We wish all our readers a merry christmas and a happy new year…

It's been a while since the last post but a lot has happened since then. The new year will bring a new start with the promise of a lot more posts with golden nuggets of information to help you reach your dreams.

Untill then, Happy Holidays to every one.

Some soccer parents are so passionate about their kids soccer ambitions (there's a fine line between the child's ambition and the parents ambition) that they are just difficult to deal with.

But difficult doesn't have to mean impossible (especially if you're a parent of a future Asia soccer star).

Sometimes,  a little understanding and strategic communication is all it takes to get them on side. Soccer parents need to be on side to motivate and inspire their kids, but they also need to make sure the coach keeps the authority and respect to command the best from each member of the team.

May be you can recognize some of these traits being shown by parents at soccer matches or even at soccer training sessions. May be you recognize some of these traits within yourself: More on Dealing with difficult soccer parents

Future Asain soccer stars, in fact any soccer stars looking to play professional soccer, and their coaches need to keep a keen eye open for the 'yebuts'

I suggest adding "the hunting and slaying of 'Yebuts' to the job description of everybody  involved in youth soccer.

'Yebuts' - pronounced "Yeah-but" are monstrous little beasts that inhabit the meetings and conversations that take place in every soccer team.

A 'Yebuts' purpose in life is to sap a team of its competitive strength by allowing the fostering of excuses and spreading them like a wild-fire through the whole team.  They do this by grabbing someone's tongue and making them say things like: More on Asian soccer stars need to hunt the yebuts

The flu bug has really taken the life and energy out of me and although I feel a lot better I have to be careful.

I want to get straight back into soccer training because I feel like i've lost valuable days and my fitness has gone down. But my coach and my family want me to rest a few more days and make sure I fully recover from the flu virus before I put my body through any stress.

I can understand where they're coming from because i've been fully briefed on how I may have got the flu in the first place, and how my immune system needs to be strong enough to fight off any more viruses and bacteria that might be around. More on Full recovery is so important for soccer training

Spending all day in bed yesterday has given me a chance to think about my dream to become an Asian soccer star playing professional soccer.

Things have been so busy, with soccer training, home education and loads of weddings, that I came really close to burn out.

I'm only 13 years old and getting the rest, relaxation and recovery has helped me both physically and mentally. I feel a lot less stressed and able to think a lot clearly.

I know that I will always get the best help, advise and gentle nudge in the right direction to make the right decisions, but at the end of the day, I have to live with the decisions I make. More on Rest, relaxation and recovery

Sometimes I get sick of soccer training, but I know I have to carry on, especially if I want to become an Asian soccer star playing professional soccer.

But over the past few days I feel that my training is actually made me sick. I feel tired, out of energy and have a splitting headache.

And before you say it, no it's not swine flu! I don't have a high temperature, which according to the new nhs pandamic flu helpline, is one of the symptoms. More on Has soccer training made me sick?

Future Asian soccer stars can learn a thing or two about training from the great Muhammad Ali.

I have a massive poster with a quote in my gym, where I coach Sobha and other future Asian soccer stars. The quote comes from the legendary fighter and sportsman, Muhammad Ali:

"Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion"

This is the last sentence, and most important part of a longer quote in which he says: More on Asian Soccer Stars can learn from Muhammad Ali

I want to be an Asian soccer star playing professional soccer and am willing to train as much and as hard as I need to.

But last week I learnt a really important lesson that will have a really big impact on whether I make it as an Asian soccer star or not.

The problem is that training hard and long can make you more likely to get an injury, as I learnt. I started to get a pain in my hip area everytime I kicked the ball or attempted to practise any skills. Luckily my coach knew that this could lead to problems and told me to rest.

After seeing the physio I learnt that it was an inflammation caused by overuse and my core muscles around my hip needed to be strengthened. More on Asian soccer star dream can be lost!

Sobha's busy soccer training schedule could have lead to overuse injuries if we hadn't been monitoring his progress and adjusting the intensity of the work involved.

Slight pangs of pain alerted us to an area around his hip which is prone to overuse in youth soccer players.

Coupled with another growth spurt his training program and schedule has been reevaluated and restructured.

The importance of monitoring, analysing and adjusting kids soccer training programs is so important that parents and coaches who overlook to put a safety mechanism in place risk the future soccer careers of their kids.

Here are a couple of articles that may help you understand more about soccer training overuse injuries.

How To Recognize and Prevent Overuse Injuries in Soccer
by Gary A. Levengood, M.D.

Soccer, one of the most popular team sports in the world with over 200 million registered players worldwide, is a game of nonstop action. Most injuries in soccer occur in the lower body, mostly to the knees and ankles. More on Soccer training and overuse injuries

Adopting the right attitude whilst dealing with the ups and downs of a future professional soccer career, can be the difference between success and failure.

It really can make or break your dream.

It has been found that a common trait shared by very successful soccer players is their overall-winning attitude.

In fact, most of the professional soccer clubs have a team of psychologists and therapists whose sole purpose is to monitor players' mental state periodically. More on Adopt the Forrest Gump winning attitude