Welcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on footwork, fitness and catching.
Start with two cones making up a goal (8 yards apart). A series of cones are set up starting 5 yards behind the goal. A server has a few balls 15 yards in front of the goal
The keeper starts by slaloming through each of the cones. Instead of just
Welcome to the FineSoccer Drills Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on dribbling, shielding and flair.
Start with a 25 yard in diameter circle. Groups of 2’s are in the circle with one being on offense and the other being on defense. There are players on the outside of the circle with balls.
The offensive players (in this case the black jerseys) check to
Today's post is from Scott Moody, our Soccer Conditioning Expert at the Soccer FIT Academy. This blog post got my attention because I've had many conversations with parents and other coaches on this subject. There are an ever-increasing number of, 'Speed and Agility' trainers, camps and businesses. But all to often they are not soccer
Continue readingBy Justin Cresser
When we think of improving strength with resistance training, thoughts of pushing heavy weights on the bench press, or squatting bars with many plates, comes to mind. That is, we generally think of developing concentric strength. Our muscles can produce three types of muscle contractions or actions: concentric muscle contractions (when the muscle shortens); eccentric contractions (when the muscles lengthens); and isometric muscle actions (there is no change in muscle length).
Let’s take the standard push-up for example: as you flex the elbows to lower yourself to the floor, the chest muscles are working eccentrically. If you hold for a few seconds at the bottom of the movement, then these muscles are working isometrically to keep the body in a stable position. As you extend the elbows to return to the top of the movement, the chest muscles are now concentrically contracting.
Most coaches focus on the concentric component when doing strength training. However, developing eccentric strength is just as important and can be done by using slow and controlled movements during the eccentric phase of an exercise. Developing this component of strength is especially important for successfully performing movements involving quick deceleration or stopping, which occur when players rapidly change direction, and in the prevention of injuries that frequently occur during these movements.
The following is a simple exercise that can be done during practice to develop eccentric leg strength in your players:
Squats with 2-Touch passing
Divide your players in groups of two and give each pair a ball. Have the players stand approximately 7 to 10 yards apart. When ready, have both players perform 10 to 12 repetitions of squats (1 set). However, have them slowly lower themselves (approximately 5 seconds) until their thighs are parallel to the floor. Have them hold this position for one second, and then return to the starting position.
As soon as both players are finished, have them pass back and forth for 90 seconds, using two touches (Figure 1), and then instruct them to perform another set of squats. Repeat this process for a total of 3 sets.
Coaching Points:
Welcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on receiving crosses, footwork and distribution.
Start with two keepers in goal and a server wide on each side with a ball.
One server starts by lofting a ball beyond the far post and the
Welcome to the FineSoccer Drills Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on playing a long ball, receiving a long ball, dribbling toward goal, shooting, goalkeeping and fitness
Start with two small line of players on one sideline (one line with balls), 30-40 yards from goal.
Opposite them is another line of players. A keeper is in goal.
The first player with a ball drives a ball cross field to the
By Wayne Harrison
SPAIN PLAYING THE 4-2-3-1 AT THE EURO’S
The starting position phase formation is approximately a 4-2-3-1; the attacking phase is 4-2-1-3 or 3-3-1-3; and the defending phase is a 4-4-1-1, so we have
Continue readingA few weeks ago I had a post entitled, "Preparing for State Cup". Well despite my coaching my U13 girls won the Kansas State Cup and are heading to the Region II Championship in Saginaw, MI. Obviously development is the most important thing at their age but I firmly believe that developing the will to win is just as important as technical, tactical and physical development. While the players had many individual goals that were centered on improvement, we had one common team goal, and that was to win State Cup.
The week after State Cup we have tryouts which causes a problem; what do you do if one of the players isn't selected for next year's team? Every team has the same issue and they deal with it in different ways. But this year
Continue readingBy Justin Cresser
No matter what phase of the season we are in, I always include an activity that focuses on improving my Players’ first touch. I think this is extremely important, especially at the youth level.
The following is an exercise I like to use during the competition phase at it emphasizes several components of soccer conditioning. It incorporates short sprints, anaerobic conditioning, agility, and it also develops a player’s first touch. You can also use it as a warm-up routine.
