Coaching masterclass

This is less a training session and more a collection of exercises that emphasise my football DNA. I selected these to represent my coaching philosophy when presenting a recent LMA masterclass.

My brand of football is all about dominating the opposition, taking the initiative and trying to propose something in an attempt to win the game rather than waiting to see what happens. We achieve that, when possible, by playing out from the back because it is the best way to get the ball up the pitch and into the opponent’s half to hurt them.

I also like my teams to press high, counter-press and work as a team when out of possession, allowing players to be creative when they reach the final third. For me, it is all about having a team that works very hard both on and off the ball – they have great solidarity between them and they are always happy to work as a team to get the result. 

The first activity here encourages playing out from the back, offering confidence to players in possession and letting them know that sometimes they only need one pass to progress but if they do need more, they’re good enough. 

The second exercise runs players through attacking patterns that can help them build from the back and allows the forward players to be fluid.

We have a counter-pressing exercise that is about working hard and working as a pack, and we have an Attack v Defence exercise, which we ran here from a defending mindset. 

Finally, the Modified 10v10 game is an opportunity to attack with an overload, allowing forwards to be fluid and to find spaces to attack.

PLAYING OUT

We set up a playing area of 60 yards in length, using the full width of the pitch with a goal and a goalkeeper at both ends. A 22-yard end zone is marked out at one end.

We’re using 20 outfield players split into two teams of 11 including keepers and the teams play 11v11. Play starts and restarts with a pass out from the blue goalkeeper in the 22-yard end zone but only five players from each team are allowed in the end zone and the blue possession team must make five passes before they are free to break out of the zone, as shown [1a].

[1a]

1. Play starts and restarts with a pass out from the blue goalkeeper in the end zone 
2. Only five players from each team are allowed in the end zone when the blues are trying pass out from the back
3. The blue possession team must make five passes before they are free to break out of the end zone

Once the red possession team works the ball out of the end zone, they have just eight seconds to score a goal at the other end. The five red players that were pressing in the end zone cannot defend outside the end zone and are not allowed to recover, therefore the blue attacking team has a 10v5 overload as they try to score, as shown [1b].

[1b]

1. Once the possession team works the ball out of the end zone, they have just eight seconds to score a goal
2. The five red opposition players that were pressing in the end zone remain locked in the zone and cannot recover to defend against the blue attack
3. The blue attacking team should exploit their 10v5 overload to create a scoring opportunity

If the red defending team wins possession, either in the 22-yard end zone or anywhere in the playing area, they should quickly counter-attack, while the blue team that lost possession must work hard on their transition by making recovery runs and adjusting their shape to defend their goal, as shown [1c].

[1c]

1. If the red defending team wins possession, they should quickly counter-attack
2. If the blue team loses possession they must work hard on their transition by making recovery runs and adjusting their shape to defend

We would play two sets of 8-10 minutes, so both teams would have the opportunity to act as the team playing out and the pressing team. In each set we should expect 6-7 playing actions.

ATTACKING PATTERNS

We set up on a full pitch with a goal and a goalkeeper at each end. Ten mannequins are set out representing the formation used by our next opponents. In this instance they are set up in a 4-4-2 structure.

We’re using 10 outfield players set up in a 4-5-1, with two deep midfielders. Play starts with a pass-out from the goalkeeper. The team plays the ball in a set passing pattern, which ends with a shot on goal, as shown [2].

[2]

1. Ten mannequins are set out representing the formation used by the next opponents 
2. Play starts with a pass-out from the goalkeeper at the back
3. The team run a series of set passing patterns, which all end with a shot on goal

We can work on several patterns and structures using this same format.

If it is felt necessary by the coach, the mannequins can be replaced by players in some or all of the positions, to act as shadow opponents – this can increase the realism of the playing actions.

We would run this as 12-15 seconds of playing actions and then swap for another pattern. If needed we can also work on physical conditioning within this exercise, such as intensive retreats and different types of team press.

COUNTER-PRESS

We set up a playing area of 18x18 yards, with a mini goal set back from each corner. We’re using 13 outfield players split into three teams of four plus one neutral player. The blues and the reds play 4v4 in the middle of the area, along with a yellow neutral who plays for the team in possession. There is one green player on the outside of each side of the playing area.

The blues start in possession and they must make eight consecutive passes to gain a point, while the reds press and look to win the ball, as shown [3a].

