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Wow that has been some off-season this year with the pandemic and all the changes that have had to happen to get coaching soccer back on track. Some places will still be feeling the after effects but slowly around the world we have been getting back to pre-season work and ready for some normality in the season ahead. Getting the team back together can be a tricky business at the best of times so you can make use of Soccer Coach Weekly’s Pre-season Guide to help you get the team ready for the first matches of the season.
Fortunately young players don’t require the same level of fitness building as older players (whose diets and generally less active lifestyles tend to catch up with them over the break) but there’s still lots of important work to do.
And the chances are you’re dealing with players moving up to a new format of the game this year, so while you worry about that, why not take some of the pressure off by following our 4-week pre-season plan.
And don’t worry there’s plenty of ball-work involved.
Here’s the first in our series of pre-season training sessions that will ensure your players are in the best possible shape for the season ahead.
Our plan helps you and your team shake off the cobwebs as we assemble a targeted, up-to-date schedule that’s as easy to coach as it is great fun to participate in.
The first session back after the summer break gives everyone the chance to link up, brush off the cobwebs and get back to soccer. But the second session is, in theory, where the hard work really begins.
So having eased yourself and your players back into the swing of things, now is really the time to extend thinking, develop ideas and deliver a programme that will see your team flourish.
Pre-season training is in full swing. You’ve recapped the basics of passing, possession and fitness, and there has been plenty of small-sided game-play thrown into the mix as well. But now you want to delve down into what your players are going to produce this coming season.
The start of the season is almost upon us, and over the last three weeks, you’ll have seen your players getting into the sort of physical and mental shape that is going to guide them through the long season ahead.
The final pre-season session is all about stepping up and brushing up. You’re looking for the final pieces of the jigsaw to fall into place with your players, as they put into practice everything they’ve learnt so far.
Possession is so important it is worth spending as much time as you can on getting players reacting to having the ball and making decisions to keep it. They must be switched on and you must get them to look for supporting runs and make the runs themselves. MORE
Keeping possession of the ball is key to winning games – if you have it your opponents haven't got it. There are tactical musts that go hand in hand with a possession game. Being aware of where the ball is and where your teammates are is essential so get your players to have a picture in their head of what they’re going to do with the ball before it comes to them. MORE
Over the next few weeks I plan to work on box-to-box passing moves – counter-attacking play that involves passing and receiving between the lines, well-timed movements and crossover runs, and the exploitation of space behind the opposition’s back line. MORE
One of the things I have done a lot of work on this season is getting my team to play right to the very end of matches. Not only that, whether we are losing or not in the last 10 minutes as a collective we up our game and try to score a goal. It helps us end on a positive note. MORE
Simple answer is “Yes”, particularly if your players regularly struggle to hang on to the attackers they are marking, or if they fail to organise themselves each time they face a corner or free kick. Given a set position, your players will grasp what they have to do and respond well to their part of the defensive responsibility. MORE
in Email newsletters, Shooting
These are five of my go to sessions when I want to coach shooting or to give my players a good workout using both feet to put the ball in the net... it's also the thing they love to do at training better than anything. MORE
