A wider question. Not strictly about soccer. That's part of the point.
Why is this a power question?
Kids absorb advice from everywhere — coaches, teachers, parents, teammates, older siblings, YouTube videos, random conversations. Most of it doesn't stick. The pieces that do are often surprising and worth knowing about.
Asking "what's the best advice you've heard recently?" surfaces what's actually landing in your child's head. It tells you whose voice is influential in their world right now — which is information you almost never get any other way.
It also subtly elevates the act of receiving good advice into something worth talking about. Players who recognize good advice and remember it tend to make better decisions over time. It's a habit of mind.
What to do if you are uncomfortable asking the question
The risk is your child saying "nothing" or naming advice you privately disagree with. Both are fine.
If they can't name anything, try a softer angle: "Something a coach or teacher said that you keep thinking about?" That gives them a clearer prompt.
If they name advice you disagree with — "My coach said never to apologize on the field, just play the next ball" — and you privately think apologies are sometimes appropriate, resist the urge to correct. Your kid is sharing something that landed for them. That landing matters more than your interpretation.
What you might learn
The answers can be revealing:
"My coach said the best players are the ones who play simple." "My teammate's dad told me to stop apologizing every time I lose the ball." "This YouTube video said you don't need to know everything before you act." "My grandma said winning isn't the point."
What you're hearing is the voice in your child's head right now — the one shaping their thinking on the field and off. Sometimes it's a voice you'd want to amplify. Sometimes it's one you'd want to gently counterbalance. Either way, knowing what's in there is useful.
How you can probe for more if your player is interested
"What made it land?" — gets at why this piece of advice stuck and others didn't.
"Have you tried using it?" — turns reception into application.
"Where did you hear it?" — gets at the source they trust.
A takeaway
The advice that lands shapes who your child becomes. "What's the best advice you've heard recently?" is the question that lets you hear what's getting through — and notice who they're listening to. Knowing that is a privilege most parents never get.
