Combining physical and technical training during winter
Football skills can be divided into three different groups: technical skills, mental skills, and physical skills. Having strong technical skills is what most people refer to when talking about “good football,” but having the right mentality, physical skills, and general understanding of the game is very important if you want to make it far.
During winter break and pre-season, most footballers focus on getting in shape physically. We talked to Kristin, who wants to be the best female football player in the World, about the importance of physical training.
“I practice a lot with my team, but when I have a day off, I either work out to get stronger or I go outside to improve my technical skills. Strength is really important for me because I’m not very tall. It’s a massive advantage to be physically strong on the football pitch. I try to improve my balance and agility, as well as the strength in my arms, upper body, hips, and thighs. Hopefully this will help me win more duels, keep injuries away, and become a stronger player overall.”
But since physicality isn’t the only aspect of football, staying on top of technical training during winter is important. Many players neglect technical training during winter because the weather is cold and snowy and the fields are frozen.
Kristin, however, uses the m-station rebounder to stay in shape technically—even when it’s dark and cold.
“During winter, I also practice my technical skills using the m-station in the yard at home. Yes, there will at times be snow, but that’s a nice change to the typical training schedule, right?”
If the weather is too cold or otherwise unbearable, Kristin simply brings the m-station indoors. It does limit her options a bit, but she still gets to practice her technical skills.
“Sometimes I take the m-station inside and down to the basement to do some intense short-passing practice. There’s not much space, but it works for me.”
Developing technically on multiple levels
When Kristin uses her rebounder, she uses it for more than just simple passing. In fact, short passing is just her warmup.
“I begin my m-station session by keeping the ball in the air between me and the rebounder. If I have a team training session that same day, I just take it easy and practice short passes, long passes, shooting, and ball control. If I have a lot of energy and want to step it up a notch, I practice some drills that involve jumping and running, sometimes even without the ball.“
She learns new exercises from her MuninPlay app and then gets inspired to come up with her own great ideas.
“I often find drills to do on the MuninPlay app, both with and without the ball. Sometimes I even come up with my own exercises. That’s a really cool feeling.”
Improve your technical skills during winter with a rebounder
For most footballers, winter break is all about staying in shape for spring season. The pitches are either muddy or frozen, and playing on them increases the risk of injury. Also, at most clubs it is prohibited to play on grass pitches during winter because it may ruin the soil and the grass, making the pitches unusable for spring matches.
However, for 11-year-old Aimee, who plays for one of the best U12 ladies teams in England, wintertime is not all about fitness and staying healthy during Christmas. With her own rebounder at home, Aimee can practice her technical skills without being limited by poor weather or unavailable grounds.
A home setup suited for multiple training drills
Aimee’s team is part of a UK-based FA Regional Talent Centre and FA Talent Pathway, which are reserved for the best female footballers in England. According to her father, she uses the rebounder multiple times every week to continuously improve her technical skills.
“At the moment, she might practice a couple of times per week, specifically indoors and with the rebounder. The space we have is quite limited but the rebounder allows Aimee to work on her control and touch. She will typically spend up to 30 minutes at a time using the rebounder.”
And because of the flexible design of the rebounder, Aimee is not restricted to just one or two drills.
“At setting “0,” she works on first-time passes and effectively uses the rebounder as a wall. This is helping to develop her control and touch on her left foot. She is right-footed, but her left is getting there! When she has the rebounder set at position “8,” she works on her volley touch.”
Despite a lack of space at home, Aimee still gets a good workout without having to take risks on bad pitches. Not only does this keep her body in shape, but it also helps her focus.
“Using the rebounder over winter—when local playing fields are incredibly muddy and it is almost dark when she returns home from school—is allowing Aimee to work on and develop her touch, and it gives her legs a bit of a workout. She has been on her toes to work on those calf muscles. But also quite importantly, using the rebounder helps develop her concentration.”
