Zonal Defense: Move forward or backwards
In every movement of the ball we do, the defensive situation changes. Did the ball go forward or backwards? Is the player on the ball pressed? Does he have options to pass the ball to a free player? These are some of the several decisions that we have to practice.
Small Sided Game 2v2 high pressure
Small sided tactical game in which we will reward the correct high press. The player will learn how to fix the distances in front of the player with the ball, will learn how to delay the game defensively, coverages, defensive exchanges and when the right moment to do a tackle is or to make the team in possession lose the ball.
Supports: Superiority/inferiority
Ball retention, body orientation (One of Guardiola’s biggest obsession) to receive the ball from the exterior neutral player who has advantage through the guided discovery learning method. The defensive anticipations will make the attackers be on the right body shape to retain the ball and switch the play.
4 Lanes: Create Superiority 6vs6
In a simple structure applicable to any style of play with a line of 4 in defense + 1 midfielder. You will find a lot of key tactical concepts in this drill: Shiftings, coverages, closing interior passes… and, in order to attack, a wide variety of offensive tactical concepts will be needed.
Defending Attacks from the Flanks
Being in a good position for defending a cross is as important as moving forward across the field in order to avoid a shoot. To create offensive situations to reach the goal’s rival in a better position it is the next step when attacking.
Extreme Transitions 2v2
To attack bearing in mind that we have to be ready to defend is one of the most difficult things to put in your players’ mind. If we do not practice it, they will not internalize it.
Conditioned Game: Switching and Stretching
If a team, while progressing on the field, opts for switching the play, for playing wide, for alternating passes to the interior and the exterior and it is positionally balanced, will be successful when attacking. This drill is a conditioned game that will orientate your players.
Conditioned Game: Min. 87 1-0
The ideal player is the one who manages either the offensive and defensive tactical situations. The direct attack looking for the second ball Is one of the parts of the game that the coaches need to know how to manage despite it might not be his most preferred part. As coaches, our objective has to be fo our players to learn as much as possible, not just only about what we like.
Conditioned Game in reduced space: Generate Finishing Options
The tactical finishing is the coordination of the last technical (Pass, dribble, feint) and tactical (check in and away, offensive timing etc) actions. The only useful way for practicing them is in a real situation and, in this case, adding a provocation rule which will improve the decision-making of your team when finishing.
Rondo + Small Sided Game
Is there a better combination of drills for your players’ enjoyment as a rondo + a small sided game? What if we include this in a drill where you practice the transition, support, making runs to lose the defender, dropping back and regroup, the game pace and working on the passing lines?