Coaches must adjust their approach to the individual. Some keepers might need the soft touch to get in the right frame of mind. Others might require a rousing pep talk.

The world's three greatest players have a few things in common. Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta and Xavi all stand barely 5-foot-7 tall. They're teammates at Barcelona and they all came out of the club's youth program.

The first ear-piercing wakeup call for U.S. women's soccer came at the 2007 World Cup, where a dazzling Brazil outplayed and routed the USA, 4-0, in semifinals.

The turf war between youth organizations ensures an endless fountain of championships and the tournament industry has made playing three to four games in one weekend a common part of youth soccer. We asked Dr. Dev K. Mishra what coaches can do to when their teams are faced with game overload. Dr. Mishra, the founder of SidelineSportsDoc.com, is an orthopedic surgeon who has served as team doctor at the professional, national team, college and high school level.

A soccer game consists of two equal halves. A professional match has 45-minute halves while other games could have fewer minutes in the half, depending on the competition or age group. The halves are running time. The time begins when the ball is legally put in play on the kickoff by being kicked forward, not when the referee's whistle sounds.