I would say that most coaches believe that it’s very important for all soccer players to be very comfortable with the ball at their feet. How they go about developing this confidence varies widely from one coach to another. Some will focus on fast footwork exercises, others will use cones or other obstacles to encourage players to keep the ball under control.

I’ve had the most success using fakes and moves to train ball control, creativity and 1 v 1 ability at the same time. The moves engage the player’s imaginations and make it fun to practice. I discussed which Continue reading ‘1 v 1 Training’ »

One of the perks of being apart of WORLD CLASS COACHING is that I have access to a large library of training sessions from some of the top professional, collegiate, and youth coaches. We have published books and DVDs on every aspect and topic of coaching.

I often refer to our DVD especially for new ways to approach topics to keep my coaching fresh and interesting to the players I work with. I think we’re all probably guilty of using the same few drills or exercises for a specific technique over and over. This can be a good thing because it allows us to focus on teaching the game rather than having to spend a lot of time teaching the drill. But changing things up on occasion can breath new life into a stale session and motivate players to perform at a higher level with the addition of new challenges.

In the past if I was looking for a new warm-up for a shooting practice I would have to scan through three or four DVDs to find what I’m looking for. This changed recently with the addition of our new Video Library. It contains more than 400 clips from many of our most popular DVD titles covering a wide range of techniques and tactics. Now I can search this library and find a clip instantly. I can even log in and view the videos on my Android phone (it also works with the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad).

Here’s the warm-up I found from former US Woman’s National Team Assistant, Lauren Gregg.

Warm-up
Balls traveling into stride, balls traveling away from stride, movements with back to goal, balls coming out of the air.

Procedure
Groups of four (2 players in the middle – one is a defender, one is an attacker) check away, receive pass, set, hit the target

Coaching Points

• Check back at an angle
• Receiving player – don’t check square, check at an angle where you can see goal, teammate, and defender at the same time
• Player receiving form the setter get on a 45 degree angle to strike into the target
• Look over your shoulder
• Not square – got to be at a 45 degree angle
• If you need to take a touch to clean it up then do that.

Progression

• Checking player now has the option to turn, dummy, or set
• Coaching Points
• Check to the ball with some urgency
• Look over shoulder for defender
• Targets adjust
• Defender’s defend like you mean it
• You only need a half step to shoot
• Receive with foot furthest from the defender

Check out the new Video Library have access to hundreds of drills, exercises and small-sided games on every technical and tactical topic.

Have a great day!

Tom

I continue to run one practice per week outdoor with my older teams during the winter months when weather permits. This means that we are often training when the it’s pretty cold. On very cold days I organize small-sided games to keep the players moving and loose. They get a lot more out of playing games than they would if I tried to coach specific concepts.

Playing small-sided game should not be a matter of dividing up into two teams and throwing the ball out. My favorite small-sided games are those that demand specific skills or tactics to be successful. These are the games that really teach players something rather than just have them use the skills and knowledge they already possess.

Here are three small-sided games that are a bit different than those you may have seen before but they are trying to draw out something very specific from the players. These games come from, ‘Brazilian Training Games’. This is my favorite resource for unique small-sided games. This book has given me many good games that have worked well with my teams.

GAME 16 – Transition – 3 Games

Organization: 2 teams – 6v6 to 9v9 + goalie

Description: 3 games are played in a progression. The coach controls and changes the games with a whistle or a signal.

Game 1: Regular game in half of the field with 2 regular goals. Vertically
Game 2: Horizontally 4 goals games with each scoring in 2 goals.
Game 3: In the whole field a possession game is played with each team trying to get 5 consecutive passes = 1 point.

