How do you define technical ability?

[Styles 9,790]

The problem with Torres's first touch is more mental. He shows that he can have a great first touch when he gets the ball on the wing or in the half way line, it's just that when he's close to goal he shits himself and messes everything up. Even his passing and dribbling are technically excellent when he does them right.

I never said that Hazard is not a good passer, just that his technique in passing is not perfect which are two different things as I attempted to explain in the Ramires example. You are mistaking technical ability for flamboyancy. For example, Claudio Marchisio and Niko Kranjcar are for me two of the best players I've ever seen when it comes to technical ability, but they are by no means the 'fanciest' players around.

Absolutely not the case. I was marvelling at players like Schweinsteiger, Lahm, Alaba, Gundogan, Martinez etc last night and they are far from flamboyant. They can do everything on the ball at a very good level.

Torres' first touch is not mental. It's just not good enough consistently. And the same goes for Ramires. They are capable of getting it right occasionally but it's the consistency that makes the difference between a technically competent player and a poor to average one. There are plenty of games when Torres doesn't do a single thing right with the ball. His touch is poor, his control poor, his dribbling poor, his passing shocking... and that has happened more often than not in the 3 years he's been a Chelsea player. That isn't a mental issue, it's a technical one.

[Rmpr 8,977]

This is different for each position, people here only talking about atracking players, but a GK can be tachnically gifted and so does a defender!

It is super hard to define what it really is, but in a broader sense, it is the talent and ability one has that separares him from the rest. Meaning that the definition itself in words is very subjective and almost impossible to do. However, it is easy to categorize players whenever you watch them play. For instace, how do you define what is needed for a painter to be a good painter (seems naive, but try to put it in words)? But, it is super easy to look at a painting and decide if it they artist is good or not, inst it?

JT is technically gifted and he has only a few of the attributes people listed. And I could go on and on...

[Madmax 9,219]

Torres' first touch is not mental. It's just not good enough consistently. And the same goes for Ramires. They are capable of getting it right occasionally but it's the consistency that makes the difference between a technically competent player and a poor to average one. There are plenty of games when Torres doesn't do a single thing right with the ball. His touch is poor, his control poor, his dribbling poor, his passing shocking... and that has happened more often than not in the 3 years he's been a Chelsea player. That isn't a mental issue, it's a technical one.

Torres doesn't even enter into this debate for me, afaic (bar his finishing), he was never a technical player but a physical one, his pace was electric and Benitez built Liverpool around this attribute.

[TrippingStep 336]

Technical ability is the how well players can execute skills on the ball such as passing, shooting, ball control, first touch...etc according to certain references that have come to be defined as the perfect way to execute those skills like how to execute a half-volley, or first time control or long pass..etc For example, Ramires does not have 'traditional' goo technical ability but he can still execute stuff, even at full speed but in his own style. (Tbf, Ramires is an exception to the rule because he was never part of an academy when he was young).

Naturally, any player at this level must have good technical ability, but the players that have overall world class technical ability in our squad are for me Mata, JT, Lampard, Luiz, and to a lesser extent Oscar and Cole. Hazard has world class technical ability when it comes to ball control and dribbling, but I can't say the same for his passing. Mikel has world class technical ability when it comes to passing, but I can't say the same about his shooting and dribbling.

PS: For all his faults, Torres still has excellent technique on the ball.

Are you serious with Torres, on the ball he's more like Gervinho, ok he can fool some defenders with their pace and the fact that temselves don't know what they will do and are not really in full control when they drive with the ball at their feet.

Against Everton, Torres made me smile when he was on the left edge of the box with the ball at the outside of his foot, he was trying to go towards the box but he had to come backwards three times because the ball was moving sideways and not forward

Mata is exceptionnal with his trapping technique for corners, free-kicks near the box and floating pass upside the defense but he lacks on his right foot.

Hazard is world-class on his lay-off play with outside his foot (like Oscar goal against Prague), backheels lay-off aerial or not, lay-off with foot behind his stance leg ( his rabonas that look so easy, another play where it seems easy play behind his stance leg). But he must work on striker finish and shooting technique.

In close space, his technique to put the ball on the ouside of his foot the further apart with his body between the defender and the ball is a good way to keep the ball from the defenders.

Lampard is world class on first touch finish.

If I resume, I would say Mata is world class on little floating pass, corner and freeckicks near the box, Hazard on his lay-off in nearly all positions with Oscar quite good as well on this, and Lampard on first touch finish in the box.

[Styles 9,790]

Are you serious with Torres, on the ball he's more like Gervinho, ok he can fool some defenders with their pace and the fact that temselves don't know what they will do and are not really in full control when they drive with the ball at their feet.

