All Posts by Mike Saif

1 Continuous 1v1’s with a Goalkeeper

By Jebreel Bubtana

This is a fun exercise for your team to do that gets both your attackers and goalkeepers working hard.

Set up the field as shown below in figure 1 with 10 soccer balls on the edge of the 18-yard box.

The attacker dribbles towards goal on a breakaway and tries to score the 1v1 against the goalkeeper. The goalkeeper can come out and try to stop the attacker from scoring, as they would do in a real game situation. After the attacker has had a shot they

0 2v2 Transition Small-Sided Game

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the FineSoccer Drills Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on 2 v 2 attacking and defending with quick transition.

Start with a 10 x 10 grid with two teams of players. Each team is assigned two end lines and they have a team of two 10 yards behind each end line

The black team starts with the ball and they try to dribble

0 Drill For Dealing With High Balls

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on high balls, footwork and some fitness

Start with a server on the top of the 18 with some balls and a keeper in goal.

The keeper starts by dropping to the ground and doing a push up. The server then tosses a ball high in the air which should

2 How to Exploit the Central Midfield of the 4-2-3-1

By Stevie Grieve, Author of Coaching the 4-2-3-1, Coaching the 4-2-3-1 Advanced Tactics here  AND his new book, Beating the 4-2-3-1.

This article is an excerpt from the chapter called "Exploiting the Central Midfield" from our new book, Beating the 4-2-3-1.

Attacking the centre of the 4-2-3-1

When attacking the 4-2-3-1, one of the main strengths is the base of 2 players infront of the back 4, but playing in a manner which forces one of the players to come out and press, especially against a dribbler who likes to play quick passes in their stride while running, can be an easy way to penetrate the midfield line, pull a central defender out for a through ball into a run behind the defence, or even allow for long range shots if enough space is created.

Drawing out one of the defensive midfielders isn’t always easy - playing with several players occupying the same space can allow for wide attacks, wide play can force one of the players over to help the full back press the ball and leave central space.

Chelsea v Napoli – Napoli’s 3-5-2 (3-4-1-2) overcomes Chelsea’s 4-2-3-1 via central attacks

Wing Backs provide support on the sides to move holding midfielder over to play 3v2 on the side

Cavani pulls wide to leave Hamsik and Lavezzi playing 2v4 against Chelsea’s centre backs and holding midfielders. Napoli’s left wing back support’s on the overlap bringing

0 Improve Endurance While Doing This Dribbling Exercise

By Jebreel Bubtana

This is a great exercise to use during pre season training as it gets your players working very hard. You can also use this to get your players competing against each other.

There are 3 stations to set up as shown below with the cones being placed 5 yards apart (figure 1).

Station 1 – The players dribble to the first cone, turn and then dribble back to the start as quick as they can. This sequence is repeated with the second and third cone. The players must be encouraged

0 3v2 Attacking Small-Sided Game

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the FineSoccer Drills Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on transition, 3 v 2 attacking, finishing and much more.

Start with a 40 x 30 grid with two full sized goals and a keeper in each goal. There is a player on each side of the goals on the end lines and a 3 v 2 to start on the field. Each team has extra players on a side.

The team with 3 starts with the ball and they try to get to goal. They can score directly or use

1 Why Footwork is Critical For High Balls

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on footwork for high balls.

Start with a keeper on the top of the 6 yard box and a server at the top of the 18 with some balls. Place a cone 3 yards from the goal line and 2 yards in from each post.

The purpose of this activity is to have the keeper get back and behind the ball before

0 How Bayern Exposed Barcelona's Fullbacks to Score Three Goals

By Stevie Grieve, Author of Coaching the 4-2-3-1, Modern Soccer Tactics and Winning Soccer Tactics.  Check out his new book, Coaching the 4-2-3-1 Advanced Tactics here.

Barcelona v Bayern Munich (0-3) Champions League Semi-Final 2nd Leg, April 2013

Bayern Target Barcelona’s Full Backs to Create Goal Scoring Chances

Robben Goal – Alaba’s long pass opens up the space on the far side

Alaba has possession and can see that Alba is too narrow (out of picture) and Robben will be able to receive on the far side. He drills the

0 Exercise For Shot Stopping

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on footwork, fitness and shot blocking.

Start with two goals 8 yards apart. A keeper starts in one goal. There is a server for each goal 15 yards out with balls.

