Coach / Tactics
Tactics
52 ideas of team play in six families, with 8 more outlined and being built, each one drawn to scale on a full-size pitch and played out step by step, with the mistakes to look for and practices that train it. Press play, or go through it a step at a time.
Build-up
Getting the ball out from the back and up the pitch without losing it.
From 5v5
Width and depth
When your team has the ball, spread out. Wide players stretch the pitch across, a striker and a deep midfielder stretch it from front to back.
From 5v5
Play out from the back
Start attacks with short passes from the goalkeeper, instead of kicking it long and hoping.
From 9v9
Make three at the back
When two strikers press our two centre-backs, the holding midfielder drops between them. Three against two means one of us is always free.
From 11v11
The inverted full-back
When we have the ball, a full-back steps inside into midfield instead of running down the wing. It adds a passer in the middle and guards against the counter.
From 9v9
Find the player between the lines
A pass that skips their midfield and finds a teammate in the space in front of their defence, able to turn and run at it.
From 11v11
Long ball, then the second ball
A planned long pass to the striker, with midfielders already close enough to win the loose ball that follows.
From 5v5
Use the keeper to switch
When one side of the back line is pressed, pass back to the goalkeeper and let them switch the ball to the free side.
From 11v11
Rotate on the wing
The full-back, the central midfielder and the winger swap places in a triangle, so the players marking them lose track.
From 9v9
Play through the full-back
When their forwards block the middle, our full-back is often the free player. We pass wide, and the winger and nearest midfielder make angles so the full-back always has a pass forward and a pass back inside.
Outline · from 11v11
The box midfield
Two holding midfielders and two number 10s make a square in the middle.
Chance creation
Turning possession into shots: combinations, runs and the final ball.
From 7v7
Switch the play
When the other team crowds one side, move the ball quickly to the other side, where there is space.
From 7v7
The third-man run
A passes to B, and B passes first time to C, who was already running. The defenders watch the first pass and miss the runner.
From 9v9
The overlap
The winger takes the ball inside; the full-back runs round the outside into the space the winger left.
From 9v9
The underlap
The winger stays wide with the ball, and a teammate runs past on the inside, into the gap between the full-back and the centre-back.
From 5v5
The cut-back
Get to the byline, then pull the ball back along the ground to a teammate arriving around the penalty spot.
From 9v9
Run in behind
The striker waits on the shoulder of the last defender, then runs into the space behind as a teammate looks up to pass.
From 11v11
The false 9
The striker drops into midfield. If a centre-back follows, there is space behind for the wingers to run into. If not, the striker is free to turn.
From 11v11
Attack the half-space
The half-spaces are the two channels between the middle and the wings. A player receiving there can pass, shoot or cross, and is hard to mark.
From 11v11
Fill the box
When the ball goes wide for a cross, four players attack four different spaces: near post, far post, penalty spot and the edge of the box.
From 5v5
Draw a defender, then pass
With two against one, carry the ball at the defender until they commit to you, then pass to your free teammate.
From 9v9
Overload to isolate
We put four players on one side so their defence slides over, then switch it quickly to our far winger, who is left one against one with space.
From 9v9
Crossing zones
When the ball goes wide, each runner attacks a different zone: near post, far post, penalty spot and the edge of the box. One cross, four chances.
Outline · from 9v9
Midfield rotations
Midfielders swap places so markers lose track.
Pressing
Winning the ball back high up the pitch, together, on a signal.
From 9v9
Press on a trigger
Wait, stay compact, and press all together when something tells you to: a pass to the touchline, a bad touch, a pass backwards.
From 9v9
Press their goal kick
When they take a goal kick and want to play short, push up and mark a player each, so the keeper has to kick long.
From 11v11
Show them inside, then trap
Block the pass down the line so their only option is a pass into midfield, where three of us are waiting to close in.
From 9v9
Press with a cover shadow
Press the ball on a curved run, so the opponent you are leaving behind stays in your "shadow", hidden from the passer.
From 9v9
Press the back pass
A pass back to their keeper is a signal: the whole team steps up 10 metres or more, and the forward presses the keeper.
