The FA’s Four Corner Model will not be a new concept to coaches who have been on any of the English governing body’s coach education courses in recent years.
Looking at developing players technically, physically, psychologically and socially, the model underpins values and ideas surrounding player development at all ages and ability levels, and encourages coaches to consider the relationship between all four corners.
While it should be fairly straight forward to achieve pre-determined technical and physical outcomes during training, it is not as simple when it comes to consciously tapping into the psychological corner.
Incorporating technical, physical and social elements too, here are a few ideas for those struggling with the psychological corner.
01 DECISION MAKING
Games can be incorporated into the warm-up which get players’ brains functioning and challenge their decision-making skills in a fun environment.
Game to play: Relay games add an element of competition. Separate players into small teams - each has three sets of three coloured cones (e.g. three white, three red, three yellow) jumbled a set distance ahead (say 10m). Teams send one player at a time to swap two of their cones over - aiming to be the first to arrange their cones into three solid lines of the same colour, like a Rubik’s cube.
02 CONFIDENCE
Whether it’s with language you use (“Can you try something new?”) or placing specific conditions on games (e.g. three points if you beat a player 1v1), there are a few tactics to improve confidence. For anxious players, it can even be as simple as showing the players before practice what they will be doing, so they have a structure in mind.
Game to play: Separate players into two teams. The defending team always starts behind the goal, with the attacking team starting on halfway. The defending team plays with two players, the attacking team chooses how many players to use. One player will get five points if they score against two defenders, two players will get three points, three players get two points and four players get one point. This game encourages players to be confident but also enables those with less confidence to play in a way they are comfortable.
03 CONTROL
Players’ control can be worked on in game-realistic environments, through conditioned small-sided games.
Game to play: One team is 2-0 up with 10 minutes to go. Can they handle the pressure and manage the game successfully? You could up the ante by saying a first-time finish is worth three goals - can they problem solve in this situation? Coaches can also challenge players’ control and mentality by deliberately refereeing a game in a biased way to challenge their reactions.