“I can test myself and try to beat previous records.”
For ambitious young footballers like Aimee, only practicing during spring, summer, and autumn does not cut it. With a rebounder, Aimee can train on her own instead of relying on teammates to join her in training sessions.
“I have gone from 36 the first time I tried volleys to 358 the last time I tried. Using the rebounder also lets me practice without other people; I can just go to the garage whenever I want and do some drills.”
In short, Aimee is happy with her rebounder. It is a tool that allows her to practice when other players cannot.
“I enjoy using the rebounder as I can test myself and try to beat previous records.”
m-station – the best football rebounder you’ll ever have
Watch this video to discover all the great benefits of the m-station
It can be hard to tell the difference between the m-station and a real-life teammate.
Due to the unique rebound effect of the m-station, the ball moves precisely as it does in game situations.
This ensures that you practice the skills and moves you truly need to practice to become a better player.
Also, you get more repetitions in a smaller amount of time, and your training becomes more fun and more effective.
You waste less time, because you’re always in possession of the ball.
Unless you miss the rebounder’s frame entirely, you’ll always have the ball at your feet. For young players especially, being in possession is a massive motivational factor.
When you buy the m-station, you also get a free app for your smartphone that collects data on your training. Just start the app and attach it to the m-station; when your training session is over, you can review all your stats.
“The small – yet significant – difference”
Sjur Lothe is only 16 years old, but he has already represented Norway on the youth national team. This achievement is the result of hard work and dedication; Lothe began self-training at a very young age, and that has since paid off. Here’s his story.
If you ever find yourself driving around the southwestern parts of Norway, there’s a good chance you’ll spot a 16-year-old kid named Sjur Lothe running around with a ball. The young Norwegian spends a lot of time around the ball, both on his own time and at his club, Vard Haugesund.
But it’s on his own time that Sjur Lothe has worked especially hard, and that has paid off with selections to the youth national team. This is quite an achievement for a young lad who plays for a club whose senior team plays in Norway’s third best football league.
“I’m absorbed in my self-training. It has been important in my development as a football player, especially in terms of technique and ball control. I view the time spent on self-training as “the small difference”—that is, the one thing that separates me from the rest, explains Lothe, who left his childhood club FK Haugar in 2015 to join Vard.
“In the long run, the number of hours spent on self-training is decisive. In my view, that’s where the differences start to show, but determining how many hours you need to spend on self-training is difficult, as there are many factors in play, such as time spent on organized training, and the length, intensity, and quality of your training.
“How often you need to train depends not only on how well trained you already are, but also on the intensity level of your exercises. I’d say that you should spend about 2.5 hours per day on self-training. Earlier, when I was around 11-14 years old, spending lots of time on self-training was my main focus. Back then I would self-train between 18 and 20 hours per week.”
“I would rather practice making 100 passes than 20. The specifics of my training would also vary, but I mostly focused on keeping the ball under control and playing around with it. Now my daily life is busier due to school and team practices, and the time I spend on self-training has decreased. I now focus primarily on quality, awareness, and match-like situations when self-training. I’m very preoccupied with that “small difference” belief. It’s all about executing the 10 additional passes that everyone else neglects.”
A lack of dedication and continuity
The majority of youth players aren’t as diligent as Lothe, though, and that bothers the Vard player.
“Most of the young players I know often hang out with their friends and spend their time on PlayStation or at parties; they prioritize all that over their development as football players. That’s something I find unfortunate. What I’ve found to be a key factor in a player’s development is the ability to sacrifice. If you want to become good at something, you must devote time to it. There are so many players on my team who self-train, but I’ve noticed that no one has thoroughly considered exactly what or how they need to improve. Also, my teammates don’t seem to have any continuity in their training. These things are important.”
Fortunately, Sjur Lothe has some advice on how one can get started with self-training.