Divide your players into groups of 4. Each group will have 2 working players and 2 non-working or passing players. For each group of 4, set up the following station:
Place two large ones 30 yards apart in a straight line. Have a non-working player stand at each cone with a ball at their feet. Place two small cones in between these two large cones so that they are 10 yards apart and each small cone is 10 yards away from one of the larger cones. Have a working player stand at each of these small cones facing the non-working player closest to them (Figure 1).
On the coach’s signal, the passing players will play a ball into space that the
Welcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on footwork and getting your body behind the ball.
Start with a keeper in goal and a server around 12 yards out with a ball.
The server tosses the ball to the side of the keeper and the keeper is told
I have watched most of the Euro 2012 games and one thing that has stood out to me is the incredibly high level of technique demonstrated by all of the teams. It goes without saying that these are amongst the top players in the world so they should have a high level of technique. But it's more than that. I think the level of technique has gotten better over the years because it had to. The speed of the game continues to increase creating a premium on players who are able to control the ball and make a decision in an instant.
Most of us don't coach the top level pro players so how does this affect us when coaching our college players or youth players? Well, the old saying rings true more now than
Continue readingWelcome to the FineSoccer Drills Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on dribbling, passing, shooting and goalkeeping.
Start with two goals set up 40 yards apart. There is a keeper in each goal and 2 mannequins in the middle yards apart (if you don’t have a mannequin, corner flags, coaching sticks or, if necessary cones will work. There are 2 lines of players with balls 5 yards to the opposite side of each goal.
To start, the first player in each line dribbles at the near
By Justin Cresser
Today’s activity is a simple exercise that develops Aerobic Endurance while working on dribbling, passing and receiving techniques. One of the good things about this drill is that it can also be used as a warm-up routine. If you do decide to use it as a warm-up activity, ensure that you incorporate dynamic stretches for the major muscle groups (hamstrings, quadriceps, etc.) during the rest periods between repetitions.
This activity uses the space between the halfway line and the top of the 18-yard box for the playing area. Divide your squad into two equal groups. Lay out several cones (the number of cones will be equal to the number of players in each group) across the playing area at random. However, each cone should be at least 10 to 15 yards from the nearest cone. For the purpose of this article, let us assume each group has 6 players; we have therefore placed 6 cones across the playing area.
Have all the players in one group stand inside the centre circle with a ball each. Have each player in the second group stand behind a different cone (Figure 1).
When ready, direct the players in the centre circle to dribble at speed towards
By Waleed Zaghloul
Counter attacks are a great weapon in football and have been used by numerous teams over the years to great effect. This weapon is not utilized effectively by many youth teams in the US, possibly because it is difficult to teach. As coaches, before we can coach counter attacks, it might be useful to analyze the components of most successful counter attacks. In this article, we will dissect counter attacks and attempt to identify their main components and how they are carried out.
This article references this video clip made up of various examples of classic counter attack situations.
First, players (and coaches of course) need to identify when counter attacks are possible. There are two main scenarios, one from open play and one from set-pieces. From open play, it is usually a bad or an intercepted pass from a team that is attacking in numbers. From set-pieces, it is usually
Continue readingWelcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today’s topic deals with leading with your hands.
It’s extremely important to try to meet the ball at the earliest point possible.
Too often keepers wait for the ball to come to them (whether they are standing or diving) and with only a few instances (high balls over the keepers head being one) the keeper should try to come forward to meet the ball whenever possible.
One way to do this is make sure keepers hands are always out front and to lead with the hands.
As an example, instead of holding the hands close to the body when
Continue readingWelcome to the FineSoccer Drills Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on possession, attacking and longer passes.
This is a 4 v 4 game with a third team resting. The field is 40 x 30 and there is an extra 10 yards on each end line. Two small goals are set up 10 yard beyond each endline with a player from the resting team in each goal.
The two teams must stay inside the field but to score a goal they must
Each state in the U.S. sets their own time for tryouts. In the mid west the date usually falls in June sometime after State Cup has been completed. In Kansas tryout can officially start one week after State Cup is completed.
There are two types of clubs, a truly tiered system where the best players are place on the top team in the club and the next strongest players are put on the second team and so on. The goal of this type of club is
Continue readingWelcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on stance, footwork and fitness.
Start with two keepers facing each other in a proper keeper stance (in the diagram below, the red keeper isn’t in a proper position because I’m somewhat limited in the positions I have available with the graphics but assume he were in a proper stance)
One of the keepers is assigned the role of leader. The other keeper is the “mirror”. If the red player is the
Welcome to the FineSoccer Drills Newsletter. Today’s featured activity is a warm up activity working on changing direction with the first touch.
