All Posts by Mike Saif

0 Pro Academy Training Sessions - Part Three

WORLD CLASS COACHING Pro Academy Training Sessions By Jonny Carter TABLE OF CONTENTS Part Three THE PRINCIPLES OF SOCCER NUMBERING SYSTEM SMALL-SIDED FORMATIONS 5V5 FORMATIONS 6V6 FORMATIONS The Principles of Soccer Introducing the Principles of Soccer | Attack & Defense A team’s system of play or formation is just a template, a theoretical concept that provides

0 Pro Academy Training Sessions - Part Four

WORLD CLASS COACHING Pro Academy Training Sessions By Jonny Carter TABLE OF CONTENTS Part Four 7V7 FORMATIONS 8V8 FORMATIONS 9V9 FORMATIONS BIRTH YEAR MATRIX ABOUT THE AUTHOR 7v7 Formations CFJ West | 7-v-7 Small-Sided Formations CFJ West | 8-v-8 Small-Sided Formations CFJ West | 9-v-9 Small-Sided Formations

7 Should the Ref Have Given a Penalty Kick?

0 Hit the Lane

By Mike Smith This session focuses on passing accuracy first, movement second and combined vision and timing third. This is a great session to sharpen up passing accuracy while building into a 4 man combination attack. Lesson 1 Three Passing Stations Set Up Set up three stations as shown on the diagram. The bottom station is

0 Plyometrics and Shot Stopping

By Wayne Henderson - A massive part of the modern day goalkeeper’s armoury is explosive power and shot stopping, the following drill is very easy to set up but very difficult to execute perfectly, both from a goalkeeper, and a coaches point of view, but if it is done well it is an extremely effective

0 Team Finishing Inside the Penalty Area

By David Johnson Objective This session will focus on crossing and immediate finishing.  The focus needs to be on proper height, accuracy and direction of the cross and the quality and creativity of the finish. Communication including calling for the ball and what areas are open such as calling “switch” are critical. Set Up In

1 Are Liverpool Crazy?

1 Why Are EPL Teams Playing With a Back Three?

1 Reaction Finishing

By George Kee This is a finishing exercise that involves agility and reactions in combination with finishing on goal. In a match there are many aspects to scoring than just shooting the ball. Players must be able to watch play develop, react according to the ball and defender, and be ready to finish in a quick

0 Two shadow strikers playing between lines

By Alex Trukan Playing with two shadow strikers behind number 9 offers a lot of attacking possibilities. First of all, when going forwards, it offers an overload against two centre backs (opposition has to play three CB’s or one CDM dropping deeper to match up and track). When creating the attack on the opposition’s half,

1 Did Sadio Mane Deserve a Red Card?

0 Think and Move

By Mike Smith Players win or lose games. Coaches either put their players in positions to be successful or not, and a coach can and should certainly impact the game. Still, the guys and gals with the boots on ultimately determine the outcome. Because of this fact, teams whose players are actively thinking and reading the

0 Technical Circuit to develop Short Sprinting Endurance

By Alex Trukan This practice is aimed at developing an ability to maintain high quality of physical actions throughout the whole game. This means that for example sprinting or explosive bursts will be more consistent even towards the end of the match. From technical point of view, the practice involves variations of running with the

1 Where and When to Penetrate

By Sean Pearson Area: 25 x 35 yards Time: 15mins Players: 5v5+1 Objective: • To understand where to penetrate according to spaces • To understand how to penetrate depending on where you are on the field Set Up: All that is needed is 4 cones to mark out the corners of the rectangle area. The

3 English Premier League Transfer Opinion

0 Who Will Win the EPL and Why

0 Pressing 3-man Defense

By George Kee The success of Conte’s 3-4-3 has prompted many coaches to try their hand at the formation. This session aims to help players become comfortable with pressing a 3 man defense as the buildup is different than when playing 4 across the back. Using 3 Backs to spread the width of the field allows

0 Movement and Different types of handling

By Wayne Henderson - There are various types of saves a goalkeeper has to make and this drill is excellent for working on all the various techniques needed. The set up is 1 goal, 3 feeders 2 cones separating the goal into 3 smaller areas – Each feeder has their own small area to aim

0 Possession focused on 1v1 duels

By David Johnson Objective This session will focus on passing and maintain possession.  The focus needs to be on proper weight and direction of the pass and the quality and creativity of the runs. Communication including calling for the ball and what areas are open such as calling “switch” are critical. Set Up In a

3 Why Manchester United Won't Win the EPL

0 Defending in 5-3-2 vs. 4-3-3

By Alex Trukan When playing against 4-3-3 one of the first thoughts is how to prevent the opposition from dominating centre of the pitch. Especially when the opposition plays with narrow wingers and relies on full backs in wide areas, the biggest danger is centre of the pitch. One of the systems of play that

0 Possession for Tactical Front Third Direct Play

By Mike Smith This training session is a functional tactical approach that emphasizes that we must have clarity on our roles. For this session, seven and eleven must stay wide when ball is down the middle of field. When ball moves to flank, the near side player must stay wide and the far side needs to

0 7v7+2 Man Marking Game and Aerobic Capacity

By Alex Trukan From the conditioning point of view, this practice is focused on improving aerobic capacity. This is a fundamental physical quality needed to develop all the other conditioning elements. The main role of aerobic capacity is to deliver a proper supply of oxygen into muscles. This mainly happens through improvements made in lung

0 How to Park the Bus – Mourinho Style

By Sean Pearson Area: Half a field Time: 20mins Players: 6v6 Objective: • For players to understand the defensive shape of the style • To frustrate the attacking team Set Up: The defending team sets up in a 4-2-3 or a 4-4-1. The attacking team is in a 4-3-3 formation without the 2 CB’s. The