Table Of ContentSoccer Brain:
The 4C Coaching Model for Developing World Class Player
Mindsets and a Winning Football Team
by Dan Abrahams
published by Bennion Kearny
[smashwords edition]
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Published in 2013 by Bennion Kearny Limited.
Copyright © Bennion Kearny Ltd 2013
Dan Abrahams has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act,
1988 to be identified as the author of this book.
ISBN: 978-1-909125-43-8
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.
This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise,
be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent
in any form of binding or cover other than that it which it is published and without a
similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
Bennion Kearny has endeavoured to provide trademark information about all the
companies and products mentioned in this book by the appropriate use of capitals.
However, Bennion Kearny cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information.
Published by Bennion Kearny Limited, 6 Victory House, 64 Trafalgar Road,
Birmingham, B13 8BU
www.BennionKearny.com
Cover image ©Shutterstock/Krivosheev Vitaly
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Dedication
To Heidi and to Zoe
“Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the
strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world”
Harriet Tubman
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Acknowledgements
I’d firstly, and most importantly, like to thank my wife Heidi. You are, to quote a
famous poet, my north, my south, my east and west (and a little more besides). Thanks
for being there, for supporting and for editing (it takes a certain skill to edit a book
about soccer when it’s far from being your favourite subject area).
A big thanks to James, my publisher, without whom there would be no book to thank
anyone for in the first place. Your wisdom is much appreciated.
Finally, a big thanks to Wayne Burnett who got the ball rolling, to Steve Gallen for
continuing the momentum, and to all the coaches and managers I’ve worked with over
the years.
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About the Author
Dan Abrahams is a freelance sport psychologist who specialises in soccer. He has spent
the past decade working with some of the leading soccer players, teams, organisations
and governing bodies globally. He has held contracts with leading clubs in the English
Premier League and some of the top managers and coaches regularly use his techniques
to drive their coaching culture and team building processes.
Dan’s passion is to de-mystify sport psychology and deliver simple and practical ideas
to both players and coaches. He is a regular speaker at soccer conferences across
Europe wowing audiences with his engaging, upbeat, positive and fun presentations and
workshops.
Dan has spread his soccer psychology philosophies across the soccer globe by using
social media and his mindset techniques are now used by players and coaches across
Europe, the USA, the Middle East, the Far East and Australasia.
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Table of Contents
Title Page
Publication Details
Dedication
Acknowledgements
About the Author
Introduction – The Toughest Profession of All
Section One – A Culture of Creativity
Chapter 1 – The Roots of Creativity
Chapter 2 – Expand Your Definition of Talent
Chapter 3 – The 1%ers
Section One Summary
Section Two – A Culture of Confidence
Chapter 4 – The Belief They Need
Chapter 5 – Your Self-Belief Toolkit
Chapter 6 – Training with Confidence in Mind
Section Two Summary
Section Three – A Culture of Commitment
Chapter 7 – Developing the Ruthless Competitor
Chapter 8 – Practice on Purpose
Chapter 9 – Mental Contrasting
Section Three Summary
Section Four – A Culture of Cohesion
Chapter 10 – Leading with Head and with Heart
Chapter 11 – We Starts with Me
Chapter 12 – The Pelican Mindset
Section Four Summary
Overall Conclusion – A Culture of Success
Other Books from Bennion Kearny
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Introduction - The Toughest Profession of All
You are the coach. You are the leader. You are responsible.
You stand in front of them, their eyes transfixed on you, their minds set for your
instruction. A match of significance, of high stakes. A win and your position is safe, a
loss and the exit door looms.
Your words will travel with them into this game – what you say has to have impact. You
can see they are nervous, as are you. But you can’t show them that – heart rate steady,
stay composed, a still rational mind is best.
Pre match simplicity: nothing new now, just reinforcement. Start with a soft voice then
raise the tone – now lessen the volume as the room intensity sizzles. Calm minds are a
must, no headless chickens.
Their roles and responsibilities: emphasize. Emotional words for some, words of action
for others. Then togetherness, that invisible rope that binds us. A focus on the team –
just about us, what we do, not what they do.
Memory – replace fear with confidence using reminders of past successes against this
team. An emphatic win and a hard fought draw. Every second counts if they’re going to
repeat those outcomes – every second of grind, of freedom, of focus.
Time! No more talking – so easy to say too much. Now positive action. The tunnel, then
pitch, then technical area. A little instruction from the sidelines maybe, but they are on
their own now. Let them fly!
Soccer Brain
You, however, are not on your own. A coach is never truly isolated. You have resources
to be the very best you can be, and I’d like you to come out of your comfort zone and
stretch yourself. I’d like you to engage in the improvement process.
I’d like you spend every day, every coaching session, and every minute of training and
match day becoming the best coach you can be.
This book will help you do that. It will help you monitor your thoughts, philosophies,
values, systems, actions and behaviours as you go about your daily coaching practices.
It will challenge and stretch you. It will require you to question the methodologies and
coaching beliefs that you may hold dear. It will, of course, also reinforce – I’m sure you
have some winning habits that you already employ on your eager students. I hope
Soccer Brain will help you magnify your strengths as a coach but also tease a few extra
ideas out of the pedagogical system you use now.
My passion is the extension of soccer talent; to help footballers improve and perform.
Young, veteran, working class, middle class, boy or girl, every race, colour and creed -
my life is spent helping shape the performances of those who play the beautiful game.
Making them pitch perfect is my driving creed. Do you share this obsession? Do you
wake up excited about the training session you’re going to put on that afternoon or
night? Do you go to bed wondering how you could have done the sessions that little bit
better? Does your mind vibrate when you ask yourself how you can accelerate the
learning of a few more of your players? If you feel this way, if you have that ardent
fervour, that zeal to help footballers then you are the right person to read Soccer Brain.
As much as I love helping footballers, my obsession extends to coaching. Working
alongside great soccer coaches makes me excited. It helps me understand not only
soccer but also the subtle nuances of learning and performance. Listening to a great
coach in action on the training ground is (to me) akin to listening to great poets read
their verse. What do I hear? I hear the complex made simple, the reinforcement of
correct action, the right questions asked, the silence that ‘says a thousand words’, the
emotion appropriately apportioned, and the use of language that inspires and aspires.
Off the pitch I see many things – I see meticulous detail in planning, I see preparation
for all eventualities, I see collaboration with players, I see a winning culture driving
player adherence, and I see excitement in the face of evolving club objectives. And both
on and off the pitch I sense – I sense the notion of fun, freedom and focus, I sense
personal guidance and professional leadership, I sense openness and caring, I sense a
will to win but also a commitment to learn, and I sense failure as a resource for success.
Mindset and Coaching Culture
Be warned, this isn’t a traditional soccer coaching book. There will be no sketches of
drills and plays. There is no real talk of formation, or shape and pattern. When you scan
a page you won’t find bullet points fine-detailing the art of controlling a football or
where to place players for a corner kick. These are the technical and tactical sides of the
game that are your traditional sources of information as a coach. They are detailed in
plenty of resources elsewhere.
With this book, however, your ability to instruct the tactical and technical components
of the game will improve and your players’ skill in executing your tuition will develop
if you build its messages into your coaching. This is because this book is intended to
drive your mindset as a coach, the mentality of your players and the culture of your
coaching practice. Great coaching, a player’s ability to understand and learn, and a
player’s expression of bodily movement in performance starts with these qualities.