[3a]

1. The blues start in possession and they must make eight consecutive passes to gain a point
2. It’s 4v4 in the middle of the area but a yellow neutral plays for the team in possession and gives them an overload
3. The reds press and look to win the ball

If the reds win possession they must make two passes before they are free to score in one of the mini-goals. The blues transition to defence and must look to aggressively counter-press to prevent the reds from scoring, while the greens can also defend the mini-goals from the outside by shifting across to block any shots, as shown [3b]. 

[3b]

1. If the reds win possession they must make two passes before they are free to score in one of the mini-goals 
2. The blues transition to defence and look to aggressively counter-press to prevent the reds scoring
3. The greens can defend the mini-goals from outside the area by shifting across to try to block any shots

This action by the greens, in an 11v11, would represent blocking passing lines to players away from the action.

We would run this practice three times, lasting four minutes each time. This gives every team the chance to play each role.

ATTACK v DEFENCE

We set up a playing area of 60 yards in length using the full width of the pitch, with a full size goal and a goalkeeper at one end and two unguarded mini goals at the other end.

We’re using 14 outfield players. A red team of six is made up of a back four and two central midfielders (plus the goalkeeper), while the blues have eight players – a central defensive midfielder, two centre midfielders, two wing backs, two wingers and a striker. 

With this set up, we would run three defending situations which will be played as a sequence before we finalise them in an open play scenario.

First, the blue central midfielder starts with the ball and gets a free pass to one of the wingers. The winger attacks and plays a cross, while the striker runs onto the cross and finishes with a shot on goal. While this scenario is played out, the red defenders press and try to win the ball back, as shown [4a]. 

[4a]

1. In the first of three defending scenarios, the blue centre midfielder starts with the ball and passes to one of the wingers
2. The blue winger makes an attacking run and crosses
3. The red defenders are coached with set objectives and must try to stop the blues scoring

Immediately after the first play has finished, a coach plays a ball to the attacking blue full back on the opposite side to the previous play. The red defending team get back into their defensive shape and try to push up the back line. The blue full back beats the red defender to cross – the blue striker will try to score from the cross while the red defenders attempt to clear the ball, as shown [4b].

[4b]

1. Immediately after the first attack is dead, the attacking full back on the opposite side to the previous play drives forward with a new ball served by the coach
2. The red defending team gets back into defensive shape to stop the attack and tries to push up the back line 

After the second attack is dead, the goalkeeper then plays a ball to the blue centre midfielder on the halfway line. The blues try to launch a third attack while the reds work on pushing up the line and getting into their defensive shape as quickly as possible, as shown [4c].

[4c]

1. After the second attack is dead, the goalkeeper plays a ball to the blue centre midfielder on the halfway line and the blues try to launch a third attack
2. The reds should try to push up their defensive line and if they win possession they can now either gain one point by making five passes under pressure from the blues, or they can counter-attack the mini goals and gain two points for scoring in the goal

If the reds win the ball in any of these scenarios, they can counter-attack either of the mini goals while the blues counter-press quickly and aggressively to stop them scoring. The reds can also score a point by making five consecutive passes under pressure from the blues.

MODIFIED 10v10 GAME

We set up on three-quarters of a pitch, with a goal and a goalkeeper at each end and a halfway line marked across the centre. We’re using 20 outfield players split into two teams of 11 including keepers. The reds are the defending team, set up in a 4-4-2 formation, while the blues are the attacking team, set up in a 4-5-1. The blue goalkeeper starts with the ball and the blues play out from the back under pressure from the red centre forwards who press high. If the blues manage to cross the halfway line with the ball, the red centre forwards are now locked in their attacking half of the pitch until their team regains possession, as shown [5a]. 

[5a]

1. The blue goalkeeper plays out from the back under pressure from one of the red centre forwards who presses high 
2. If the blues manage to cross the halfway line with the ball, the two red centre forwards are now locked in their attacking half until their team regains possession

If the red defending team successfully wins possession they can score one point by stringing four consecutive passes together, while the blues should counter-press quickly and aggressively against them. But if, on transition, the reds manage to pass to one of their centre forwards who are still locked in the attacking zone, they can gain two points if the centre forward scores in the goal, as shown [5b].

[5b]

1. If the red defending team successfully wins possession they can score one point by stringing four consecutive passes together 
2. If the reds manage to pass to one of their centre forwards who are still locked in the attacking half, they gain two points if the centre forward scores in the goal
3. If the blues lose possession, they should counter-press quickly and aggressively

This way, the blue attacking team will be working on cover and balance after losing possession.

This is a great game to apply the team’s defending habits, ideas and structures worked on in previous exercises. We would play this for 24 minutes, swapping team roles at the halfway point.