“What oftens keeps us from self-training is time. Self-training is time-consuming. But it really doesn’t have to be. My advice is to choose one or two things that you want to improve, and then work a little on those things every day. Don’t make 100 passes; make 20. Don’t make 100 crosses; make 20. Don’t dribble 15 times; start out with eight. That’s important if you want to step up the quality of your game and develop better control.”
“There are also certain exercises that are better than others and easier to squeeze into your daily schedule. This is where the m-station enters the picture. Spend about 10 to 30 minutes each day with the m-station. Make a habit of it. Improve a little each day. Make that small difference”
The ambitious Lothe continues:
“In the hours I’ve spent on self-training, I’ve focused on developing better ball control, developing a better first touch, and perfecting my turns. I can now practice moving the ball into the right spaces, and there’s one specific exercise I use for that. You’ll need a second player:”
Step 1: Player 1 starts with the ball (facing the m-station), and Player 2 stands a few meters behind him.
Step 2: Player 1 passes the ball towards the m-station, but before receiving the ball from the rebounder, Player 1 must turn around and face player 2.
Step 3: Player 2 points out whether Player 1 must pass to his right or left, and Player 1 passes the ball in that direction.
“One way to finish this exercise is to have Player 2 target a goal (or the space between two cones) after receiving the pass. Also try to keep the touches to a maximum of two. Later on you can increase the difficulty by playing the ball to the opposite direction of where Player 2 is pointing”, Sjur concludes.
If you ever make your way to Haugesund, be sure to look for Sjur and his m-station, as it’s practically guaranteed he’ll be running around somewhere with his football. And who knows? Perhaps it won’t be many years before we see Sjur Lothe in the Tippeligaen with FK Haugesund, and maybe even as a member of the Norwegian senior national team.
How to practice turns with the m-station football rebounder
How to practice first touches with the m-station football rebounder
How to become a better finisher with the m-station football rebounder
Boost your confidence with self-training
Self-training can take place both on the couch and in the yard. Simply watching football is itself self-training, explains the former Superliga forward Rajko Lekic.
Since he retired as a professional football player in 2014, Lekic has made a living as a forward trainer at Rajko Lekic Målakademi, his very own school for forwards. The former national-team striker is still a well-known name in Danish football, where he is remembered as one of the greatest goal getters in the Superliga. He might be remembered best for his time at Silkeborg IF, where he netted 76 goals in 121 matches.
Lekic trained in Spain, Hungary, USA, and of course, Denmark, with coaches such as the former PSV and Dortmund forward Flemming Povlsen. Young and ambitious forwards today seek a more thorough and concentrated training than clubs can offer, and Lekic now aims to pass on to those young players everything he has learned throughout his career. We had a talk with Lekic on this very subject.
A question of mentality
The former top forward is happy that he can help the youngsters develop, especially because he thinks that Danish-football mentality doesn’t appreciate self-training.
“For a long time I’ve believed that self-training is something that’s lacking in Danish football. Not many of my teammates here pursued self-training — at least not as much as a player should. It was always with a half-hearted effort.”
Lekic thinks that approach to self-training has become engrained in Danish-football mentality. He elaborates on why he thinks that’s not a good thing.
“My attitude is that self-training is a must if you want to reach the top. In my world, it makes perfect sense that the more you are self-training specific techniques, the better you will become at them. If you take 20 balls every other day after training and kick them towards the goal 100 times, you will notice a huge difference.”
Watching games on TV counts as self-training.
Self-training is more than just technical work with a ball. You must also be mentally and tactically prepared, and for that reason self-training doesn’t always have to take place on the field.
“Back when I was self-training, my goal was to become sharper on my finishes and build confidence. I think I improved a lot in those areas. I felt that I really became a better finisher and that I gained a lot of confidence, which is important for a forward. That said, self-training can also take place by simply watching a football match on TV and taking note of players’ movements and actions in different situations, and putting that knowledge into action on the training field and then in actual matches.”
