significant for the future development of a young footballer. 

The role of the coach is to support, develop and help their players by observing and refining the individual skill of each player. With more understanding of skill development a talented coach can give the correct feedback to help players improve execution and fluency. 

A complete skill-set

When we talk about creativity it is clear to me that this means having a player who is;

•         Confident with the ball under pressure – excellent ball manipulation skills
•         Who has excellent receiving skills
•         Who possesses a large repertoire of skills to create space and beat defender
•         Who has excellent passing range, preferably with two feet – different types of passes for different needs
•         Who plays with their head up and ‘sees’ the game in front of them – comes from composure and confidence with the ball

The list above can be broken into dozens of sub-sets, different moves, type of passing and receiving skills and different decisions they make within a game. I call this a players ‘skill-set’ and believe that the greater and more varied a players skill-set is, the more creative, composed and confident that player can be. 

The problem is that if a players skill-set is not developed well, or fully enough, then a player can not possess creativity. A restricted skill-set means a restricted footballer. 

The reason this skill-set is restricted is as follows; firstly the issues above regarding coaching and limiting players. And secondly, the positon specific nature of young players development, being pigeon holed and asked to develop only the skills needed for that position. Players at nine or ten-years-old are being ‘labelled’ as defenders or forwards and being developed for those specific roles. Players should be developed to possess all the key characteristics of being a ‘footballer’. Why not develop an all-round skill-set which allows a player to fit in anywhere? 

This is in line with my own personal belief about developing universal players for a growing universal game. For me the future game will require interchangeable footballers capable of operating wherever required. Arrigo Sacchi, one of Italy’s best ever coaches, believes the game of the future will require positional freedom and variability. He believes ‘universal players’ are the future of the game. So if the future game requires teams to keep the ball with increased quality, if England wishes to produce top players and successful teams, then we must learn to appreciate and develop players with universal attributes

So what is a universal player?
He is a player who has;

•       A complete skill-set

•       Technical excellence

•       1v1 brilliance

•       Game intelligence - Tactically understands game

•       Is mentally and emotionally balanced

•       Has a great athletic mix

What is needed for the future success of both clubs and country is to have academies producing players who are capable of succeeding in the future game.

In order to meet fluid game situations we need to develop players who understand how and when to change roles and who are able to play in multiple positions. We need to teach & educate the players. We need to enhance their technical skillset to be fully rounded footballers.

Creative = intelligence
What separates the very best players is their level of game intelligence. For me it may be the most important ability on the football field. And the truth is we are simply not developing players with a high enough level of game intelligence. There are many players who possess excellent skills yet don’t translate this into games well enough. It is this game intel aspect which is the missing component for many. 

Horst Wein believes that “A high level soccer player is only possible when making constant use of game intelligence.” And with 98% of the game spent without the ball in many players cases, this aspect of focus, concentration and tactical intelligence in and out of possession is fundamental. The question we come back to again is, are we focusing and developing on these key areas?

Average players make decisions on receipt of the ball, when it is too late. The best players, those who possess game intelligence, are able to ‘read the game’ and make good decisions as quickly as possible. In doing so, they are able to exploit spaces and opportunities quickly and effectively. Therefore the ability to play in the future is about recognising situations and seeing opportunities early. Before receiving the ball a player should be fully aware of the situation and ‘pictures’ which are around him. 

And how can coaches develop this? Well players have to be systematically exposed to games, “which unlock and stimulate their creativity and game intelligence.” Games help to develop awareness and understanding, help players make real game decisions. Wein believes that too many coaches treat young players with disrespect by not challenging them and pushing them. He argues that from the earliest ages, “Players must be exposed to game situations in ever-increasing complexity.”

In England, a common anxiety is that players are not assured in possession when under pressure from opponents. The reason?  They don’t practice in these environments enough. Surely it is obvious that players should practice what the game demands of them? Playing games, rather than isolated drills, is a key factor in developing game intelligence. Through games there is a constant change of pictures and decisions. Players must be exposed to this and develop their understanding, vision and awareness.  

