Wingers of desire

To play like Manchester United you need to attack at speed and use wingers to devastating effect. Use this drill to create a potent attacking force that piles on the pressure in the box

Why use it?

This session develops quick, instinctive interplay on the wing, finishing with a cross into the danger area. It helps young players to fine-tune the quality of delivery and encourages inventive combinations on the wing.

Set up

Use the penalty area of your pitch. We’ve used seven players in this session. You need bibs, plenty of balls, cones and a full-size goal with a goalkeeper.

How to play

Use a goalkeeper and one defender, with two attackers on the edge of the penalty area and two wingers. The
player just outside the centre circle plays a ball into the two attackers, who combine with a winger in front of the penalty area to set up a scoring chance. The second ball is played into the two wingers, who combine to play the ball down the wing and have two possible crosses – near or far post.

Technique

This session needs good communication and combination play from wingers and attackers. Good passing and crossing is
essential to make the session run at pace. Attackers must be aware of covering the far and near posts and making themselves available for balls into the box at angles.