Assessing players in youth football: what to look at and how to record it
Assessing is not about giving marks: it is about knowing where each player is so you can decide what to train next. Which criteria to use, how to build a simple assessment sheet, how to observe a match and why, with the little ones, you have to look at the process and not the result.
Linkalde · 2026-10-27
Almost every coach assesses, even if they do not call it that. When picking the squad, deciding who plays at full-back or planning Tuesday's session, everyone has an idea in their head of how each player is doing. The problem is that this idea is usually based on the last match or on the player who catches the eye most. Assessing in an organised way does the opposite: it lets you see everyone, see what really matters and decide what to train next.
The FIFA youth football manual sums it up in one idea: matches allow young players and their coaches to monitor and assess progress systematically, and that assessment of the performance of each player and of the team is the key to successful development.
What assessing is for
- To plan: if half the team cannot control the ball on the turn, that goes into the next sessions.
- To individualise: each player has one or two points to improve, not a list of ten.
- To see progress: comparing the same sheet in September, January and June says more than any result.
- To talk to the player and the family with facts and examples, not impressions.
Assessing is not ranking. In youth football the aim is not to know who is the best today, but what each player needs in order to improve tomorrow.
What to look at: the FIFA questions
FIFA suggests assessing with a list of simple questions, useful for both the coach and the player. Grouped together, they look like this:
| Area | Questions |
|---|---|
| Does the player know how to | Run with and without the ball, pass, control on receiving, take players on, use both feet, move to get free and position himself well? |
| Does the player have | Suitable behaviour in victory and in defeat? Does he influence the game and his team-mates? |
| Does the player possess | A suitable physique, strength for the one-v-one, vision, heading ability and a positive attitude? |
| Is the player able to | Win duels, score, create chances for others, make the right decision at the right moment? |
There is no need to use every question with every age group. With an under-10 the technique and behaviour ones are enough; with an under-19 it already makes sense to look at decision-making and influence on the team.
A simple assessment sheet
The assessment sheet FIFA proposes splits the criteria into blocks and scores each one from 1 to 4. A shortened version, which takes five minutes per player to fill in, could be this one:
| Area | Criteria |
|---|---|
| Technique | Use of both feet, passing, directional control, taking players on, shooting, heading. |
| Tactics | Game intelligence, attitude in attack, attitude in defence. |
| Physical condition | Speed, explosive strength, endurance, mobility. |
| Coordination | Orientation, rhythm, reaction, balance. |
| Mental | Concentration, will, perseverance, confidence, creativity. |
| Social | Communication, behaviour, team spirit, seriousness. |
Sheet scale
How to fill it in properly
- Score what you see repeated over several sessions, not a single action.
- Write an example next to each low mark: “loses the ball when receiving with his back to goal”.
- Do not assess everyone on the same day: three or four players per session is more realistic.
- Repeat the same sheet every term to compare.
Observing a match
FIFA also proposes a match observation sheet: details of the game (opponent, pitch, pitch condition, half-time and final score), the objectives set, how the themes worked on during the week were applied, the particular features of the match and an overall rating (very good, good, average or poor). The most useful box is the last one: consequences and measures for general and individual planning.
In other words, observing the match does not end with the match. If the team could not play out from the back under pressure, that goes back into the following week's training.
Let the player assess himself too
FIFA distinguishes two ways of assessing performance: external feedback, given by the coach, and internal feedback, self-assessment. Going through the video of his last match with the player, or giving him the same sheet to score himself and comparing afterwards, helps him see what he has mastered and what he still finds difficult.
The objectives that come out of this, says FIFA, must be clear, precise, realistic and measurable, set by the coach but agreed with the player. “Improve passing” is not an objective; “pass with the left foot in rondos without stopping the ball first” is.
With the little ones, the process
For players under 12, the FIFA youth football manual recommends playing down results, not making league tables and valuing the quality of execution over quantity or intensity. Assessing at those ages means observing whether the child dares to try things, touches the ball a lot and enjoys it.
Watch out for maturation. Two children in the same age group can be years apart in physical development. The one who wins every duel today because he is bigger is not necessarily going to be the best in three seasons' time. When assessing, separate what is technique and decision-making from what is just size.
Bibliography
- FIFA. Fútbol juvenil. Manual para entrenadores. Fédération Internationale de Football Association.
- FIFA. Manual para entrenadores. Fédération Internationale de Football Association.
- FIFA. Manual de fútbol base (Grassroots). Fédération Internationale de Football Association.