Observation: in both situations (game 2 and 3) the goalies become field players

Coaching Points:
- Positional adjustment
- Fast transition offensive thru defensive situation and vice- versa
- Communication

Variation:  2 or 3 touch on the ball restriction

Equipment: balls, discs, small goals

GAME 17 – Transition – 3 Games + Colored Balls

Organization: 2 teams – 6v6 to 8v8 + goalie

Description: Same game as #16, in this case the coach will add 3 balls with different colors developing 3 specific rules.
Example:
- 2 touches = white ball
- Ball on the ground = gray ball
- Weak foot = black ball

Coaching Points:
- Communication
- Speed of thought
- Speed of improvisation

Equipment: colored balls, discs and small goals

GAME 18 – Transition – 3 Games + Handball

Organization: 2 teams – 6v6 to 8v8 + goalie

Description: 3 games will be play in a progression. The coach control and change the games with a whistle or a signal.
Game 1: Handball Goal Vertically (played with the hands)
Game 2: Horizontally 6 goals games with each team scoring in 3 goals.
Game 3: In the whole field a possession game is played with each team trying to get 5 consecutive passes = 1 point.

Coaching Points:
- Positional Adjustment
- Communication
- Speed of thought

Equipment: Discs, small goals and balls

I continue to run one practice per week outdoor with my older teams during the winter months when weather permits. This means that we are often training when the it’s pretty cold. On very cold days I organize small-sided games to keep the players moving and loose. They get a lot more out of playing games than they would if I tried to coach specific concepts.

Playing small-sided game should not be a matter of dividing up into two teams and throwing the ball out. My favorite small-sided games are those that Continue reading ‘Unique Small-Sided Games’ »

With the outdoor season coming to an end in the Midwest of the United States, I’m turning my attention Futsal training. For anyone not familiar with Futsal, it’s played with a ball that is one size smaller than the ball the players use outdoor (U9-U12 play with a size three ball while U13 and above play with a size four). The ball is also constructed to have a low bounce to help keep it on the floor. The game is played on the same surface as a basketball court so the ball moves very quickly. These characteristics mean that it is sometimes easier to control with the sole of the foot rather than the inside of the foot.

During the outdoor season I discourage Continue reading ‘Sole of the Foot Control’ »

One of the perks of being apart of WORLD CLASS COACHING is that I have access to a large library of training sessions from some of the top professional, collegiate, and youth coaches. We have published books and DVDs on every aspect and topic of coaching.

I often refer to our DVD especially for new ways to approach topics to keep my coaching fresh and interesting to the players I work with. I think we’re all probably guilty of using the same few drills or exercises for a specific technique over and over. This can be a good thing because it allows us to focus on teaching the game rather than having to spend a lot of time teaching the drill. But changing things up on occasion can breath new life into a stale session and motivate players to perform at a higher level with the addition of new challenges.

In the past if I was looking for a new warm-up for a shooting practice I would have to scan through three or four DVDs to find what I’m looking for. This changed Continue reading ‘Warm-Up for Shooting’ »

Like many coaches I focus on one particular aspect of the game during each training session. Sure, I try to train the technical, tactical, physical and psychological components around the specific skill so that the practice is as economical as possible. But in the past if my focus was on passing and receiving I wouldn’t have thought about ending the session with any type of shooting.

When WORLD CLASS COACHING conducted a tour of Dutch club a few years ago I was fortunate enough to attend. While visiting the Ajax Academy I watched a session presented by Continue reading ‘Shooting at the End of Every Practice’ »

Is it time to start ‘Fall’ practices again already! If you’re like me you found yourself asking this question this week. I don’t know where the summer break went but it’s gone.

Like the first few series of the football game, I like to plan out my first few weeks of training way ahead of time. I know I want to cover a number of topics including some technique to knock the rust off. I also want to start talking about how were going to Continue reading ‘First Practice of the Year’ »

We all have such limited time to impact the technical, tactical and physical abilities of our players that finding ways to integrate each of these into our training sessions is very important. If we were training four or five times a week we could afford to practice them in isolation but most of the coaches reading this won’t have that luxury. Continue reading ‘Speed Training Exercises’ »

This week’s post comes from our Soccer Conditioning Experts at Soccer FIT. This article struck a cord with me because I think that as coaches we are sometimes guilty of the single-minded focus on technique especially for our youngest players. The post makes the point that we are in danger of obsessing over perfect technique to the point that we lose functional speed.

When it comes to “technical work,” can we be TOO technical?

Interesting question…and in my opinion the answer is “YES!” I understand that foot angle & toe placement when touching the ball is extremely important. But as coaches, we must ask ourselves “how much technique is Continue reading ‘Technical Work – The Faster the Better’ »