The server starts with a shot at the keeper who makes

1 Continuous 1v1 Battles

By Daniel Severn

This week we have a very high tempo, quick-fire 1v1 exercise that is worked in groups of three. It is always good to practice 1v1s they happen all over the field in every single game. 1v1s also get players thinking from both the attacking and defensive side of the game. A good warm up should be performed before this exercise as it is played at a very high tempo.

Set Up and Directions
The exercise is set up as shown below. The feeder ( player in blue on the outside of the field) must have a number of soccer balls available in order to keep a high tempo for this game. The two active players wait centrally in the 20x15 yard field marked out with two goals, one at either end.

Play begins with the feeder playing a pass directly between the two competing players. The two players then compete for

2 Coaching the Barcelona 4-3-3 Attacking

This article is an excerpt from our new eBook by Scott Allison - Coaching the Barcelona 4-3-3

Attacking in the Final Third

Exercise 1: Combination play in and around the box

Objective:
To develop good combinations in and around the box that lead to goal-scoring opportunities in the scoring zone from central positions.

Setup:
In this exercise you need a minimum of 8 players and a goalkeeper attacking a goal (For larger groups duplicate the exercise with another group going towards another goal. Use a penalty box area and have two groups working from either side of the goal. Players positioned on the goal line start the exercise with a ball. Three players are positioned in a triangle at the edge of the box (use markers as a guide for players). One Goalkeeper in the goal:

Instructions:
The exercise begins with player A passing the ball to player B. A then moves forward and player B plays a quick combination with A. A then passes to C. C plays a pass to D and makes a

0 Creating Goal Chances With Takeovers

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the FineSoccer Drills Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on takeovers and getting to goal.

Start with a center midfielder with some balls just 30-40 yards from goal. A target player is at the top of the D with a defender marking him. There is a player out wide and a keeper in goal.

The midfielder plays a ball into

0 Practicing Crosses With Opposition

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on footwork on crosses with opposition.

Start with 3 coaching sticks (or corner flags or mannequins) along the 6 yard line. A keeper is in goal and a server is just outside the 18 with some balls.

The server plays a ball into the box around the top of the 6 and the keeper must

0 Racing to Finish the Cross

By Daniel Severn

This week we focus on speed and agility combined with crossing and finishing under pressure. The exercise works best when run as a competition as this adds extra motivation for the players. Speed and Agility are obvious essentials in any game of soccer as players in any role or position on the field will benefit from having good speed and being more agile. The crossing and finishing aspects are more honed towards specific positions, so depending on the situation of your team, (whether you rotate players in positions or if your players have set positions) you can work a little bit of positional specific training into this exercise, especially for your outside defenders and midfielders. A good warm up should be performed before this exercise as it is played at a very high tempo.

Set Up and Directions
The exercise is set up as shown below with the coach positioned centrally around 30 yards from goal. The coach must have a supply of soccer balls to keep the exercise fluid. We also have two wide players, positioned on each wing. Each will have three cones laid out in front of them which they will use to perform agility. The wide players will act as neutrals and should try to play crosses into general areas, trying not to favor a team, but giving the players a good chance to score from the cross. Two teams will line up on opposite sides of the goal (minimum two players per team) with a goalkeeper in the goal.

Play begins with the coach playing a pass out to either wing (left wing in the example below), the winger then shuffles through the cones as quickly as possible and then

0 A Passing Drill Warm-Up

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the FineSoccer Drills Newsletter. Today’s featured activity is a passing warm-up.

Start with 4 players in a line 10 yards apart. The first player in the line has a ball.

The first first player passes the ball to the second player while all four players start

6 Exercises For the Triangle Midfield

Our new book, The Triangle Midfield, includes a free eBook with an additional 10 exercises and small-sided games to train the core techniques and tactics required to play with a midfield triangle.  I have shared the introduction below as well as the Exercise #1.

Introduction

This is a collection of drills and exercises you can use to train in any triangle midfield formation. The exercises are designed to get the players moving the ball quickly in an organized and disciplined fashion, elements needed to be successful in the triangle midfield. Some of these exercises are generic enough that they can be used with all players as they will focus on all of the elements of technical training (preparation, skill and speed). Use them to develop a quicker technical mentality for your players while also developing them in the training exercises shown in the Triangle Midfield Book. It is important that you first focus on the technical aspects of the triangle midfield and making sure that the qualities you need for each position are present in the players you have in these positions. Here are some suggestions of qualities you should be looking for:

Attacking Central Midfielder- You need players that are very good technical players. They need to read the game very quickly and must be dangerous when going forward to attack the goal. The player should have good physical speed but, more importantly, explosive technical speed and the ability to receive and play with a soft touch. They must see the field very well and be able to distribute the ball to create attacking opportunities. This player is your playmaker and considered to be the HEART of the triangle midfield. They must also be very fit.