Rajko Lekic’s many skills have taken him far and wide in his career. In addition to stints at Superliga clubs OB, Silkeborg, and Esbjerg, Lekic spent time at the Hungarian club ZTE, the Spanish club Xerez, and the American MLS club New England Revolution. Especially at the latter two clubs did self-training culture make an impression on the well-traveled Dane.
“The self-training culture in Spain and USA is fantastic. Mentally, the players are prepared to keep developing all the time. They are always looking for ways to improve. I would even go so far as to say that one would feel left out if one didn’t self-train in those places. That’s not the case in Denmark, even though it should be.”
How to get started
It can be hard to begin self-training, both in terms of finding motivation and in terms of learning specialized exercises. The Silkeborg icon has some advice to help you get started.
“Set some goals, and think about how you’ll achieve those goals. Are club practices enough? Is it enough to get the same training as your competitors? My goal was to be the best; I wanted to be a top scorer, I wanted to make the national team, and I wanted to go abroad. Without self-training, I don’t think I would’ve achieved all that. But I can’t stop thinking about what could have been had I started taking self-training more seriously at a young age. So set some goals and get started.”
If you aren’t sure how to get started, you can find some specific exercise videos here. Which position do you play on the field? Here are 5 effective exercises at every position:
And how much time should you spend on self-training? Rajko Lekic has a suggestion.
“You should spend the amount of time that you feel is necessary to notice an improvement, but one or two times per week would be very good if you already have four or five club practices per week.”
Youth national team players: “Self-training need not be a solo exercise.”
Jutland’s west coast has a proud tradition of producing great football talents, and the Alka Superliga club Esbjerg fB has already started preparing young players for the national team. Two such players could be youth national team members Oliver Olsen and Jacob Lønne, but the young talents wouldn’t have been among the best young players in Denmark today if not for early decisions to make personal commitments to development.
At Esbjerg fB, talent development is a focus. The club has produced players such as Lasse Vigen, brothers Jakob and Peter Ankersen, Martin Braithwaite, and many more. The latest shooting star is Mark Brink, who got his Superliga breakthrough last year as an 18-year old.
Read more about Mark Brink’s approach to training here.
Waiting on the wings, though, are two new talents. At only 16-years old, teammates Jacob Lønne and Oliver Olsen, who recently signed their first contracts with the club, could be the next big Alka Superliga talents from the west coast, and in their efforts to achieve success, they have taken their training to a more thorough level than their club can offer alone.
Compete Against Yourself
Even though Esbjerg fB competes at the highest level in Denmark, has one of the most excellent youth development programs, and features a nice stadium, there will always be limitations on how well a club can develop a player. A player must make a personal effort, and for that reason Lønne and Olsen have included self-training in their weekly practices since they were very young.
“When I was younger, I spent a lot of time practicing in the yard. For example, I would do drills to improve my left foot. That made a huge difference, because the more you practice, the better you get,” explains Oliver Olsen, who is backed up by fellow defender from the Esbjerg U17 league team, Jacob Lønne:
“When I was younger, I self-trained a lot, and today I feel that all the hard work has paid off. Self-training is important if you want to go far in football, but it’s important that you do it because you want to do it. Training for 20-40 minutes three times per week would be a good routine. It could also be a good idea to compete against yourself so there’s something to strive for. For example, if you’re practicing shots towards the goal, try to beat the number of goals you scored the last time.”
Jacob Lønne, Esbjerg FB and Denmark Youth National Team player
Serious Competition and Even More Serious Consequences
Despite the importance of self-training, if one thinks it’s possible to go all the way by self-training alone, one had better think again. Oliver Olsen and Jacob Lønne are not the only lads who are self training; all of their teammates do the same thing. Oliver Olsen, who won the Internordic Cup with the Danish U17 national team in 2016, explains:
“All of our teammates self-train because our team is playing at such a high level, and everybody has the same level of ambition and same objective of going all the way. And because of the strong competition on the team, you have to get better every day; otherwise, you won’t make the team.”
