244 How To Deal With Playing Out Of Position In Football

Demystifying Mental Toughness

Currently the European Football Championships are taking place and there has been a lot of talk in the media and with fans about some of England’s footballers playing out of position. With many venting their frustration!

In today’s episode I offer my thoughts as a sport psychologist on the challenges of playing out of position as a player, I talk about the relationship with elements of mental toughness such as confidence in ability, interpersonal confidence, risk orientation and emotional control. I also go on to offer some ideas for players to consider when they are placed in this situation and for coaches to think about when selecting certain players to play in unfamiliar roles. It’s not straightforward for some players as you’ll hear in this episode when I talk about the complexities to consider!

Key Learning Points:

• The football or soccer player who is confident in their ability will react to situations without hesitation, seeing and having a feeling of what they wish to do and then executing accordingly.
• When playing out of position learning new ways of playing, being faced with new situations, different opponents, areas of the pitch you aren’t used to playing equals more conscious thoughts are required impacting on how instinctive players will be.
• Some people are more prone to take risks as part of their personality some are more likely to play things safe, this should be factored in when considering whether someone is likely to succeed when playing out of position.
• Emotional control is a characteristic that comes naturally to some people and can aid performance, however it can also be difficult for coaches to fully understand you as a player if you fall into this category and are good at hiding your feelings and emotions.
• Interpersonal confidence can play a part in the coach-player relationship impacting how well the coach can help players integrate into new positions.
• As a footballer, when playing new positions - do you say to yourself in situations; “I can”, “This is easy”, “I love playing …” or is it more of a challenge where you say to yourself “this is a struggle”, “I can’t do…”, “I want to do … but”, “I need to be doing… but”

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