All Posts by Mike Saif

0 Half Spaces and the Five Five

By Mike Smith I had the pleasure of writing an e-book titled How Pep Guardiola Wins with Inverted Fullbacks. During my research I discovered how much focus Guardiola put on “ half spaces” and how effective this understanding had been to Man City’s success. In addition, I began to understand how the majority of the time,

0 Effective Goalkeeper Communication

By Mike Smith - A vocal keeper is a must, however there is a saying in the educational field which I find holds very true in sports as well – “ Just because you can talk, doesn’t mean you can communicate”. One of the first things I usually find myself doing with new teams is

0 Two Goal Shooting Drill

By Arthur Bell - Setup: An area 40 x 30 yards. Goals x 2. Goalkeepers x 2. Outfield players x 5 – 8. Supply of balls. Execution: Player A passes into the Player B and makes a supporting run. Player B sets the Player A up for a shot at goal. Player A must react

0 Playing Through the Opponents Defense

By Philip Cauchi In this session we identify how through securing possession we can play through the opponents’ defence. We start our plan by asking ourselves structured questions which will guide us on designing the training session. The same questions can be asked to the players so that they themselves arrive to the solutions of

0 4v4 Flank Game

By Keith Scarlett This activity is a 4 v 4 game plus 2 flank players plus 2 neutral players to regulation goals. Two goals should be set up about 25 metres apart. The field is 30 metres wide. A channel is made along the sidelines 5 metres wide. Each group puts on the field, one

0 4-4-2 Attacking eBook

0 The Benefits of Wing Play

By Philip Cauchi Question - What are the benefits of good wing play and attacking from wide? Our main aim in soccer is to score more goals than our opponents to win the match. It is therefore imperative that in possession we aim to play vertically as much as possible to break defensive lines and

3 Sprinting Rondos

By Anthony Hazelwood The following activity has three 10 yd. x 10 yd. rondo areas at 15 yards away from each other. Each rondo grid will have 5 players and they will play a 4 vs. 1 activity. When playing, the defender in the middle just needs to touch the ball to rotate with another

0 The Plus Minus Game

By Matthew Carroll - Description: The plus minus game is a high intensity small sided game with built in rest periods for players. The purpose is to create a high level of intensity with a variety of numerical advantages and disadvantages. Setup:A field is set up with the 18 then continues 30ft out. At the

0 Central Triangle Plus Width

By Mike Smith I was asked this week by a fellow coach for a scouting report on a team in my district, which is currently ranked 26th in the state. He was overly concerned with formation in my opinion so what I told him to do was disrupt the triangle in the middle and force play

0 Top Down and Down Up Save Progression

By Mike Smith - Try this simple training progression to help improve your keeper’s quickness and reaction time, I call it Top Down / Down Up. How often do we shoot on the keeper, allowing them to make one save and then giving them recovery time – regardless of what happens with the ball after

1 Pass and Move Drill

By Arthur Bell - Setup: 5 - 8 players. Cones x 3 Supply of balls. Execution: Player A passes on ground to player B. Player A then runs to half way. Player B receives and passes to player C. Player B follows the pass to player C. Player C receives and passes to player A.

0 Forced Man-Marking

By Keith Scarlett This activity works on 1v1 defending, pressure, cover, recovery and defensive communication. Set-up: The playing area is 25 x 20 metres. Only one ball will be in play at a time. There are two-lines on either end of the pitch, the end-line; which is at either end of the playing area and

7 Defensive Communication

By Philip Cauchi The practices that form this session target to develop the communication levels between the defenders and to recognise when to remain compact and delay play and when to be more aggressive in order to win the ball. To keep things simpler and highlight the details that both the players and the coach

0 Positional Play eBook

0 1v1 Speed Reaction

By Anthony Hazelwood The following activity has a 15 yd. x 15 yd. playing area where two teams split up and form a single file line located at the sides of the grid. On the coach’s signal, the first player from each line will sprint to the cone located at the middle of the grid.

0 Sideways Transition

By Matthew Carroll - Description: The Sideways Transition activity is designed to recreate the transition moment from a 50/50 ball. Setup: A 25x25 grid is arranged with two full sized goals at either end arranged 15yds away from either end of the grid. Goalkeepers are placed in either goal. Teams are arranged into two teams,

0 What Are Some Good 9v9 Formations?

By Philip Cauchi Question - What are some good 9v9 formations? Here is a breakdown of some 9v9 formations and their pro's and con's.  Hope it helps. 1-3-3-2 system of play. Progression to the 11v11 game: 1-4-4-2 by adding a player in both the defensive and midfield lines. 1-3-5-2 by adding the two wing backs

0 Discussion – Getting Started Again After the Pandemic

The Covid-19 pandemic has changed the sports landscape...and changed the world.  As we come through the other side of the pandemic, the world will have a new normal, but how will this affect sports, and soccer?Here, we discuss the how do we get started again? Coaching our kids, resolving the season, the pro game, social

0 The Pros and Cons of the Triangle Midfield

Most teams play with three central midfielders in some kind of shape.  The Triangle Midfield is mostly played with either one holding midfielder and two attacking midfielders or two holding midfielders and one attacking midfielder.Here, we discuss the pro's and con's of the Triangle Midfield, including the qualities each position should have and the various

0 Study the Shooters

By Mike Smith - I am a firm believer in the ideals of probability, muscle memory and geometry. I think all of these are key aspects of good fundamental keeper training. However, at some point, a keeper has to be able to rely on their own unique abilities – just like a natural goal scorer

0 Diamond Passing Drill

By Arthur Bell - Setup: 10 - 16 players - working in a 20 x 20 area. 4 Cones. Supply of balls. Execution: The ball is passed round the diamond. Players follow their own pass. Variations: 1. A1 passes to B1 and then runs to B1’s position. B1 passes to C1 and follows his pass.

0 Compact Attacking

By Mike Smith I am absolutely a believer in getting the ball out wide to the flag to hit in crosses as a bread and butter style of offense. I also understand the idea of using width to make the field too big for any opponent to cover. However, what if your team just isn’t good

0 3-5-2 Attacking eBook