Start with a 30 x 30 grid (the size isn’t all that important and can be changed depending upon number of players. Half the group is in there with balls and the other half are without (in the diagram below the yellow players have balls and the black don’t)
The yellow players dribble around and then will make a pass to a
By Waleed Zaghloul
Alan Dzagoev, an exciting young brilliant talent not known by many outside of his native Russia could see his breakthrough on the international level in EURO 2012. There are several factors that make Dzagoev an exciting player to watch and worthy opponent to watch out for at all times. For those who are not familiar with Dzagoev, let me introduce you to this player who plays for CSKA Moscow.
Alan Dzagoev is 21 and will turn 22 during the upcoming EURO 2012 competition. He wears number 11 for the Russian national team and is one of my picks to shine this summer in Poland and Ukraine. He is a gifted midfielder who usually plays in an advanced attacking position, but could also be lethal as a playmaker. Let us have a look at Alan’s skills and specialty skills that make him one of the great talents for the future and a candidate to play in one of Europe’s top leagues after the EURO 2012 Championships.
Dangerous Through Passes
In my opinion, one of Alan Dzagoev’s best attribute is his ability to make very dangerous through passes that splits defenses and creates great scoring chances for his strikers both at CSKA Moscow and the Russian National team. These passes could be critical in many situations, but specially on counter attacks.
Penetrating Runs
Any good through pass requires good movement off the ball and/or a good run into the box. Dzagoev combines very well with the strikers playing in front of him and sometimes the strikers turn providers to him just to return a few of his favors.
Great Ball Control
Any great midfielders needs great ball control and Dzagoev has that even in full speed which makes him very tough to defend. This combination of speed and good dribbling skills usually result in a few free kicks in dangerous areas or even penalty kicks and Dzagoev is good at taking both.
Great Passing
A great range of passing is critical for any playmaker and that is exactly what Dzagoev has. I believe that his
By Justin Cresser
After coaching youth soccer for several years, I have observed that shooting from distance is one technique young players frequently have problems with. Players tend to either drag their shots wide, or shoot way over the bar. Like all components of the game, developing good shooting technique requires repetition. However, we frequently observe shooting exercises that have long lines with players waiting to shoot on net; and most coaches will agree that long lines and waiting times are two things we try our best to avoid during training sessions.
Today’s activity is a shooting exercise that circumvents the problem of long lines and standing around by incorporating a dribbling component. The format of the exercise also allows you to simultaneously develop the aerobic capacity of your players. We also include a section that targets speed dribbling and receiving technique.
Set-up and Directions
This activity uses just over half of a regular-sized soccer field for the playing area. Place (or set up with flags or cones) a regular-sized goal on the bottom
This week's post is an excerpt from our latest book, "Developing the Complete Tactical Player". This unique book focuses on methods to train players to develop tactical knowledge, faster decision making and smarter use of the ball. I think we can all agree that this is an aspect sorely missing in many of our players but can make all the difference in taking them to an elite level.
This brief excerpt looks at
Continue readingWelcome to the Goalkeeping Newsletter. Today’s featured activity works on keeper recovery.
A server starts around the top of the 18 with a ball. The keeper starts on the ground off on an angle from the goal (in this graphic the keeper has a ball but in the activity he would not)
The server calls “go” and shoots on goal. The keeper has to get
Last week I posted on our Facebook page about Sepp Blatter investigating the idea of something different than penalty kicks to decide a game that is still tied after 90 min. He asked Franz Beckenbauer and his committee to research and come up with ideas and alternatives.
I asked our Facebook fans to post their ideas and here are some of them. What ideas do you have to solve this problem?
Aaron Frederickson Play golden goal 11 v 11. Every five minutes each team loses a player.
Katy Morrow Stigers This is a tough one because, if the debate is anything like the goal line one, they'll want something easy to implement throughout the various levels of soccer. I'll suggest instead of penalty kicks, we borrow a bit of the spirit of the American football overtime system, and isntead of a penalty kick, we offer the teams the chance to start from a corner kick rather than a kick off.After the first corner kick goes out of play a second corner kick is placed on the opposite side of the field.
Hr Bramer 3 vs 2 plus keeper. Goes three rounds lat with four strikers. All players in the
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