The midfield screen is a defensive line, shielding defenders from penetrating through balls and 1v1 situations. Use this session to get your midfield working as a unit to give the defenders behind them some protection.
Three teams of four using a 40 yards by 20 yards playing area.
For the game, you can use cones for goals and set up two pitches to accommodate more players if necessary.
| Warm up | Session | Developments | Game Situation | Warm Down |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 minutes | 15 minutes | 15 minutes | 10 minutes | 10 minutes |
Team “A” has a maximum of five passes to get the ball to team “B”, who repeats. Every time each team is successful, they get a point.
Team “C” wins a point for intercepting the ball or if the other teams reach their maximum number of passes.
All passes must be below head height and each player is allowed a maximum of three touches per sequence.
Once one team wins five points, the teams rotate.
Team “A” players have up to five passes before having to pass to team “B”. Team “C” players move to intercept.
This time, if team “A” reaches its fourth pass, the player in possession can dribble into the playing area to find space to make a pass.
To increase the difficulty for the midfield screen raise the number of passes the teams can make, or the number of touches each player can have.
Team “A” players can dribble into the playing area after making four passes. But now they risk being tackled.
Play 3v3 on a 30 yards by 30 yards pitch. Place three small goals across both end lines. The attackers must find space to receive a pass before shooting at goal. The defenders must work as a team to close down the ball carrier and try to cut off the pass or block the shot.
When a goal is scored or the ball goes out of play, the teams swap roles.
The defenders work hard to close down the ball carrier before he passes for a team mate to shoot.
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