During the winter I like to focus on ball possession and combination play. The game of Futsal puts a high value on these skills and working on them often will not only make the team more successful indoor but also carry over to the outdoor game in the spring.
One of my favorite exercises to work on protecting the ball is a game where each team is in their own half of an area. One player from each team acts as a defender and enters the other team's area and tries to kick player's ball out of bounds. The team that keeps at least one ball in their area the longest wins that round. We play until each player has had a chance to defend.
The most basic way to play this game is as an individual possession game where each player tries to shield their ball and avoid the defender for as long as possible. As a progression, you can allow the players who lose the ball to stay in the area and support the other players who still have a ball. This way the game moves from individual possession to a game of keep away.
Passing and moving to create options is important in soccer in general but especially in a game with only four players on each team. We spend a number of sessions each winter on learning how and when to execute give-and-goes.
This simple exercise provides a great teaching environment for all of the key factors that contribute to a successful combination play.
Player A passes to Player B who then dribbles toward Player A. When Player A approaches, Player B passes to Player C and runs to the other side to receive the ball back with one touch. Player B then passes to Player D. The players all rotate positions so that Player A takes Player B's starting position, Player B moves to the Wall Passer's position (Player C) and Player C moves behind Player D.
Coaching Points
- Player B must dribble at Player A to commit him
- Player C moves along a line to create a passing angle for Player B
- Player A acts as a passive defender; staying in front of Player B but not trying to win the ball
As the players improve and show their understanding I ask them to increase the speed of play and allow the 'defender' to try and win the ball from the dribbler to make the exercise more realistic.
There are many other games and exercises that we use throughout the season but shielding and the ability to understand and perform a well-timed give-and-go are so vital to Futsal that we return to these two often.
Are there exercises that you return to often during the indoor season to focus on certain skills that you feel are important?
Have a great day!
Tom
