Week 2

Outcomes

• ✓Players can identify their starting position within a 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1 shape on the pitch
• ✓Players can hold a compact defensive block and shift together as a unit
• ✓Players can recognise when their line is too high or too low and self-correct
• ✓Players can execute a switch of play from one side to the other through the midfield

Equipment

• 10 balls
• 30 cones
• 6 pinnies
• 2 full-size goals
• 1 whiteboard

Run of show

1. 1. Activation & FIFA 11+ Warm-Up

   15m

   Set up: Grid 20×15 yds. Players in pairs with a ball each pair.

   How to run it: Start with 3 min of light passing in the grid while performing walking warm-up movements: arm swings, hip openers, ankle circles. Progress to dynamic movements: karaoke steps across the width, high-knee skips, walking lunge with overhead reach, and lateral bounding. Finish with 4×20-yd runs at 70% with a deceleration in the final 5 yds. Pair Nordic holds: one holds, partner anchors ankles — 5 reps each side.

   • ›Karaoke: drive the trailing hip through — full rotation
   • ›Landing mechanics on lateral bounds: absorb through the ankle and knee
   • ›Never skip the hamstring holds — they're injury prevention, not optional

2. 2. Technical Practice – Shape Walk-Through & Shadow Play

   15m

   Set up: Half pitch. Cones mark the positions of each outfield player in a 4-3-3. Coach on the touchline. No defenders.

   How to run it: Coach calls out positions verbally — players jog to their cones. Coach then calls 'shift left' — all players move one body width left. 'Shift right' — reverse. 'Compact' — all lines step in 5 yds. 'Stretch' — all lines expand 5 yds. After 5 min, add a ball and have the team pass through the shape, maintaining their structure as the ball moves. Freeze play to correct spacing every 2–3 passes.

   • ›The shape is a living thing — it breathes with the ball, not independently
   • ›Every player must move when the ball moves — not just the player on the ball
   • ›Lines: defensive, midfield, attacking — they compress and expand together
   • ›Reference the closest teammate, not just the ball, to judge your position

3. 3. Skill Game – Positional Possession (6v4)

   15m

   Set up: 40×30 yd pitch. 6 possession players maintain their positional shape against 4 hunters. No goals — possession is the objective.

   How to run it: 6 players must keep a recognisable shape (2 lines of 3, or a 2-3-1) while keeping possession against 4 hunters. Ball in play for 3-min rounds. After each round, coach pauses and asks one player: 'Where should the player on your right be?' Count consecutive passes as a score. Hunters must press in pairs — not individually.

   • ›Shape first, then technique — know where you are before you touch the ball
   • ›If a line gets broken by the press, the whole team adjusts — it's a chain
   • ›Hunters: press the ball-side player and cut off the pass across the line

4. 4. Conditioned Tactical Game – Switch of Play

   20m

   Set up: Full pitch, two teams of 7. Wide channels (5 yds from touchline) are free zones — no defending allowed in these channels.

   How to run it: Teams play normally but a goal counts double if the build-up includes at least one switch of play across the pitch. Coach calls 'switch' if a team hasn't changed the point of attack in 60 seconds — they must immediately attempt one. After 12 min, remove the free zones but keep the double-goal incentive.

   • ›Wide player: be available in the free channel — move before the ball arrives
   • ›Switch the ball with pace — a slow switch gives the defence time to shift
   • ›Midfield: be the switch player — check, half-turn, long pass to the opposite wide
   • ›Defensive team: track the switch — don't ball-watch

5. 5. Scrimmage – Team Shape Emphasis

   15m

   Set up: Full pitch, both teams with GKs, normal rules.

   How to run it: Free scrimmage. Both teams play with the shape they walked through earlier. Coach observes without intervening unless the shape collapses entirely. Between halves, one player from each team describes where they thought their shape was strongest and weakest.

   • ›Don't abandon your position to chase — trust your team
   • ›When in doubt, get back into shape rather than pressing alone

6. 6. Cool-Down & Debrief

   5m

   Set up: Players seated in a circle.

   How to run it: Static stretch led by a player (30 sec quad, hamstring, hip flexor, glute each side). Coach asks: 'What's the most important job of the player who isn't on the ball?' Allow 2–3 players to answer. Summarise the week's sub-theme.