Oliver Olsen, Esbjerg FB and Denmark Youth National Team player
“Self”-training
The young men from Esbjerg owe thanks not just to themselves for their improvement through self-training, but to others as well. Even if the term suggests that self-training is something you do only by yourself, Olsen and Lønne have both gotten support from several people. For example, Jacob Lønne oftentimes practices with his father:
“I work with my dad on a regular basis so that I have a “teammate” that can either serve or receive the ball. For instance, when I’m practicing my attacking and defensive headers, my father will make a number of crosses that I will either have to head towards the goal or clear. I have also practiced diagonal shifts with him, different ways of kicking the ball, and instep volleys, where my father would run into a certain space I was aiming for. Every time we train, I set a goal for how many hits on target I want to get.”
Oliver Olsen has also received help with his self-training.
“My coaches makes sure I get something out of my self-training. They can see areas in which I need to improve that I wouldn’t be aware of otherwise.”
Teammates can also help, though—or even better, participate.
“There are way more options with more players, so it’s good if one’s teammates are participating,” explains Olsen while Lønne nods in agreement.
“You can do it alone, of course, but if you know someone, for example a teammate who also is self-training, it’s nice to be able to guide and help each other out.”
m-station: A Fantastic Partner
Not everybody has the option to self-train with teammates. Long distances, busy everyday lives, and the like can get in the way, but there’s a solution that Oliver Olsen takes advantage of: the m-station football rebounder from Munin Sports. The youth national team player explains how the m-station helps him:
“The m-station is a fantastic tool since you can use it for so many different exercises. It returns the ball in exactly the same way you pass it, so if you make a bad pass, you will pay for it. If you cannot self-train with your friends or teammates, the m-station is a fantastic partner to use instead. It’s always out there in the yard, ready for another round of practice.”
Jacob Lønne has also used the m-station, and even though he doesn’t own one himself, he can still see the advantages to using the rebounder, with which you can practice some of the most important techniques, according to the defender.
“It’s so important to practice your first touch so that you can play the ball quickly. To improve this, you can use two cones and a friend or the m-station to make long passes through the cones, and then you take your first touch to one side before finally returning the ball. If you do this for a while, you will become more confident in your first touch and under pressure.”
Watch an exercise similar to the exercise Jacob describes right here:
Lønne further explains that he has also improved his header game with the m-station:
“I have practiced my headers by making powerful downward headers and working on my timing, and this has led to a huge improvement in my header game, including an improvement in the timing of my jumps.”
Watch the exercise Jacob Lønne describes right here:
In the 2015/2016 season, Jacob Lønne and Oliver Olsen finished in ninth place with Esbjerg in Denmark’s highest U17 division. The former has made four appearances for the U17 national team to date, while the latter has made eight. Both players are under contract with Esbjerg fB until 2018.
Details, details, details
15-year-old Herman Sjögrell has already experienced multiple of Europe’s biggest clubs at at close quarters, and this is because of his sky-high level of ambition, seriousness and daily self-training sessions.
One of Sweden’s biggest football talent’s is named Herman Sjögrell, and that has not gone unnoticed. The young Swede has been at tryouts in several of Europe’s top clubs, including Tottenham, Manchester City, and AC Milan. Also Danish F.C. Copenhagen has had the midfielder on loan for a youth tournament.
If Sjögrell fulfills the great potential that is obviously recognized around him, he will be able to thank himself for the effort that he has put into the game since he was a very young lad. Because, self-training is a big part of the daily life for the merely 15-year-old Swede.
“I believe that supplementary training is what makes the extra small difference on the field. Without self-training, it’s difficult to reach the top.”
“The team practices will not always make space for the things you need to practice. Self-training does that, and it will also make you focus on your weaknesses and fine-polish the qualities that are essential to you as a player. I think it’s important to prioritize the extra training,” he explains, although he doesn’t reveal how much spare time he leaves out to the supplementary exercises. But he makes it clear that it’s a daily routine.
