3v3 Break the Press, Turn and Finish

This is what makes the game so rich. Players must first earn the right to attack by progressing the ball beyond pressure. They then have to adapt quickly and exploit the opportunities that follow. As a result, the game repeatedly exposes players to some of football’s most important moments: playing out from the back, pressing to regain possession, creating chances in the final third and defending the goal.

With only a few players, everyone is constantly involved. Players repeatedly experience different roles, situations and responsibilities in a dense, game-relevant environment, making the game particularly valuable for youth development.

Watch the video below for an overview of the game before exploring the design principles behind it.

Part 1: The original game

See how the game connects playing out from the back with attacking the goal, while exposing players to different roles, decisions and transitions.

Part 2: Adapting the game

Two small changes create a quicker game, with more frequent opportunities to play out, adapt and attack the goal.

Played on a 30×25 metre pitch, one team attacks a large goal with a goalkeeper while the other team builds from the goalkeeper towards a target player positioned behind the opposite end line.

Once the target player receives the ball, the direction of play immediately reverses. The team that has played out now attacks the goal, while the opposition must quickly recover and reorganise to defend the goal.

Game design

Players: 3v3 + goalkeeper + target player
Space: 30×25m pitch
Targets: Full-size goal and target player
Rules: Direction changes immediately when the target player receives
Offside: Applies when attacking the large goal, with the offside line set at the edge of the penalty area

Modified games can target different levels of performance, from specific game situations to broader principles of play and individual actions. This game exaggerates two important moments in football:

Playing out from the back against a high press
Creating chances in the final third

Although these scenarios are presented in a reduced format, they retain many of the tactical relationships found in the full game. Players must work together to solve collective problems while repeatedly executing individual technical and tactical actions. The small-sided format also ensures a high level of individual involvement, creating frequent opportunities to practise receiving under pressure, passing, dribbling, scanning, supporting team-mates, defending 1v1 and finishing.

Within these phases, coaches can therefore emphasise different attacking and defensive behaviours, from collective organisation to specific individual actions.

Phase 1: Playing out v. pressing high
The first phase challenges one team to progress the ball beyond pressure and find the target player, while the opposition attempts to prevent progression and regain possession.

Phase 2: Creating chances v. protecting the goal
Once the target player receives, the game immediately shifts to an attack on goal. One team attempts to create and exploit advantages, while the opposition must organise quickly and protect the goal.

The behaviours produced by this game are shaped by its core idea and the way player numbers and roles, space, targets and rules are combined.

More actions and diverse experiences

With only three outfield players per team, every player is involved in almost every phase of the game. As a result, players repeatedly experience:

Building play from the goalkeeper
Pressing to regain possession
Attacking the goal
Defending the goal
Transitioning between attacking and defending

Players also experience multiple roles and perspectives. A player building from the back on one side of the pitch may become an attacker on the opposite side moments later.

This broad exposure helps young players develop a more complete and adaptable understanding of the game.

Different solutions
The game deliberately creates different numerical relationships in its two main phases.

Playing out

The goalkeeper and target player create additional passing options.
These options make it easier to retain possession and progress through pressure.
Success depends heavily on collective solutions.

Attacking the goal

The game becomes 3v3.
Numerical superiority disappears.
Success depends more on movement, dribbling, supporting runs and individual initiative.

The same game therefore exposes players to both collective and individual solutions

Realistic references

The pitch provides realistic references without reproducing the complexity of the full game:

Build-up starts from the goalkeeper.
Progression is directed towards a player beyond the press.
The attack finishes against a goal and goalkeeper.

These references help players recognise situations they regularly encounter in matches while maximising involvement and repetition.

Progression and continuity
The target player provides a clear representation of progression.

In the build-up phase, they represent a player positioned beyond the opposition’s press.
In the attacking phase, they become the player between the lines who can turn and attack forward.

Because the target player provides a moving option rather than a static target such as a mini-goal or end zone, players must identify the right moment, execute an accurate forward pass and connect with a team-mate capable of continuing the attack.

Continuous adaptation
The game’s most distinctive feature is the immediate change of direction. As soon as the target player receives, players must:

Recognise the new situation
Adjust their position
Adopt a new role
Respond to a different problem

The transition also creates a wide range of positional experiences. A player who was supporting the goalkeeper moments earlier may suddenly become the most advanced attacker, while a player pressing high may instantly find themselves defending their own goal.