   • ›The best players read the game 2–3 seconds ahead — today was practice for that
   • ›Being in position before the ball arrives makes everything else easier

Outcomes

• ✓Players can reorganise into a defensive shape within 3 seconds of losing the ball
• ✓Players can exploit a transition moment with a quick forward pass within 5 seconds of winning the ball
• ✓Players can hold their line and avoid being played behind during a high press
• ✓Players can describe what 'compactness' means and demonstrate it during a defensive phase

Equipment

• 8 balls
• 25 cones
• 8 pinnies
• 2 full-size goals
• 1 set of colored training vests

Run of show

1. 1. Activation & FIFA 11+ Warm-Up

   15m

   Set up: Two parallel cones lines 12 yds apart. Players jog between them in a group.

   How to run it: Dynamic sequence: slow jog, side shuffle (both directions), defensive stance shuffles, backwards run, and then 'reaction': coach shouts 'Go!' — players sprint to nearest cone. Follow with FIFA 11+ balance work: partner-assisted single-leg balance and slow-motion single-leg squats (3 each side). Finish with 3×20-yd transition sprints: 10 yds forward, 5 yds backpedal, then sprint forward 5 yds.

   • ›Defensive shuffles: stay low, don't cross your feet, keep hips square
   • ›Reaction sprint: first step is explosive — drop your hips before you go
   • ›Transition sprints replicate exactly what happens in the game

2. 2. Technical Practice – Transition Triggers

   15m

   Set up: 25×20 yd box. Two teams of 5. Two small goals at each end.

   How to run it: Play 5v5 in the box. Every time a team wins the ball, they have exactly 5 seconds to attempt a shot or a forward pass beyond the halfway line. If they take more than 5 seconds, possession resets. Coach counts loudly to 5. After 5 min, add a rule: the whole team must be in their half of the box when defending.

   • ›Transition: the moment you win the ball, look forward first — not across, not back
   • ›Team without the ball: press for 5 seconds then get compact — don't chase all game
   • ›Player who wins the ball: protect it for 1 second, then attack

3. 3. Phase Game – 8v8 Transitions on Full Pitch

   15m

   Set up: Full pitch. Two teams of 8 with GKs. Normal pitch markings used as reference lines.

   How to run it: Any team that wins the ball in their own half has a free 10 seconds to play forward — the pressing team must hold their shape and cannot press for those 10 seconds. This exaggerates the transition to train both the attacking and defensive reactions. Run for 12 min; the last 3 min remove the rule for normal play.

   • ›Attacking in transition: go vertical first — only go wide if the central route is closed
   • ›Defensive transition: nearest player closes the ball; everyone else gets goal-side
   • ›GK in transition: be vocal — 'time!' if the counter is dangerous, 'go, go!' if you want them to play

4. 4. Conditioned Tactical Game – Compact vs Counter

   20m

   Set up: Full pitch. Team A (7 players) defends compactly with a 4-2-1 block. Team B (7 players) attacks. After each possession change, the roles don't automatically flip — coach signals with a hand signal which team should press and which should hold.

   How to run it: Coach signals: fist = press high; flat hand = hold shape and stay compact. Players must respond instantly to the signal regardless of where the ball is. Play for 18 min; change signal every 3–4 min. Award 1 point for a goal, 1 point for successfully holding the compact shape for 45+ seconds, 1 point for a successful counter that creates a chance.

   • ›Reading the signal and acting on it IS the skill — don't wait for a teammate
   • ›Compactness: no gap bigger than 5 yds between any two adjacent players
   • ›High press: the front 3 initiate; if they can't win in 8 seconds, drop and reset

5. 5. Scrimmage – Free Play, Transitions Scored

   15m

   Set up: Full pitch, normal rules, both GKs.

   How to run it: Normal scrimmage. A 'transition goal' (scored within 6 seconds of winning the ball) counts as 2. Coach tallies transition goals separately. Between halves, announce the transition goal count and praise specific examples.

   • ›Transition goals are the most exciting plays in the game — hunt them
   • ›Remember: compact defence creates the turnover that leads to the counter

6. 6. Cool-Down & Debrief

   5m

   Set up: Players lying on the grass for a proper cool-down.

   How to run it: 1 min of slow jogging in a circle, then guided static stretching on the grass: hamstring, quad, hip flexor, glute, calf. Coach leads 2-min debrief: 'What does transition mean? What's our trigger to press? What's our trigger to hold?' Players answer in one sentence each.

   • ›Recovery starts now — don't skip the cool-down; it affects Saturday's performance
   • ›The best teams in the world win the most 'micro-battles' in transition