Match preparation

This session is focussed on preparing players for an upcoming opponent, specifically with regard to getting them to understand their options for playing out from the goalkeeper against the exact formation they are likely to encounter. It also prepares them to play against the opposition when outnumbered in certain areas of the pitch.

I like my teams to play an aggressive, penetrative and well-organised style of football and I try to give players an understanding of the scenarios they are going to face during the next game. I want players to be conscious of what the opponents are likely to do.

Football is made up of both predictable movements and unpredictable events. The predictable movements include set plays, patterns of play and the use of passing lanes, while the unpredictable events include things such as the skills of the individual player, the weather conditions and so on.

During the week leading up to a game, I want my players to have built a picture of all the predictable movements of the game, so all of their mental energy will be focused on the unpredictable.

If we were playing on a Saturday, I would run this at training on a Thursday.

What do I get the players to do?

Part A: the set-up

We set up between the penalty boxes, using the full width of the pitch. We have a goal at each end, and a ready supply of balls around the pitch.

We’re using 20 outfield players and two goalkeepers, playing 11v11, as shown [1]. As we’re setting up to face a specific upcoming opponent, we get one team to line-up in the formation we expect the opposition to use (here we’re using 4-3-3) and they have unlimited touches. We coach the other team (here set-up in a 3-5-2 formation) and we are restricting these players to two-touch, although this can change depending on the style of aggression of the opponent – and by that I mean how aggressively they press the goal kick and how many passes on average it takes before they win the ball back.

1

These drills are to make players aware of how we want them to play out from the back in our next match. Before this part of the session begins, I underline to the players our pressing area (the area in which we press forwards with the ball). I also explain which players should begin the move forwards and how they do it. I also make them understand what happens and what they do if they break past the first pressing aggression of the opposition and progress into the central third of the pitch.

We then spend 15 minutes working on the below options of playing out from the back.

Playing out option 1

In the first drill the goalkeeper plays out from the back through two central defenders who combine to pass out to one of the wing backs, who has moved into space to receive, as shown [2a]. The midfielders and the strikers also move to find space to support the wing back, who plays the ball inside to combine with his team mates and then receives the ball back higher up the pitch, as shown [2b].

2a

2b

We let them play for a while and then we stop play and restart the drill from the goal kick, so they continue to focus on their passing patterns for playing out from the back and working the ball through the middle third.

Playing out option 2

The second option of playing out involves passing to one of the centre backs, who receives and moves inside with the ball to find the space to pass. He then plays down the line to the wing back, who combines with a midfielder to pass forwards into the path of second midfielder, as shown [3a]. On receiving the pass, the second midfielder takes the ball over the halfway line and plays into the path of one of the two advancing strikers, as shown [3b]. As before, we allow them to play for a while, before restarting play with a goal kick.

3a

3b

What do I get the players to do next?

Part B: playing outnumbered

We use the same set-up again but now we focus on simulating a situation when we are outnumbered in certain areas of the pitch [not shown].

We start from the kick off and we play an 11v11 game as normal for 15 minutes. However, at certain points we call for two or three of our players to kneel for five seconds, leaving the team we are coaching outnumbered. We do this in areas where we could be outnumbered in a match, or imbalanced because some players are tiring.

We usually remove two players who are possibly connected in the defensive phase, like a full back and a winger, or a chain of three players. We set the players a question – how do we react if this happens? The drill is interrupted and I let them discuss solutions and then ask them to implement their plan when we restart the game.

How would you put this in a game situation?

Part C: 11v11 game

We finish the activities by asking the players to combine what has been learnt from the first two parts of the session into an 11v11 game, played between the penalty boxes of the pitch with a goal at each end, as shown [4].

4

For this game, both teams have unlimited touches. We play for 15 minutes.

What are the key things to look out for?

We want to see that players can think for themselves as much as possible. They must show they understand the predictable elements of the game and what they have to do in certain situations, but they must also demonstrate they have the intelligence to interpret and react to less predictable situations.

We like to let the players find out the solutions to problems themselves and we want to see them coaching each other, either when they are playing or when we stop the game.