The 4-4-2 system includes four defenders, four midfield players, and two strikers. As the coach, you can arrange the players on the pitch in this formation any way you like. Since you know your players’ capabilities, you should place them into the formation accordingly, based on their strengths and weaknesses. This article looks at practicing attack with this formation.
The 4-4-2 should be played with three key units working in a cohesive manner. This includes defense, midfield, and attack. The players in each role should complement each other so that both width and length are utilized during the attack. Read The Rest……
I’m a coach, and this season my team acquired two new players. I wasn’t looking for new players. These two came to us because their parents had seen our team play over the last few seasons. They saw us winning all our games, but even more important was the way in which we won them.
Recently, one of my new players gave me a little insight as to how the previous coach trained them. Apparently, the team would sit around waiting for all the players to show up. Then, they’d set up a couple of cones as goals, the players would be divided up into two groups, and they’d play a game. The coach’s degrees of praise and criticism varied greatly. Read The Rest……
The Five Stages of Soccer Development Part 1
Stage Three – Positive Opposition
In order to increase player’s development of focus and skill, the opposition must increase. Positive opposition indicates how much the player who is in possession of the ball will have to think, how many decisions he will have to make, and the level of reaction that will be required of him. This helps to develop basic techniques into fine tuned skill.
This means putting players into situations that they are likely to encounter during game play. Time on the ball and space should be increasingly minimized throughout this phase as decision making must become quicker in order to maintain possession. Read The Rest……
Helping young soccer players develop their full potential requires a well-stocked reservoir of coaching and training techniques. This article looks at the five stages of development that soccer players experience, and these can be used to help build practice sessions, which will add value to the development of young players. The five key stages of growth for soccer players are unopposed practice, passive opposition, positive opposition, small sided games, and full game practice.
Stage One – Unopposed Practice
This technique encourages technical competency in soccer players, and is best used as an entry level method of coaching. In unopposed practice, the goal is to help players master body alignment and shape, and physical movements in relation to the ball, as well as mastery over handling the ball through touch, feel, and control. Read The Rest……
Three Techniques for Better Coach to Player Communications Part 1
#3 Coaching during the game
Here are three proven methods that will help coaches during game play and training sessions.
Conditions
One great way to get players to practice a specific element of the game is to play a small sided game with a condition attached to it. One example would be first time passing during the last third of the pitch.
To set this up, physically mark the last third with red cones. This gives players a visual cue so they’ll know when to use a first time pass. But the ability to hit a first time pass is one thing. Knowing why is another thing entirely. In training sessions, work on quick movements and have strikers run off the ball. As a result, they will create opportunities for receiving a first time ball from the supporting player. Read The Rest……
We’ve all seen it: the coach stands on the sidelines shouting orders to the team, but nothing changes on the pitch. The coach repeats the instructions, his voice a little louder this time. Still, no change in the players’ maneuvers. Eventually, the coach’s voice becomes a frantic scream as he becomes frustrated with his players’ apparent refusal to listen. Agitation leads to anger. Why can’t he get the players to listen and follow simple instructions?
If this scenario sounds familiar, then you’re in luck, because here are three simple and effective ways for a coach to communicate more effectively with players.
#1 Do the players understand the directive? Read The Rest……
How To Play A Pressing Football Match Part 1
Pressure
Putting on the pressure in a pressing game means a quick attempt to regain possession of the ball from your opponent. The player nearest the ball is responsible for this. A player who loses the ball may be the first to give chase (putting on pressure from the rear), but a second defender should also try to close off chances for the player who has the ball. This player applies pressure at the front. With this move, the opposing player has to concentrate on keeping the ball, which limits their options to short passes or dribbling the ball.
The players who are putting pressure on the player with possession have to direct them towards parts of the pitch with more players, and to areas which will limit their options. It is essential to communicate well in this type of game, and leadership is also important. The chase or close down should be the signal for other team members to cover an opponent. Mark near the ball and goal so that you can win the ball if there’s a chance. Read The Rest……
In youth football, you’re more likely to see a fast paced, attacking football game. Go to any local pitch and watch a game and you will see young people trying to gain possession of the ball and score. It’s all about instant gratification, and it’s great for supporters too. Parents who carry their offspring from game to game find it more entertaining if there are many scoring chances and good team play.
There are big differences in the strength of young players and in their speed, but you can use these to your advantage by addressing this in training, resulting in more opportunities to score. To find out if the situation is right for a pressing game, you need to consider not only your strikers’ speed and strength, but the speed and strength of the opposition. In addition, your game will be different depending on whether you are leading or trailing. Read The Rest……
How To Help Footballers Make A Speedy Decision Part 1
I ask players to look for space where they can move the ball. If there’s no space, then they need to see if they can create space by beating an opponent. If the marking is tight and there is no space, then players must look to see who’s supporting them. I want to see all players supporting each other, and a player with possession should have three different option for support from other players. Using this three step formula, players can quickly decide on their next move.
If you are evaluating your players’ decisions, then remember that you have the benefit of hindsight, so don’t be biased. In one situation it might be right to pass the ball across the pitch, but when players are under pressure, they may make another decision that is also helpful. Often, you have a unique opportunity to scan the pitch from your position; the situation may look quite different at player level. Read The Rest……
Many managers of youth football teams don’t know how to pick out the weak points of a team, especially if they have been conscripted to run the team in their area. Many ask for tips about analyzing team members. Here are some tips.
Most footballers spend most of the game finding a position where they can support a defensive play or an attack. In other words, they won’t have the ball for most of the game. This is a key area to look at when analyzing your players. Although it’s a cliché to say ‘pass and move’ it’s still sound advice. Read The Rest……
