A football player needs to master at least four skill sets: technique, game intelligence, physical fitness, and proper mindset.
How could a player possibly control and dribble the ball without any spatial awareness or tactical knowledge that another player could snatch it away in a second? And how would he do the trick if he lacks balance and coordination? If a player is not coachable at all, how can he contribute to the club?
In the world of football, the fans support the clubs that illustrate quality football. The players display some of the most breathtaking and memorable plays.
Some skills tricks are even named after the player who invented it.
Here are some of the best game-plays in football history.
Maradona turn
Invented by Diego Maradona, the specialised dribbling turn is now a classic. It is also considered an attacking move used in escaping an impending tackle from a defender. With that said, the opportunities for using the Maradona turn are less.
The dominant foot is placed on top in a grabbing motion. The player would stop suddenly to redirect the ball using the non-dominant foot.
Throughout the years, another proponent of the trick emerged—Zinedine Zidane. This time, Zidane uses his instep instead of the sole to drag the ball back to its position. He does this while running in full speed.
Cruyff turn
Named after Johan Cruyff, a Dutch player, the Cruyff turn is one of the most challenging plays to execute. However, it allows the player to change both the defence and pace of the game.
During the 1974 Word Cup, Cruyff was about to make a goal, but Jan Olsson was blocking him. The move involved drawing back the right foot, feinting the pass back, drawing the foot back behind the standing left leg, turning at the hip to make a 180-degree turn. This allowed the player to shift the weight to the other foot and complete the turn.
The freshest display of the Cruyff turn was at the Women’s World Cup. Lieke Martens of the Netherlands did the symbolic turn.
Ronaldinho Gaucho snake
Also called Elastico or flip-flap, the snake move is unique. The snake is a dribbling move, although it is also used as a feint. Only a few football players can do it such as Ronaldinho considering how hard to pull it off.
It was called the snake because of the in-out feet movement involved. The outside of the dominant foot is used in pushing the ball towards the offensive player’s dominant side. The feint leads the defensive player to think that he will move it to another direction but not really. It’s because the dominant foot will have the control of the ball in an instant pushing it to the non-dominant side.
Roberto Rivellino and Zidane are the other players who have performed the snake throughout their careers. Rivellino even claimed that while Sergio Echigo, a Japanese-Brazilian player, has invented it, he was the one who perfected the snake.
In Africa, the snake was simply called ‘The Gaucho,’ after the player who boldly utilised it over and over during a game.
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