Should I shoot or should I pass the ball?

Watching under 8's playing this week, I saw a young player in tears because he was told off by 2 coaches because he should have passed the ball instead of having a shot at goal. To put the game in context, the game was a 3v3 practice game

So, should the coach have told the player off?

My advice to any player is

If you think you can score a goal, then have a shot.

I have seen far too many players that are afraid to have a shot, and prefer to shift the responsibility to someone else, or think that the best way to score is to virtually dribble the ball into the net.

There are often too few chances created in any game of soccer, so when a chance comes along to shoot, take it for a number of reasons

1. Too few chances are taken, so don't waste them
   
2. You will never get that chance again
3. Even if you don't score, there is a chance of a rebound off the post or a fumble by the goalkeeper

In this particular case, the player didn't score, but came close. There is no denying that there was a player closer to goal and possibly in a better position, but

1. Would a pass have made it to the player?
2. Was the player ready to receive the ball?
   
3. Would the player have controlled the ball so that a shot was possible?
4. Would the player have taken a shot?

So in summing up

1. If you can take a shot take it
2. If you can't take a shot, get to a position where you can take shot
3. If you can't do either of the above, then look for a player how can take a shot

By the way, the player in question scored 24 goals last season as an under 8 and all because of his focus on shooting at goals at any available chance

PS I have coached my team to the #1 position in the league through a combination of skills training, using Coerver, small sided games and utilizing the Principles of Play.

Take a look at my Review of Coerver and see how combining it with these other ingredients makes for a winning formula.