Realistic attacking behaviour

The offside rule only applies when attacking the large goal:

It prevents attackers from simply waiting behind the defence.
It encourages realistic movement relative to the back line.
It requires attackers to establish useful positions immediately after the transition.

The rule helps preserve the logic of the full game while increasing the challenge of the attacking phase.

As highlighted in the introduction to this series, game design and coaching intervention should complement each other. A well-designed game creates the learning opportunities. Coaching helps players recognise and make better use of them.

This game offers a wide range of potential coaching topics. With younger players, however, it is often beneficial to focus on a small number of priorities and allow players time to experience the game before intervening.

1. Give players time to adjust
The first intervention is often no intervention at all. For many young players, playing out from the back under pressure is unfamiliar and stressful. Rather than immediately correcting mistakes, coaches can allow players time to experience the problem, explore solutions and gradually adapt.

During this phase, the coach encourages players to stay calm, use the goalkeeper as an additional player and remain brave enough to keep looking for solutions.

The objective is not to eliminate mistakes, but to build the confidence and competence needed to play under pressure and successfully progress out from the back. Over time, repeated exposure helps players become more comfortable and effective.

2. Support structure and positioning
As players become more comfortable, the coach can help them understand how the team can create and exploit its numerical advantage.

With the goalkeeper and target player involved, the team in possession has a 5v3 advantage, meaning there will usually be a free player somewhere on the pitch. The challenge is to recognise where that player is and adjust positioning to keep them available.

This requires players to continually read the game and make small positional adjustments in response to the ball, team-mates and opponents.

3. Develop the target player
The target player is central to the game. Coaches can help this player understand the importance of continuously adjusting their position to remain available, creating clear passing lanes and providing an option beyond the opposition’s press.

4. Prepare for the attack
Once the target player receives, the focus shifts to creating a chance. Coaches can help players recognise this change and react quickly:

Where is the space?
Where can I position myself to receive?
Can I face forward?
Can I run beyond the defence?

The aim is not to prescribe a pattern, but to help players recognise and exploit the opportunities created by the transition.

These four coaching themes provide a progression: give players time to adapt, support their organisation, develop the target player’s role and help the team exploit the next phase.

Small changes to the design can significantly alter the experience without changing the fundamental game. The variations in the video demonstrate how the coach can progressively move from a more general, free-flowing environment towards more structured and game-specific situations.

Variation 1 – Introducing the goal-kick rule

In the first version, the goalkeeper can restart immediately following a goal or when the ball goes out of play. The coach then introduces the goal-kick rule: when the goalkeeper restarts, the defending team must remain outside the penalty area.

This small change makes the build-up scenario more structured and more closely resembles the real game. Every restart now begins from recognisable positions, creating more opportunities to work specifically on the organisation and execution of playing out from the back.

The progression therefore moves from a free-flowing environment towards a more structured and game-specific learning environment.

Variation 2 – Shorter pitch and higher offside line

In the final phase, the pitch is shortened by approximately five metres and the offside line is moved forward to the height of the penalty spot.

Although these changes appear small, they significantly alter the experience. The target player is now closer to the build-up, making the forward pass easier to execute and increasing the frequency of successful transitions.

At the same time, the attacking phase changes. On the longer pitch, attackers often need to receive to feet, turn and outplay the last defender before creating a chance. On the shorter pitch, the reduced distance to goal increases the opportunity to attack directly in behind, exploit defensive disorganisation more quickly and finish earlier.

This game demonstrates how thoughtful design can create a rich learning environment by exaggerating important moments of football while maximising player involvement through a small-sided format.

Exaggerate key phases to increase exposure to important football problems.
Maximise involvement so players repeatedly experience important football actions and decisions.
Develop adaptability by repeatedly challenging players to respond when the problem changes.
Expose players to multiple roles and perspectives to support well-rounded player development.
Use coaching to complement the game design rather than replace it.

The true value of this game lies in the experiences it creates. By using a small-sided format to maximise involvement, it repeatedly exposes players to playing out, pressing, creating chances and defending the goal. As players experience these situations from different perspectives and in different roles, they develop a broader understanding of the game and learn to adapt as the problem changes.