Steve McClaren knows a thing or two about footballers, he was the Manchester United coach when they won the treble in 1999 and worked with players like David Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Roy Keane and Gary Neville.
His reputation as one of the best coaches in the game was well deserved and all the players who worked under him routinely describe him as one of the best coaches they had. His career has seen him manage the England national team, Newcastle United, and spells in Holland and Germany.
Steve McClaren is one of the best guys we've worked with at The Coaching Manual. After delivering his TCM Masterclass training session at St George's Park, he gathered the players round and gave them a valuable talk, including insights to his time at Manchester United. He didn't have to give this talk to these young players, but he did, because that's the kind of coach he is!
He told the players all about the importance of practice, and having a passion for practice.
He said: "Talent's not everything, I'm telling you. The key thing is passion. I don't mean a passion for football, I mean a passion to practise.
"When I was at Manchester United - and that's the top that I've ever been, they weren't even as passionate at England as they were at Manchester United - the players used to train, do the sessions, and then they relentlessly stayed on. I couldn't get them off the field!
"And do you know what they practised? They practised what they did on a Saturday. They practised the fundamentals. So what their jobs were, they practised. So if I'm a Centre Back and I know that if I want to play in the league I've got to play out from the back, I get somebody rapping balls in. It's monotonous, but it's the fundamentals. It's the most important thing - you can't just go out and play.
"Honestly, we used to get it with David Beckham and Ryan Giggs. One either side. We'd be saying "stop crossing", they'd say "no, one more cross". Why were they so good? Cross, cross, cross. Why were they so good at finishing? Finish, finish, finish. Their passion to practice far exceeded their passion just for football. They wanted to be the best, and to do that you've got to practise, and practise what your job is."
Watch Steve McClaren's full Playing Out From The Back Masterclass session on The Coaching Manual here.
Ultimately, the time you spend practising at training sessions is not enough - you must have the drive and the passion to put in the practice at home.
TopTekkers is the perfect tool for young players to do just that, there are lots of techniques that focus on receiving and controlling the ball but there are also techniques that focus on what to do after that initial touch.
Download TopTekkers today on Apple or Android today!