“For my part, I train every day club practice is off. All kinds of training that benefits football is important. It has made me the player I am today.”
Demands a greater focus on self-training
Even though Sjögrell is young, he thinks that self-training should be given still greater importance. Especially in Sweden there needs to be a greater effort for the young players – as in the great European clubs.
“I certainly believe that we need to make more time for self-training here in Sweden. The professional clubs in Europe do exactly that, and I think it has something to do with the clubs provide their players with a professional mindset from an early age. They live football,” the midfielder explains with a clearly passionate ring to his voice.
But when the clubs in Sweden don’t emphasize self-training enough, you’ve got to do it on your own. For this reason, Herman Sjögrell has also put his mind to living football. And the only substantial way to do that is to train durable qualities.
“I practice a lot of different things that will pay off in the long run. That is, technical qualities as a football player. For instance I focus on my finishing and ball control – the things that are most important in my position. Details, details, details,” he points out.
Great ambitions takes great seriousness
He currently plays in BK Häcken, but in his former club, Angered MBIK, a few miles north from the Swedish major city Göteborg, he played along Kevin Ackermann, who has been at tryouts with Manchester United. In that way Herman Sjögrell is a part of a quite talented year group.
“Many players from my team have ambitions in the football world and self-trains for that reason. To collaborate with friends while training can make it even more fun, but it’s also important that the self-training stays serious.”
One of the ways Sjögrell has improved as a footballer is by focusing on and realizing his weaknesses. He has also found the easiest way to practice exactly that with the m-station football rebounder from Munin Sports, and he advises you to do the same.
“Try to create the best circumstances based on what you already can. For me, training with my m-station is easiest, because I can do it at home. It’s great exercise, it saves me time, and it’s fun,” he explains and goes on:
“I have an m-station, and it helps me with the things I find most important – the technical aspects. I usually practice my first touch, volleys, passes, and to keep the ball in the air.
“Every time I use m-station I am having fun, and I sharpen my technique. There’s a lot to gain from just half an hour of training.”
How to become a better finisher with the m-station football rebounder
How to practice turns with the m-station football rebounder
How to practice first touches with the m-station football rebounder
“I want to be the best version of me!”
It’s important to be focused and goal-oriented when you’re self-training. This is well known to 19-year-old Victor Guldbrandsen, who—after two years in England—has returned to Denmark with a clear vision of what he wants to achieve through self-training.
In August 2014, the then 17-year-old Victor Guldbrandsen substituted the green pitch of Lyngby Boldklub with that of Championship club Ipswich.
Now, the Dane—who has made five appearances for the youth national team—has returned to Denmark after finishing his contract with the English club, and even though the 19-year-old didn’t break into the starting eleven at Ipswich, he developed tremendously as a player. The former Lyngby midfielder focused heavily on self-training during his tenure in England, and with great possibilities, seeing that the English mentality is something wholly different.
“I think the self-training culture is a little different in England. In England you really work towards success, especially when you’re aware that talent isn’t everything. They Young British players know that as long as they fight through, they will become better!”
Set goals for yourself in self-training
When Guldbrandsen left Denmark in 2014, he left on a mission to evolve as a player, and so he chose the club that offered the best development plan. But the lad from Lyngby had his own plans for development, too. Guldbrandsen had a very clear goal to improve in two specific areas, and to reach that goal he utilized self-training:
“I focused on two things: my first touch and my shifts. Three to four times per week after training I went to a touch box for around 20 to 30 minutes and practiced exactly those things.”
“After finishing up, I would take 20 to 30 right and left footed shots to practice my shifts, and I think that has paid off.”