Holding Central Midfielder- This player or players must be the physical presence of your midfield. They will always challenge anyone who attempts to

0 Possession to Penetration

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the FineSoccer Drills Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on possession penetration as well as transition.

Start with a 50 x 40 grid with two 10 yard long end zones. There is a neutral player in each end zone. There is a 5 v 5 inside the grid.

This is a possession game within the grid but to score a goal the team with the ball must

0 Why Footwork Is Important to Catching

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on footwork and catching.

Start with 4 cones in a line 4 yards apart. Even with the last cone are 2 mini goals 4 yards apart. In front of the last cone are 2 more cones on angles. There are keepers at the first cone and a server 10 yards from each mini goal.

The first keeper starts by slaloming through the 4 cones and then

0 Balancing Attacking and Defending During Games

By: Dan Minutillo - Author of Formation Based Soccer Training

Coaches of great soccer teams like Barcelona, Real Madrid and Arsenal struggle to find and maintain a balance between game day offense and defense measured by goals for as compared to goals against. Arsene Wenger, longtime coach at Arsenal, said as late as April 2013, over 30 games into the EPL season that Arsenal had only now just found the proper balance between offense and defense during League games--too many goals against, not enough goals for. Numbers up on attack, high in the front third of the pitch but numbers down in the middle third of the pitch when defending on transition.

Offensive balance means that a team has not over committed players high up field going forward on attack during the run of play to expose it to quick transition if it loses the ball. Defensive balance means that a team has held shape and has committed enough players or the right players behind the ball as the team is attacking to slow transition in the event the ball is lost. Defensive balance promotes the freedom of movement of the attacking players during an attack but offensive balance does not likewise influence defensive balance. This will make more sense as the theme of this article is developed.

What is game day offensive and defensive balance and how is it attained by a team?

Game day offensive and defensive balance is a tactical maneuver, no matter what formation is used, to ensure

0 Dribbling Challenge With Endurance

By Jebreel Bubtana

This dribbling challenge is a great way to have your players work on different dribbling techniques, whilst working on their endurance. The objective is to complete the challenge with 5 soccer balls as quickly as possible. Set up your field as shown below (figure 1).

There are 4 stations that your player/players must complete before getting the next ball and going again.

Station 1 – Dribble in and out of the cones using the inside and outside of both right and left foot. It is important that the player

0 Team Defending - New Hi Def Video

When we launched the WCC Video Library our first task was to get most of our DVD collection uploaded and included. Once that was complete (it's almost done), all of our new stuff will be high quality Hi Def videos. So I'm pleased to announce that we have now started uploading more Hi Def videos...AND we

0 Attacking the Barcelona Way - Passing Exercise

We have a great new video series called Attacking the Barcelona Way. These are new style "Tactical Analysis" videos. You won't see usual "old school" type footage with players demonstrating drills and exercises. 

These videos go much deeper and include actual real game footage, where the coach analyses the tactics, breaks down movement, sequences, combinations, goals, etc. and then describes training sessions you can do to help train your team to produce the same style of play. Also included is an eBook of all the training sessions covered in the video.  Here is part of the eBook from the first video that takes a look at a passing exercise.  The eBook shows more progressions of this exercise as well as lots more exercises that appear in the videos.  For more info on the Attacking the Barcelona Way videos and eBook, click this link.

Attacking the Barcelona Way - Passing Exercise

In this exercise we look at a player with his back to goal receiving under pressure from a tight marker from behind.

The defender is passive, but must pressure the player so it is realistic.

• Player 1 passes to Player 2
• Player 2 moves towards

1 Shot Blocking Drill With a Conditioning Element

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on hands, footwork, fitness and shot blocking.

Start with a keeper in goal and a server 15 yards out on an angle. The server has a few balls.

The server starts by volleying a ball directly to the keeper. The keeper must

0 How To Play Off a Target Player

By Lawrence Fine, Author of the FineSoccer Coaching Bible.

Welcome to the FineSoccer Drills Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on playing off the target player.

Finding a player up top is an important part of many teams attack. Sometimes it’s done by playing the ball into space for the player to run onto.

Other times, it’s a case of playing the ball directly into the target player and having him receive it and either take the