Could hypnosis help in football?

I’ve already mentioned football in a previous blog about sporting performance. It’s not the only sport I watch but is one of the main ones. Well today I’m going to write about Liverpool. Today they played Norwich and the game ended with Liverpool wining with 5-4. So once again Liverpool’s big summer signing Christian Benteke started the game on the sub’s bench. He’s not shown the form he was bought for this season and many pundits have put that down to a lack of confidence. Some pundits criticize him for not getting into the box for cross’s. The reason he seems to not spend enough time in the box for cross’s is unknown, at least to those outside the club. The team as a whole have been criticized for their poor defence from set plays such as free kicks or corners. This could also be a lack of confidence on the part of individuals and as they struggle from game to game the confidence continues to drop creating a not only a lack of confidence in themselves but also their team mates. This also could be applicable to Daniel Sturridge. He is long term injured and Jurdgen Klopp hinted several weeks ago that the injuries may not always be real and may be in Daniels head. He has hardly played this season and every time he has, he has left the pitch injured, or at least that seems to be so. Have some of his injuries been psychosomatic? Hypnotherapy can help a player get over this mind set and there is always the possibility it could aid with real physical injuries in a limited way.

The team performance today was not typical of the way they have played away this season. At Anfield they are known for playing well and putting teams under pressure but away, they have fallen far below par this season and seemed to lack fight. Today however they did fight, may not have played well but they did fight. They took the lead then had to suffer going 3-1 down. They fought and brought it back to 3-4 only to see Norwich to equalise in stoppage time. Did they give up? No, they fought still further and managed to get the winner. It would have been so easy for their heads to drop and the game to end 4-4 but that’s not the way you win titles.

Jurdgen Klopp used a phrase today, “self-fulfilling prophecy” and positives as well as negatives can turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy. There is two ways to instil a self-fulfilling prophecy, do it or through hypnosis seeing yourself do it. The brain cannot differentiate between memories and imagined events. Jurdgen Klopp has obviously instilled a fighting spirit into the side and it seems to be taking them forward but they still have issues to address. . As I’ve already said in previous posts talk therapies tend to take a lot longer than hypnosis and the season is entering the final third. Like most professional teams Liverpool have a team psychologist but none that I now of have a team hypnotherapist. You may ask yourself why but to paraphrase Jurdgen Klopp went talking about his broken spectacles today “It’s easier to find your glasses when you’re wearing your glasses”.