A touch box functions like a rebounder, such as the m-station football rebounder from Munin Sports, which can also greatly improve a player’s first touch. Take a look here to see how you can improve your first touch with the m-station:
Take your time and be patient
“Maybe you won’t sense progress much in the beginning, but with time the improvement will start to show. You should be able to see progress after one or two months.”
Guldbrandsen has a very clear idea of what he wants to achieve, and he is aware that his body won’t allow him to train forever. When he is older, he would like to be able to look himself in the mirror and know that he gave his all, and for that reason his motivation to train as much as possible is high.
“The reason I self-train is that I want to be the best possible version of myself. My motivation is rooted in the fact that I want to eventually look back on my time as a footballer and be sure that I did everything I could to be the best possible version of myself.”
Do you want to improve your first touch? If so, take a step toward your goal and buy the m-station football rebounder here
Experience in-game situations with the m-station rebounder
Everyone who has played football knows that there is a major difference between practice and real games. During training and practice, everything is a bit slower, there is less adrenalin running through your body, and you do not commit to tackles as you would in a match. In other words, both your mind and your body are engaged differently.
Famous YouTuber Jorge Perez, the owner of the channel SoccerMachineTV, is known to provide great examples of how to properly do football exercises to improve certain aspects of your game. To Jorge, tools and devices for individual training are very important for those who want to improve continuously, as most players only practice with teams for a couple of hours each week. One of those tools is a football rebounder:
“One of the most valuable tools you can have other than having a soccer ball is a rebounder. It really opens up the possibilities as to what you can do: Receiving the ball and taking that first touch, which is a lot of what soccer is.”
THE REBOUND IS AMAZING!
Naturally, since football is the biggest sport in the world, the market for football equipment and football rebounders is very extensive – Jorge knows a great deal about this:
“There are other rebounders in the market but the m-station really stood out to me!”
“The first thing that we have to address is the rebound, the actual bounce of the m-station rebounder. It’s amazing! It’s really something else. I’ve tried different rebounders, but normally when you hit the ball and it comes back it comes back at a slower pace. With the m-station, there’s virtually no loss of force. The pace that you send the ball, that’s how you’re going to get it.”
According to Jorge, with the m-station and the greater rebound pace it provides, practice becomes like a real game, because you are forced to think and react faster. The only way to improve is by continuously challenging yourself, and with its extraordinary rebound pace, the m-station football rebounder makes sure that you do just that.
“With the m-station, the football can come back pretty aggressively, which is actually a really good thing if you’re trying to practice for a game situation, because in a game you are not going to get the ball soft; you’re going to get the ball at a pace and everything moves a lot quicker.”
ADJUSTABLE, MULTIPURPOSE DEVICE
The m-station football rebounder allows you to practice every aspect of your game. Whether you are looking to improve your first touch, shooting, turning, or reflexes, the rebounder can be adjusted to serve your every purpose. This is something that Jorge also noticed when using the m-station:
“When you have a rebounder that’s just stationary, the balls are just going to come back in the same way every single time. You’re going to get used to it and really there is not a lot more you can do. With the m-station, you’ve got that straightforward passer, you can do basic flat passes, and then you can adjust and tilt it in different ways. So you can not only practice flat passes, but you can also do a more slanted one and you can do passing back and forth in the air. I’ve been getting a ton of drill ideas!”
Watch some of SoccerMachine’s m-station drills here:
A UNIQUE TOOL THOSE WHO WANT TO PRACTICE ON THEIR OWN
As an adjustable piece of equipment, the m-station football rebounder can be utilized in almost any scenario during a daily training session. Regardless of the exercise, the device can be used as a replacement for or in conjunction with coaches and other players. As Jorge says, the device is not only suited for training sessions with the team, but it is also a unique tool for those who want to practice on their own for several hours per day to become better football players.
“Overall, the m-station is a great piece of equipment to take your personal training to another level. The m-station is the best training partner and it will be there whenever you need it. The versatility of the rebounder increases the amount of drills you can do by yourself, which I think is valuable for a lot of you out there. It is a very valuable training tool for individuals serious about improving their game.”
