It's time to develop our defensive shape and cover positioning in this pattern of play practice. Here's how it works: You’ll call out either "left," "right," or "centre," signalling which defender should step up to receive the ball and head it or pass it back. The other two defenders must position themselves effectively to provide cover for the pressing player, with the opposite covering player always ahead of the central defender. Work together as a unit, communicate effectively and focus on positioning to get your defensive unit primed for the game! 🤝

Hi all, don't forget to check your calendar to see what we have scheduled for each day this week: 

Today: Defensive Press and Cover Shape | 13-P7

Tomorrow: Wingers Creating Space & Driving Inside | 38-P2

Friday: Defending The Cross | 58-P12

We have new practices being published each day so make sure you are up to date with what's coming and where you can fit these into your weekly training plan! 💪🔥

Here we have a SSG that focuses on developing attacking plays to finish, and maintaining possession under pressure. The first objective for the team in possession is to combine and finish. After a goal is scored, you will play a ball to the scoring team, and they must make 6 successful passes to lock in their goal. If they manage this, the goal is awarded, and play continues as usual. If the defenders win possession before those six passes are completed, the goal is taken away, and the score remains unchanged. Sharpen your attacking and defending in this small sided game! 💪

This attacking practice develops technical patterns focusing on Winger-Midfielder-Striker combinations in the final third. We begin with three players moving through the attacking sequence, ending in a delivery from the midfielder in the wide channel for two attackers in the box. Getting your head up before delivering, timing runs into the box, and variation in types of finishes are key points in this practice! 💪

This game focuses on team strategy, combinations and finishing. Here's how it works: Each player on the field starts with a worth of 3 points when they score a goal. However, here's the twist - after each finish, players lose a point from their value. This means that their worth drops to 2 points when they score their next goal. The goal is to foster teamwork. Teams must strategise to get their highest value players to score, as this allows them to rack up the most points. The team with the most points at the end of the game wins! 🤝

This physical based practice focuses on developing sprint speed, heading ability and 1 v 1 games. The action kicks off with the first two players sprinting around the two poles and back. Then, they dash around the poles again, but this time, they set off towards the diagonal goal. From the sideline, their teammate throws a ball into the air for them to perform a diving header to finish. Both players react quickly to sprint towards the center of the area where you pass a ball inside for them battle it out in a 1 v 1 scenario, aiming to finish. Sprint speed, precision, and competitive spirit are the order of the day! ⚽️ 🔥

It’s time to develop quality in possession, penetration, and switching the point of attack in this small sided game. We start with a 3 v 3 possession game in the central zone, while each end zone has a striker and a defender. The objective is for the central players to complete 4 passes and make a penetrating pass into either end zone for the strikers to finish. We've also added a progression that will help develop your teams support play for your lone striker! 💪

Do your players recognise when to overlap, and are they timing these movements correctly? This technical practice focuses on this specific aspect of their game. Players will pair up, passing the ball to their partner and executing an overlapping run to receive the return pass. Precision in the timing of movements is key here, as poorly timed runs can diminish the effectiveness of this tactic in a real game. Let’s build confidence when making the overlapping run! ⚽️

Get ready for a game that sharpens your team's reaction to second balls, focuses on positional awareness, and puts decision-making at the forefront, both in and out of possession. We've got four teams with three players that have their own mini goal to protect. Each team's goal has a limited life of 3 points. We'll deduct a point each time a goal is conceded. If a team concedes 3 goals, they're out, and their goal disappears. The last team with their goal standing are the winners! 🔥

In this small-sided game we're focusing on possession, quick reactions, and defending as a cohesive unit. The goal for the team in possession is simple: make five passes and then look to finish in either of the two goals. Here's the twist: After a goal is scored, any player from the scoring team can quickly retrieve a ball from any corner. If they can score in the other goal within just 10 seconds, they earn a bonus goal. Positional awareness, communication and clinical finishing are key in this one! 🫡