FIFA
#12 to 15

Dribbling competition with small- and full-sized games

FIFA, 08 Nov 2021

FIFA
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Intense from the off, this session targets several crucial skills. It begins with a speed dribbling competition, followed by a small-sided game emphasising the use of wide players, and ends with a full-sized game with zonal progression. The high tempo of the session throughout ensures that the skills developed are transferable to match situations.

Warm-up: 1v1, 2 goals with goalkeepers

Organisation

  • Organise two teams to start from opposite ends: one player at a time from each team runs with the ball and tries to score past the opposing goalkeeper.
  • The players start on the coach's command and race to score – if both players score, only the first goal is worth a point.

Ways to make the exercise easier

  • To start with, if both players score, both goals count for a point, not just the first one.

Ways to make the exercise harder

  • Introduce a chaser/defender.

Great questions to ask the players

  • How can you travel quickly with the ball?
  • Can you try to play the ball out of your feet so that you can run quicker?
  • Can you get your head up and take note of the goalkeeper's position before you shoot?

Safety tips

  • The next players should only start when the pitch is clear.

Skill development: 3v3 including goalkeepers, + 2 floaters in the channels

Organisation

  • Organise a pitch for 3v3, including goalkeepers, plus two floating players in the wide zones (channels).
  • When in possession, either team can combine with the floaters, who have no opposition.
  • Rotate the goalkeepers and floaters every few minutes.

Ways to make the exercise easier

  • Give one team more players in the middle area.

Ways to make the exercise harder

  • Give one team fewer players in the middle area.
  • Limit the number of touches that both teams' (or just one team's) players in the middle can take before passing or shooting.

Great questions to ask the players

  • Can you spread out as a team and try to find the wide players with a pass?
  • Can you receive a pass from a wide player in a shooting position?
  • Can the wide players deliver crosses that can be attacked?
  • Can the players in the middle use the overload to create scoring opportunities?

Game application: 11v11, positional zone-based game, 2 goals with goalkeepers

Organisation

  • Organise two teams of 11v11 and divide the pitch into three zones, with four defenders, three midfielders and three forwards in each zone, plus a goalkeeper for each team.
  • A player in each zone has to touch the ball in order for a team to score.
  • The players are restricted to their own zone.
  • Rotate the players between zones after a goal is scored or after a given amount of time.
  • You can also ask the players to decide how many players they want in each zone.

Ways to make the exercise easier

  • Let teams play straight to the end zone, by passing the midfield, if it's possible.

Ways to make the exercise harder

  • Limit the number of passes in each zone.

Great questions to ask the players

  • Do you always have to play forward from the middle zone?
  • Can you try to find positions in your zone to support the player on the ball?
  • Which zone do you prefer to play in and why?

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