M-station Used For Improved Goalkeeping at Club Brugge
2016 Belgian league champions and Champions League participant Club Brugge has incorporated the m-station football rebounder into its daily training sessions. Not having a strong goalkeeper can be detrimental to the success of a team, which is why goalkeeping coach Jan van Steenberghe utilizes the m-station for optimized preparation.
We at Munin Sports had a chance to talk to both Jan van Steenberghe and former Club Brugge goalkeeper (now with Valencia FC) and Australian international Mathew Ryan to learn why the m-station football rebounder is their preferred piece of practice equipment.
The Belgian Jupiler Pro League is home to many talented footballers. Several such footballers play for domestic-league winners Club Brugge, who in May 2016 brought home the club’s 14th championship. In a competitive league with multiple contenders each year, such as Gent, Anderlecht, and Standard Liege, bringing home the title takes hard work and dedication. With multiple appearances in the Champions League, Club Brugge knows how to provide the right environment for its players to continuously improve.
Unpredictable and fast rebounds improve reflexes and positioning
Saving a shot as a goalkeeper requires two things: reflexes and positioning. Some goalkeepers compensate for poor positioning with greater reflexes, and some goalkeepers compensate for poor reflexes with better positioning. However, these two elements of goalkeeping do not contradict each other; goalkeepers can excel at both and become exceptionally strong keepers. Goalkeeping coach Jan van Steenberghe elaborates on how the m-station football rebounder can take your goalkeeping skills to the next level:
“[The m-station rebounder] creates enormous amounts of opportunities for exercises to keep our goalkeepers busy. With the m-station rebounder, they have to judge every ball differently because it never returns the same way, which automatically makes them more focused on the ball while doing the exercises.”
The peculiar movement created by the rebound is due to the m-station’s unique design and material composition. The design allows great versatility and flexibility as you can twist and turn the device in almost any direction. Also, the strings have been strung in a way that makes the rebound incredibly fast, providing the goalkeeper with an in-game experience during practice.
“The m-station is a frame on which strings have been strung, similar to a tennis racket. You can tilt the net in almost any direction, which trains you for even the most impossible shots.”
Jan van Steenberghe also notes that Club Brugge players stick around even after training sessions have ended to continue working on their skills with the m-station:
“Since the m-station has been in use during training, the players have been happily staying back to play a few games. For fun, but of course also to win.”
Goalkeeping is more than shot stopping
Due to Mathew Ryan’s success at Club Brugge from 2013 through 2015, Ryan was picked up by Valencia at the start of the 2015/2016 season. In addition to playing for one of the most successful Spanish sides in recent years, Ryan is also the starting goalkeeper for his national team. As a top-level goalkeeper, he knows how to help himself become a better player with the right equipment.
“With [the] m-station, I can practice my footwork, I can make saves, and most importantly, I think the way the ball reacts off the net is a bit unexpected, and you cannot always predict what is going to happen in a game. This allows us to work on the unpredictability of a shot or something else that you do not expect in a game, so it is a very useful piece of equipment.”
The flexibility of the m-station football rebounder allows Ryan to work on every aspect of his goalkeeping in scenarios comparable to those in real games. The best way to improve is by continuously challenging yourself, and with the unpredictability and speed of the balls coming off the rebound, the m-station football rebounder truly challenges you and serves as a multifunctional piece of equipment designed for goalkeeping at any level. To Ryan, helping his team achieve success is all that matters, and one way of doing that is by using only the best equipment.
“I am happy with the m-station! Anything that can improve my game as a goalkeeper and at the end of the day help the team win the game will make me very happy.”
If you have any questions about the Club Brugge use case or if you want to know how your goalkeepers can benefit from training with the m-station, please get directly in touch with our Marketing Manager, Simon Secher, at simon@muninsports.com.
