Most top managers will tell you they’d rather play badly and win, than not win at all. But should youth soccer coaches take the same stance? Would you rather your team played well and lost a match, or played badly and won? MORE
Sometimes my young players make more sense than I do – and that makes me well aware that I shouldn’t always put a tactical side of the argument as a rule that cannot be broken, so I try not to. MORE
Teams can get into the final third but often fail to convert chances. This focuses on finishing using combinations, passing, crossing and a variety of finishes. MORE
It was the first game of the season on Saturday and the local council had decided to close the main road leading to our club's ground. So the phone calls started coming in thick and fast: "Dave we are going to be late." MORE
My go to activities when players have had been on the summer break are Rondos – and with this being one of the longest breaks from playing due to lockdown I am going to be using Rondos over the next few weeks to get players back up to speed. MORE
There are a number of places where the social distancing rules are not the same as here in England, and I've been asked for sessions that are non contact but not just 5 players so this ssession can be used with any number of players. MORE
Filipe Ragel the Under 19 head coach of Marcet Academy in Barcelona shares a video of his team doing a 4+2 x 2 Rondo which shows the technical and tactical practice MORE
I was asked by a coach this week about what a good warm up was for his U10 team. The answer that I gave him was to use Rondos. You can use them at any age group and they really work well to warm up players for training or matches and they don't involve much setting up. My favourites are the simple ones like 5v2 or a combination that works for your age group. MORE
The key rondos passes can be used in tactical play during matches to play between the lines with the key play splitting lines of defence to create goalscoring runs MORE
This session works on encouraging communication and good passing and getting players to drive into space and hit the target. MORE
I cannot second guess when we will all be out of this strange way of coaching with no opposed sessions but hopefully it will be fairly soon. To that end I continually remind myself that I will be going back to getting my players warmed up in a different way to how I am doing it at the moment. MORE
Get brains and muscles into gear with this quick warm-up for training. It works on movement, agility and vision. MORE
You can use this small sided game as a warm up or warm down – the winning team is the first to have all four players on the pitch and complete 6 consecutive passes. MORE
‘The Dutch 4v4’ is a small-sided game blueprint that has been at the heart of producing a vast array of talented individuals. It is the Dutch way to pick out problems during the match, create similar training models, and use them to develop the players. MORE
Both teams must try to win and keep possession of the ball. A goal is awarded to the team that completes a certain number of passes (a minimum of 5 for younger players). The game is played for a set time period. MORE
Practice plansIf you can improve your team’s ability to quickly switch play from one side of the pitch to the other, the attacking options are far greater. MORE
Practice plansWhen the ball’s between knee and waist height the side-on volley is a very effective technique for getting a strike in at goal. MORE
Practice plansIn professional soccer almost 50% of goals are scored from set pieces (corners and free kicks). So organisation and efficiency in set-piece attacking and defending is crucial to the success of your team. This session focuses on corners. MORE
Breaking down a defence isn't always as simple as playing passes into the space behind – sometimes that space is on the other side of the pitch that your players can exploit. MORE
Here’s a session, divided into two parts, that benefits players in three core elements. At the heart of this is possession; but keeping the ball is only really useful if players know what to do with it, and that’s where patience and penetration come into play. MORE
One of our most important roles as coaches is teaching kids how to behave properly. But more often than not He or she just chooses to ignore bad behaviour. They may be afraid of the consequences of confrontation within the team and with the parents. Whatever the reason, this fear of addressing improper behaviour is doing us all a disservice. MORE
Top tips from former Torquay United defender Aaron Downes, now the assistant manager at Torquay, on how to be better at the back MORE
10/22/2020
I see a lot of statistics on the TV that often show the teams with the most possession don't always win games – you can have the ball as much as you want but if you are not doing something different then it's much easier for the defence to break the attack down. Keeping the ball is a small part of the game, you have to make use of it. MORE
10/20/2020
Creating a way for your team to play is an important part of your season plan. I like my teams to play a fast passing game, and I am pleased that my players like this style of play MORE
10/15/2020
Why is it that when your team has been cruising all game the last 10 minutes sees them lose shape, control and late goals? You can often be just a goal up and disaster strikes just when the final whistle is in sight. Pressure brings its own problems but there are things you can do to stop those late goals going in. MORE
“With the introduction of new ideas picked up from Soccer Coach Weekly, the squad were exposed to new ideas and training drills. This makes a long season easier to remain focused and more importantly help maintain the enjoyment of playing soccer.”
Brett Demetriou, Campbelltown Collegians FC, Sydney, Australia
“As a volunteer coach with the time constraints of a full-time job, I’ve found it so much quicker and easier to plan my sessions since subscribing to Soccer Coach Weekly.”
Dave Scragg, Quinns FC, Western Australia
“Soccer Coach Weekly has improved my training sessions for adults and I instruct my other coaches to use them with kids. I must say that I am happy with what I receive and I will continue my subscription.”
Ivan Casha, Marsa FC, Malta
“We have weekly meetings and the ezine is printed out on the table for our coaches to read and use. If our coaches are ever short of ideas they can always pull one out to help with drills.”
Martyn Rushmore, Cedar Stars Academy, New Jersey, United States
Now all your players can get more touches, make more passes, score more goals and enjoy every coaching session you run MORE
Defence leaking goals like a sieve? Start plugging holes today with these 67 easy-to-coach defending drills and games MORE
