SoccerChoice

Extra soccer training alongside club

Club training once or twice a week is not much contact time with the ball. Extra training is how a lot of families close that gap — here is what it actually involves.

What “extra training” means

It is coaching your child does in addition to their club sessions, not instead of them. It is usually run by an independent coach or academy rather than the club, and it is usually smaller: fewer players, more repetitions, more individual correction.

The point is contact time. A player at a typical community club might train twice a week and play once. Extra sessions add technical work — first touch, striking the ball, dribbling under pressure, weak foot — in a setting where a coach can actually watch them do it.

When it tends to help

  • They want more than the club gives them. The most common reason, and the most straightforward one.
  • There is a specific gap. Weak foot, first touch, heading, confidence receiving under pressure. Narrow problems respond well to focused work.
  • They are moving up a level. Trialling for a higher grade or a representative side, and the standard is about to jump.
  • Their club session is crowded. Twenty-five players and one coach is a hard environment to improve in, however good the coach is.

When it probably does not

Extra training is not automatically good. Worth being honest about the cases where it is the wrong answer:

  • They are already playing a lot. Multiple sports, multiple teams, plus school sport — adding a fourth or fifth session risks overuse injury and burnout more than it adds skill.
  • They do not want to go. A child dragged to extra sessions improves less than one who chose them, and enjoyment is the thing that keeps them playing at fifteen.
  • The problem is not technical. If they are not getting game time because of position, size or a coach’s preference, more ball work may not change it.

What to check before you book

The questions that separate a good session from an expensive one are in our guide to choosing training. The short version: ask the coach–player ratio, ask what a session actually looks like, and ask whether you can watch one before committing to a term.

On cost, group and small-group sessions are priced very differently from 1-to-1 — see what training costs for how the pricing usually works.

Find extra training near you

Tell us your postcode, your child’s age range and their current level. We’ll check which participating providers are a suitable fit.

Step 1 of 5 — Location

Step 1 of 5: Location

This can be near home, school or work — wherever suits you.

Working out what your child needs

Short, practical guides. No sign-up, no sales pitch.