#12 to 15

From possession to goal scoring

FIFA, 24 May 2022

FIFA
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To get the session underway, players partake in a 4v4 multidirectional possession game. The second exercise consists of a small-sided game that grows from a 1v1 upwards to a 4v4. The session ends with a zonal 7v7 played across two goals.

Warm-up: 4v4, multidirectional possession game

Organisation

  • Organise a pitch for players to play 4v4
  • Teams can score points by keeping possession: a sequence of ten successful passes in a row is worth one point
  • If the other team wins the ball, it tries to do the same
  • You can also ask each team to simply try to keep the ball for the longest period of time

Ways to make the exercise easier

  • Reduce the number of passes needed to score a point

Ways to make the exercise harder 

  • Increase the number of passes needed to score a point
  • Limit the number of touches each player can have before passing the ball
  • Make the pitch smaller

Great questions to ask the players

  • Can you try to make the pitch as big as possible by spreading out as a team?
  • Can you show me how you can communicate as a team?
  • When you are trying to win the ball back, how can you do so effectively?
  • What problems arose for your team during the activity?
  • How did you solve them?

Safety tips

  • Create safe zones between each playing area

Skill development: 1v1 to 4v4, two goals with goalkeepers

Organisation

  • Organise equal teams, including fixed goalkeepers, and give every outfield player a number
  • Each player will have the same number as an opponent
  • Call a number and the relevant players run onto the pitch as quickly as possible and play 1v1 until one of them scores or the ball leaves the pitch
  • Progressively call more than one number at once, so it becomes 2v2, 3v3 and 4v4. You can also let the goalkeepers compete 1v1
  • The first team to score ten goals wins
  • Make sure you have as many balls as possible at the side of the pitch

Ways to make the exercise easier

  • Start with no goalkeepers
  • Match up the players by ability

Ways to make the exercise harder

  • Call uneven numbers from each side, for example players 3 and 4 from one team and player 7 from the other

Great questions to ask the players

  • Can you listen very carefully for your number and sprint onto the pitch when it’s your turn?
  • Can you decide very quickly if you can reach the ball first to be the attacker or you should take up a defensive position?
  • Can you be positive on the ball in a 1v1 situation?

Safety tips

  • Only call new players onto the pitch once the playing area is clear

Game application: 7v7, 2 goals with goalkeepers, positional game

Organisation

  • Organise two equal teams of 7v7
  • Split the pitch into thirds; play 2v2 in each zone, plus the goalkeepers
  • Normal rules, but let the players decide how to restart the game (e.g. kick-ins instead of throw-ins, or starting from the back after every goal)
  • Ask the players to referee their own games
  • If you have more than two teams, rotate every few minutes or make multiple pitches
  • Try to use large goals if possible
  • If you have an odd number, it’s fine to play with uneven numbers in one zone
  • The players have to stay in their zone, but give them a chance to change zones, and the players they are up against, every few minutes

Ways to make the exercise easier

  • Give one team more players
  • Start with no goalkeepers
  • Teams can pass straight from zone 1 to zone 3 (i.e. defence to attack), bypassing zone 2 (the midfield)

Ways to make the exercise harder

  • Give one team fewer players
  • Require teams to play through each of the thirds before they can score

Great questions to ask the players

  • Can you discuss as a team the best way to play this game?
  • Do you always have to play the ball forwards from the middle zone?
  • Which zone did you like playing in best and why?
  • Why is it important to be ready to problem-solve during this game?

Safety tips

  • Create safe zones between each pitch if you have more than one

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