Jebreel Bubtana
This is a great exercise to teach your team how to make overlapping runs and work on their aerobic power.
Set up the field as shown below in figure 1, with two feeders and three others who will be working and overlapping.
The feeder at the top of the diagram starts with the ball. As one of the players starts to overlap the feeder as shown by the arrows, the feeder plays the ball just in front of this player (figure 2).
After this player has received the ball, they now pass it to the feeder opposite them. As soon as they have done this, they move to the cone as shown by the arrow. When the feeder receives the ball, the player who was already on the cone to the feeder’s right must overlap as shown by the arrows (figure 3).
The feeder now passes the ball in front of the player who has just overlapped. This player passes to the feeder in front of them and then moves to the cone as shown by the arrow (figure 4).
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After 3 minutes of continuous passing and overlapping, switch the feeders and allow a 45 second break. The aim with the exercise is the have as many full speed overlaps as possible in those 3 minutes in order to develop aerobic power.
Coaching Points:
- Ensure that all players use correct passing technique.
- The feeder must pass the ball in front of the player overlapping in order to encourage them onto the ball and move forward.
- The overlapping players must time their run correctly. If they make their run too early, they will likely have to stop their run and turn back to control the ball and then pass forward, which ruins the rhythm of the exercise.
- If the run is timed correctly then the player can run onto the ball in front of them and make their pass forward to the next feeder. In a real game situation it would also allow this player to attack the space in front of them and put the opposition on the back foot.
- Encourage full speed runs from the overlapping players to make the activity somewhat realistic.
Jebreel Bubtana
Director of Marketing and U8 Programs at BRASA – Brazilian Soccer Academy
USSF B License
NSCAA Advanced National Diploma
Follow me on Twitter @jib1989
