All Posts by Mike Saif

0 The Pros and Cons of a Back Three

By Philip Cauchi Question - I notice a lot of pro teams are now playing with a back three. What are the pros and cons of a back three? Playing with a back three comes down to the quality of players you have in your team. If you don’t have any natural wingers then you

0 1v1 Conditioning Drills

By Philip Cauchi Title: Strength in the duel – get unmarked in a 1v1. Theme: Strength in the duel. Development of the soccer domains: Technical: Quality of technical actions performed under heavy opposition pressure such as shielding the ball, passing the ball with accuracy, oriented first touch and shooting. Tactical: Perform off-the-ball movements such as

0 The Most Effective Pass in the Game

By Matthew Carroll - Description: The purpose of the Raptor Bomb drill is to recreate the most effective key pass in the game, the pass directed from the edge of the box and backwards into the 18 with high repetition and pace. Setup: Set up a gate angled to cut over the corner of the

0 Klopp v Guardiola Attacking eBook

0 Different Phases of Counter-Attacking

By Matthew Carroll The 3-5-2 can be an interesting tactic to use in order to counter opponents. The flood of midfield players can cause chaos on the counter with the right level of movement and interchange as opposition players need to quickly adjust the rapid role change of deep lying wingers and 3 attacking players

0 How to Extend a Goalkeepers Reach

By Mike Smith - Just as most field players have a dominant foot, most keepers have a dominant leg they prefer to push off from. This usually corresponds with the dominant foot so if your keeper is right footed, chances are they prefer to launch from their right leg. I teach my keepers to shift

0 Counter-Pressing Drills

By Arthur Bell - Setup: Area – 30 yds. X 30 yds. Players x 8 - 11. Cones x 6. Balls Execution: 4 players on the outside plus 1 on the inside V 3 defenders. Players in black keep possession, passes must go through the player in the circle. If the three players in the

0 Coaching Positional Awareness

By Philip Cauchi Introduction: Coaching individual players should not be done in an isolated manner away from the rest of the team. We should always keep in mind that a player’s performance depends heavily on the level of the communication between her and her teammates. The positional awareness of the player is directly influenced by

0 Making Good Attacking Decisions

By Keith Scarlett This training session is designed to provide opportunity for players to learn the when, why and how of making decisions when attacking. Unrestricted space – warm-up: ball between three people – passing and moving Coaching points: - Good passing technique • In order for the players to make good tactical choices they

0 Scoring Goals With Set Plays Vol 3 eBook

0 A Sweeper or a Zonal Back Four

By Philip Cauchi Question - What is easier to teach and why? A flat back four or a back four with a sweeper? Which of the two system is easier to teach is a very open question as it depends on the level of game insight and general soccer abilities your players possess. Moreover, how

0 Lose Your Marker to Score Conditioning Game

By Philip Cauchi Theme: Rapidity. Development of the soccer domains: Technical: Receive and control the ball while moving at speed. Finish with accuracy. Tactical: Getting unmarked to receive the ball. Mental: Quick thinking under opposition pressure of what moves to perform to lose the defender. Physical: Perform rapid movements while maintaining the body in a

0 3v2 to 5v5 Transition Game

By Matthew Carroll - Description: The purpose of this grid game is to create moments of transition focusing on building from the back and the counter attack. By creating a smaller field and more transition moments the players can more effectively envision and execute lighting fast counters from goalie buildup. Setup: Create 2 connected 30x30

1 Each Role in the 4-2-3-1

By Matthew Carroll Along with the 4-3-3, the 4-2-3-1 is one of the most commonly used formations at the professional level today. It is a uniquely flexible formation that can be used to fit any number of styles of play. Below are listed some general roles that players should be aware of when playing within

0 Saving the Ball With Your Legs

By Mike Smith - Maybe not every game, but certainly every season I have ever been a part of I can remember a great kick save or two. I actually had a keeper several years ago who routinely pulled off amazing kick saves,( most of the time at the expense of the more fundamental text

0 Two Team Crossing and Finishing Drill

By Arthur Bell - Setup: Area – half field. Players x 12 - 18. GK x 1 Cones x 6. Poles x 3 Balls x 6 Execution: Players divided into two groups or teams. One player in each group at each of their coloured cone. Player A passes to player B, player A then sprints

0 Scoring Goals With Set Plays Vol 2 eBook

0 Possession Small-Sided Game

By Keith Scarlett One 40 x 40 yard grid with two 5 yards end zones. The team is split into two groups of 7. Each team has a “free zone”, which is their defensive area. They cannot be tackled by opponents here. Play is restarted with a pass-in when the ball goes off the pitch.

0 Possession Until You Can Play Forward

By Philip Cauchi Introduction: This session is designed around securing possession of the ball until the moment to play forward is on. Our focus in this session is to develop the individual within team training. Therefore, we focus mainly on developing game insight, and decision-making both with and without the ball. Decision-making without the ball

0 Exercises to Train Visual Perception Part 5

By Philip Cauchi Question - Do you have exercises where I can train "Visual Perception" where the players will be better at scanning the area? In Parts 1, 2, 3 and 4, I shared some exercises.  Here are the final set of options. Exercise 17: X pass and follow. Area: A square with sides measuring

1 4v4+4 Aerobic High Intensity

By Philip Cauchi Development of the soccer domains: Technical: Maintain the quality of technical actions high for a prolonged period of time. Tactical: In the offensive phase, circulate the ball rapidly with the intention of playing vertically. When the ball is played vertically, the players should quickly provide the target player with support. In the

0 Small-Sided Color Recognition Game

By Matthew Carroll - Description: The Color Recognition Game is a good way to get players to start reacting to visual cues, players will be in various angles and therefore will be forced to turn their heads to view the pinny thrown in the air, this naturally teaches players to check their shoulders Setup: Create

0 Different Ways to Play the 5-4-1

By Matthew Carroll Newcastle United under Rafa Benitez, with their limited resources, were able to find some minor successes with this formation in the 2018-2019 season. Under Rafa’s replacement, Steve Bruce, the Toon were also able to gain signature wins over Chelsea, Tottenham, and Manchester United during the 2019-2020 season using the same tactics and

2 Getting Your Chest on the Ball

By Mike Smith - “ You play goal keeper with your feet, not your hands.”….. “ And really, you are trying to get your chest to every ball.” These two statements rocked my youthful understanding of goal keeping as at 10 years old I was really really sure being a goalie was all about using