Against Everton, Torres made me smile when he was on the left edge of the box with the ball at the outside of his foot, he was trying to go towards the box but he had to come backwards three times because the ball was moving sideways and not forward

Haha I know exactly what you're talking about and that was hilarious. It was second half on the left side. Three times he tried to dribble but each time he couldn't get the ball to move in the direction he wanted. I think even the fans started laughing at that point.

If I could sum it in a gif it would be this

[Badboy 1,526]

DUTCH MAN ! Berkamp... Van Persie.... Van Basten I would say if you want to see technical quality look no further then the Netherlands... you will see the answer in action not words !

[LDN Blue 7,903]

Good question.

For me, technical ability is about having awareness and a good peripheral vision. A player with technical ability should be able to know what his next move will be before having taken the move before that. He will possess excellent passing qualities, good first touch instincts, 1-touch play perhaps. Most crucially, he'll 90% of the time know when to make the right pass, when to shoot or when to hold up play.

The players I then think we have that present these qualities are:

1. Luiz
2. Mata
3. Oscar
4. Hazard

I'd also co-sign what Madmax said and include Azpilicueta.

[Sheva. 5,373]

Ramires is the perfect example of a player with shitty technical ability lol.

[JDY 1,290]

Only Mata, Hazard, and Luiz. Terry is also very underrated technically.

Oscar's first touch is too inconsistent.

[communicate 2,703]

I thought we have plenty of Football Manager gamer in this forum

FM summarize player perfectly in my opinion, they separate player attributes based on their technical,mental and physical attributes.

Just use this chart

[The Skipper 20,609]

DUTCH MAN ! Berkamp... Van Persie.... Van Basten I would say if you want to see technical quality look no further then the Netherlands... you will see the answer in action not words !

This.

Close the damn thread already .

[Dion 2,476]

Bergkamp had one of the best first touches I've ever seen. He would often beat defenders with his first touch alone, he was a beast.

[OneMoSalah 8,889]

I'm assuming you mean an individuals technical ability yeah.... technical ability can really be anything

Anyway this is what I think falls under 'technical ability':

first touch,

ball control,

awareness,

vision,

passing,

crossing,

decision making - in terms of where and when to pass/how the player executes the pass etc.

[manpe 10,861]

A technically good player, for me, is someone who can pull off something that he thinks and wants to do in his head. For example, if a player sees an open player 50 yards ahead, and decides to pass to him, and most of the times he gets this pass right, then he is technically gifted in that area. Same can be said for dribbling, if you want to get past a player, and if your feet and body obey your thoughts, you are technically sound. If you shoot on target a lot and score many goals, we can say he has great shooting technique. Often you see average players whose intentions are clear, but they seldom execute it as they intended, they aren't technically talented.

So in short words: Technique, for me, is a player's ability to make the feet do what the head tells them to do.

[Styles 9,790]

I'm assuming you mean an individuals technical ability yeah.... technical ability can really be anything

Anyway this is what I think falls under 'technical ability':

first touch,

ball control,

awareness,

vision,

passing,

crossing,

decision making - in terms of where and when to pass/how the player executes the pass etc.

Yeah that's more or less what I'm talking about. Now what players from our squad would you say meet that criteria?

[dumps 284]

Football Manager can define technical ability for you

in terms of who has it, every single player in our team as it to some extent, just in different areas. You wouldn't make it as a professional footballer without any kind of technical ability.

some people are just more creative and have more flare than others. look at Hazard, hes got tricks and step overs coming out his ass, Then you got John Terry. both top quality players but with a different style and technical ability.

How i personally define it? im not really sure, i think its to do with how a player is with the ball, and how consistent they are at doing something positive with it. Mikel, on the ball, 9 times out of 10, will pass backwards or sideways, thats not very positive BUT he is consistent with it. Luiz, very positive on the ball, but not very consistent. Mata, Hazard and Oscar are all good on the ball and are positive as well as consistent (if you exclude pressure and challenges form defenders).

[Phil Driver 503]

Technical ability = control of the ball and the ability to play and pass off of both feet ,Mata is not strong on his right foot but his balance is such he can compensate and manoeuvre the ball on to his left side ,Terry ,Lampard and Hazard are the others who have great technique in our side .

The greatest technique of all was Zola great balance ,control and a deft touch.

[OneMoSalah 8,889]

Yeah that's more or less what I'm talking about. Now what players from our squad would you say meet that criteria?

Juan Mata, Eden Hazard, Oscar, David Luiz, Cesar Azpilicueta, John Obi Mikel, Josh McEachran, Kevin De Bruyne imo are the best technical players we have. Possibly throw Nathan Ake in there, not seen a lot but being Dutch I'm guessing he was brought up in an academy that like most Dutch academies are based on improving technical abilities and ball retention.

[Paul1970 250]

If you can trap one of these.....your in!

[nono 791]

Passing

First touch

Dribbling

Shooting

FKs

Crossing

Corners

So you basically define it as the antithesis of John Obi Mikel.