Marcus Allb\u00e4ck is one of the most skilled Swedish forwards of all time. For many years, Allb\u00e4ck played at a very high level in some of Europe’s biggest leagues, and he participated in several tournaments. Self-training is one of the reasons he was so successful. Now he\u2019s sharing his experiences with us.<\/b><\/p>\n
Sweden has delivered heaps of world-class forwards over the years. The next big star could be AIK Stockholm\u2019s 17 year old <\/span>Alexander Isak but <\/span>for now it\u2019s Zlatan Ibrahimovic who makes the headlines. The Swedish superstar\u2019s name is almost synonymous with Swedish football itself, but there was also a time before him. Back then it was Henrik \u201cHenke\u201d Larsson who scored goals in large numbers, first for Celtic, then with FC Barcelona. But there\u2019s a Swede who has represented Sweden in more countries than Larsson has, and who put Swedish football on the world map, and that\u2019s the now retired Marcus Allb\u00e4ck.<\/span><\/p>\n The former Swedish national team player represented Sweden in his final international tournament in 2008, when he traveled to the Euros in Austria and Switzerland with his team. His career was coming to an end, but oh, what a career he had. It didn\u2019t take him to Barcelona, like Henke\u2019s, or Juventus, Manchester United, or PSG, as is the case with Zlatan\u2019s career, but it gave him a chance to prove Sweden\u2019s capability for producing efficient sharpshooters.<\/span><\/p>\n With two stints in Danish football, one in the Netherlands, one in Germany, one in England and one in Italy, the now 43-year-old Swede is a well-traveled man. At \u00d6rgryte IS (in Sweden) he got his early schooling, and at the Dutch SC Heerenveen and the Danish FC Copenhagen Allb\u00e4ck<\/span> developed his talent to the fullest. He scored countless goals, but if not for the self-training in addition to his club practices, he probably wouldn\u2019t have done so. The Swede is therefore certain that self-training is a necessity if you want to make it to the top in football.<\/span><\/p>\n –Self-training, in my view, is an incredibly important part of success<\/strong>. I don\u2019t think anyone has made it to a high level without self-training<\/span>, he explains without specifying how much effort you should put into it; that depends on oneself and one\u2019s level of ambition.<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s important to find a good balance. For example, if one has many practices with the club, it\u2019s also important to rest and give the body a break. I recommend doing self-training after normal training, and also once in a while on days when you don\u2019t have club practice. I think it\u2019s important to train both what you\u2019re already good at and the techniques you need to improve<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n To me, self-training is something you start at a young age and continue doing throughout your career. The exercises and situations will change with time, but it\u2019s all about what you want to be able to do with a football. You get to decide how much you want to train and how good you want to become. There are no shortcuts. It\u2019s hard work.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n No matter where you live, you can make use of a training tool, such as the m-station football rebounder from Munin Sports<\/a><\/strong><\/span>. And\u00a0the m-station is a training tool the Swede is quite enthusiastic about.<\/p>\n -I own an m-station, but it\u2019s mostly my son, Rasmus, who uses it. Sometimes we use it together, and we\u2019ll try to hit it with a good strike so we can volley the ball towards the goal. It\u2019s very obvious to me that Rasmus is getting better. <\/strong><\/p>\n I would recommend the m-station. It\u2019s really top notch<\/strong>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n “m-station-time” with Marcus Allb\u00e4ck and his son!<\/strong><\/p>\nWE RECOMMEND:\u00a0SL Benfica: m-station at one of Portugal\u2019s leading youth academies<\/a><\/h3>\n
Focus on what you\u2019re already good at<\/b><\/h2>\n
ALSO SEE:\u00a0Sergio Ag\u00fcero: “Keep your composure in front of goal”<\/a><\/h3>\n