Football/Soccer Session (Moderate): U12 Pre-Season Camp - Playing Out From The Back

Ball Mastery Warmup (10 mins)

Organization:

- As much space as needed, each player with a ball.

Instructions:

- Before the start of session inividual juggling arrival activity.

- Ball mastery warmup, focusing on dribbling using different parts of the foot, changing speed, direction, and allowing the players to incorporate different skills and movements with their dribbling.

- Challenge the players with added pressure of time or # of touches

Coaching Points:

- Preparing ourselves physically and mentally for the session

- What are the different areas of the foot we would use and why?

- Head up as we are looking for open space, instead of going in a circle or a line can we change our direction and try and cover as much of the pitch as possible.

- Close control, one step in between every touch, how is our body position? Position of our foot?

- When taking bigger touches and exploding into space, what changes with our body position?

- Turning to find new space, identifying where the space is and moving into it.

2v2+2 (20 mins)

Organization:

- Space adjusted as needed

- 2v2+2

- Depending on odd numbers, can add a joker in the middle

Instructions:

- Players are trying to play from one target to the other, 2v2 in the middle. Can pass back to the target in buildup trying to penetrate through.

- If given the space, target players can pass through the middle to each other.

- 2:30-3 minutes on, 30 seconds rest and rotation of targets into the middle.

Coaching Points:

- Can our width drag the defenders outside to create an opportunity to penetrate down the middle?

- If defenders stay narrow, can our movement drag them or create space for third player to have opportunity to turn and play forward or to receive a pass behind the defenders to play through.

- Timing of our movement, where can we create space and how can we create space to play in behind/through?

- Communication verbal and nonverbal to give cues to our teammates on our actions and instructions on what needs to happen.

- When we have the ball, can we penetrate? If not, what next? When and why can we play it back?

- How can we commit the defender to one side, or to one player to create space for a teammate?

- How can we lose our marker off the ball to play in behind?

- Looking long to be able to play short.

- Weight of the pass, body shape when receiving unopposed or opposed, what is the difference?

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- When we lose the ball, how can we win it back immediately?

- When we lose the ball, where do we want to force it? How?

- Press or retreat/delay?

- Get compact immediately

- Communication

- When we win the ball how can we allow ourselves the best opportunity to open up while maintaining possession?

- Shape when we win vs when we lose

8v8 Half Field Match (20 mins)

Organization:

- Half field, both teams playing to goal

- Teams are organized in a 1-4-3 and a 1-1-4-2 as shown above

Instructions:

- Normal match rules, both teams playing to goal

Coaching Points:

- Allowing for free play at the end, but the majority of time spent coaching in the game