Attacking with confidence

Organisation

• Organise the players into three groups, each wearing a different colour
• If you have two or more goalkeepers, group them together; if there is only one, integrate him or her into a group of outfield players
• Teams can move anywhere around the pitch and pass the ball among themselves
• Each team should try to run through and around the other teams to cause interference
• Players should pass carefully through and around all moving players to ensure that their own team retains the ball and keeps moving
• Players can vary the way that they pass the ball between them
• Goalkeepers can also move to the goals, and as groups near the goal, they can pass to or shoot at the goalkeepers to include them in the warm‑up

Ways to make the exercise easier:

• Players can stay in their own divided area of the pitch to begin with

Ways to make the exercise harder:

• Allow teams to pinch another team’s ball if passes are not accurate and the ball is loose and not protected

Great questions to ask the children:

• Can you enjoy having the ball when in possession, without any direct pressure?
• Can you pick your pass carefully to ensure it reaches a team-mate?
• Can you vary the distance of your passes to practise different techniques?

 Safety tips:

• Players should keep their heads up and be aware of all other players in the space
• Create a safe playing area

Organisation

• Organise a mini-pitch and two teams, who wait beside the goals
• Each team has a goalkeeper, who stays on the pitch
• One team begins as the defending team and plays the ball across the pitch to one attacker, who then plays 1v1
• Rotate the players after each attempt
• If the defender wins the ball, he or she can try to score in the opposite goal 

 Ways to make the exercise easier:

• Let the attacker start with the ball in his or her own half

 Ways to make the exercise harder:

• Increase the challenge to 1v2 – vary who starts with the ball

 Great questions to ask the children:

• Can you be positive when you receive the ball and attack at speed?
• Do you have to beat the opponent before you shoot at goal?
• If you win the ball, can you break quickly to score?

 Safety tips:

• Players should make sure the pitch is clear before the first pass is played
• Create a safe playing area

Organisation

• Organise 14 players into three teams of four and two goalkeepers
• Two teams play 4v4 in the middle and the members of the third team are floaters – two play in the middle and two on the outside
• This means the team in possession has an 8v4 advantage
• The floaters always play with the team who passed them the ball and cannot tackle the opposition
• The floaters on the outside of the pitch cannot be tackled 
• Don’t forget to rotate the team of floaters

Ways to make the exercise easier:

• Allow the floaters on the inside to score

 Ways to make the exercise harder:

• Reduce the number of floaters to two on the outside only

 Great questions to ask the children:

• When your team has the ball, can you create space as a team? How?
• How can you defend as a team when outnumbered?

Safety tips:

• Create a safe playing area