How futsal can improve football coaches’ observation and decision-making skills

Coach | Approach | Mike Skubala | 19.08.2021 

Futsal is an effective tool for coach development in football says former England futsal head coach, Mike Skubala . Getty images: Jordan Mansfield - The FA collection

Learning: 

-        Benefits of studying both futsal and football

-        How futsal can improve coach observation skills

-        Developing decision-making through substitutions

Futsal shouldn’t only be considered as a ‘tool’ for player development in football, but also for coach development, says former England futsal head coach, Mike Skubala.

“We always talk about how futsal improves a player or helps a player’s journey in football.

“But I also think there's a massive learning in how futsal helps with a football coach's journey. It's giving coaches something different,” explains Skubala who was Head of Loughborough University football and futsal before joining the FA to lead England’s futsal programme between 2016 - 2021.

Skubala points to the background and experience of foreign coaches working in English football to underline the benefits of a formative coaching experience in futsal.

“Just as the foreign players’ culture means they are experiencing and living in futsal, so are a lot of the foreign coaches.”