The game is the greatest teacher when it comes to developing intelligent, creative players.

The failure of many coaches to develop intelligent players comes from a direct result of “inadequate coaching training” which too often provides situations “which never happen in a real game” - making it hard for players to develop. Based on this idea of developing intelligence and creativity we are we starting to see why England struggles to produce creative players.

It’s no wonder Spain is producing so many talented players - their training environments are perfect for the development of skill, speed and game intelligence. Spain has developed players suitable for all positions of the pitch who possess high technical skill, speed, agility and intelligence for attack and defence. Because of this, the whole side understands their roles and can implement their tactics to perfection. 

And it's important to understand that it is not easy to implement this kind of approach - it takes time, patience, and great coaching.

By putting players in progressively tight areas which involve competition – the development of acute footballing decisions is increased. Learning processes are enhanced and the freedom to make errors on a player’s journey to becoming a professional enables them to be develop into a master decision maker.

When we consider the importance of deliberate practice and ‘pushing’ players then it is clear that what Wein is recommending, and what Spain has developed, is an environment which is challenging and which develops players all round football ability.

England’s rigid style of football has limited the development of these key players and has ultimately stunted many players development. More imagination and innovation in coaching and academies will allow player development to flourish much more. We need coaches at grassroots and in academies who are willing to allow players and their teams to experiment and be creative, away from safe fixed formations and ‘results’ driven outcomes.

Creativity - The final step

Going back to ‘deliberate practice’ and it is clear that professional coaches and teachers play an essential role in guiding future players to acquire superior performance in a safe and effective manner. Effectively, to move to elite levels, you need a great coach/guide/teacher. A great coach can develop a greater skillset, can educate the players on the game and thus enhance their game intelligence. 

What young players need is a coach who nurtures skill and expression, who educates their players on the style of football and culture which they wish to implement. 

A blend between coach intervention and player ownership within real game situations is the way forward to develop a larger number of skilful and intelligent players. From this then we may see more creative players, those who are able to compete with the top players in world football.

I came across this ‘learning pathway’ a year or so ago and it made so much sense to me. It also pointed as to the issue we have when we consider the word creativity and how this corresponds with young players. The problem seems that we expect too much too soon! We strive for the creative nature of a player to show before the foundation has been built. 

The pathway goes like this;

1.      Remembering

2.      Understanding

3.      Applying

4.      Analysing

5.      Evaluating

6.      Creating

Only after developing the skills, applying them, improving them and reflecting on them can you begin to be creative. It takes time, hours upon hours, years upon years to develop the levels required for genuine creativity. 

What happens between 1-3 from a coaching perspective; training methods, difficulty, range of skills and between 4-5 for the player to enhance their skills, to think and evaluate more, will be the key to being more creative. 

It is an interesting and very powerful way of looking at creativity. It is the end of all the hard work accumulated. When the skillset is built, and the vaster and more varied and tuned the skillset, the more creative a player can be.

Wanting to develop creativity and being able to do it are two different things. It takes courage from both coach and player to persevere and show the patience required for creativity to shine. Many will falter along the journey, falling for the safe options and taking an easier path. Coaches may lose their bottle when results appear to go against them, falling for short termism over long term gains. It is perhaps why so few are genuinely creative in their ways; the fear of failure, a pathway marred by the wrong people. 

To have a near perfect continuum of positive development, accounting for perfect conditions of opportunity and progression is not easy to come across. It is not a magic formula and aspects of luck will determine a player journey.

English football has the potential to develop world class players, yet the truth is that too many are being wasted by fear, negativity, poor methods, styles and coaching. More work is needed to enhance the technical and tactical skills, intelligence and creativity of our young players. This will be determined by the environment the players develop within.

The Whitehouse Address @The_W_Address

Feedback on the above article is welcomed, you can email me at thewhitehouseaddress@gmail.com