From 9v9
Press the throw-in
When they throw it in, we mark every short option tightly and use the touchline as an extra defender. A short throw is a chance to win it; a long one is often a loose ball.
From 9v9
The wing trap
We leave the pass out to their full-back open on purpose, then close in from three sides as it arrives: the winger blocks the pass back, a midfielder blocks the pass inside, and our full-back waits down the line.
Outline · from 9v9
Player-to-player press
Every player picks one opponent and follows them high up the pitch.
Defending
Protecting our goal: shape, the back line and one against one.
From 5v5
Delay, cover, balance
Three jobs when defending: the nearest player slows the attacker down, the next one covers behind, and the far one balances across.
From 11v11
Move as a block
Without the ball, the team keeps its shape and slides across the pitch together, like one unit, staying close to the ball.
From 11v11
The low block
Drop deep, close to our own box, in two narrow lines. Give them the ball out wide and in front of us, but no space behind or between.
From 11v11
The mid block
Let their defenders have the ball, wait in a compact shape around halfway, then press as soon as the ball comes into our half.
From 9v9
Step up together
When the ball goes backwards, the whole back line steps up at the same moment, which squeezes space and can leave their forwards offside.
From 7v7
Defending crosses
Stop the cross if you can. If it comes in, every defender is goal side of a runner and facing the ball, with someone guarding the cut-back.
From 5v5
Show them down the line
Defending a 1v1 out wide: stand slightly inside the attacker, side-on, so the only way to go is down the line, away from goal.
From 5v5
Defend when outnumbered
When two attackers come at one defender, back off, stay between them, and slow everything down until help arrives.
From 9v9
Defend the half-space
The channel between our full-back and nearest centre-back is where runners hurt us. When the ball is wide, the full-back goes to it, the centre-back slides into the gap, and the midfielder tracks any runner all the way.
Outline · from 11v11
Defending with five
Wing-backs drop in to make a back line of five.
Outline · from 7v7
Defending the box
Who marks whom, and who blocks, when the ball is in and around our box.
Transitions
The seconds after the ball changes hands, when both teams are out of shape.
From 5v5
The counter-attack
The moment you win the ball, look forward. Attack quickly while the other team is still spread out.
From 7v7
Win it straight back
The moment you lose the ball, the nearest players press it at once, for about five seconds, before the other team can get away.
From 5v5
Get back into shape
When you lose the ball and cannot win it straight back, sprint back towards your own goal, inside the ball, so you are between it and the goal.
From 7v7
Rest defence
While we attack, a few players stay behind the ball, already in position to stop a counter-attack if we lose it.
From 5v5
The keeper starts the counter
When the keeper catches a cross or a shot, their attackers are all near our goal. A quick throw to a wide player can start a counter before they get back.
From 7v7
Win it, then get out of the crowd
When you win the ball in a crowd, their players will try to win it straight back. The first pass goes away from the crowd, to a teammate facing the other way.
From 7v7
Defend the counter
When we lose the ball with players forward, the nearest defender slows the break down instead of diving in, and everyone else sprints back goal-side.
Outline · from 9v9
Counter against a high line
Using the space behind a team that pushes up.
Set pieces
Corners, free kicks, throw-ins and kick-offs, worked out on the training ground.
From 7v7
Attacking corners: low and short
Two corner routines without headers: a short corner to beat the first defender, and a low ball to the edge of the box.
From 7v7
Defending corners
A simple mix: a few players guard spaces, the rest mark the most dangerous attackers, and someone is ready to start a counter.
From 9v9
Throw-ins that keep the ball
A short routine: one player moves away and comes back short, takes the throw at their feet and plays it straight back to the thrower.
From 5v5
Pass-ins and dribble-ins
In 5v5 and 7v7, the ball goes back in from the sideline with a pass or a dribble, and opponents must stand back. Use it: it is a free chance to attack.
From 9v9
Free kick around the box
A simple low routine: one player runs over the ball, another rolls it square, and a third shoots round the end of the wall.
From 9v9
Defending free kicks
The keeper decides the wall. The wall covers the near side of the goal, the keeper covers the far side, and everyone else marks a runner.
From 9v9
A kick-off routine
A rehearsed kick-off: pass back into midfield, then a long ball into the channel for a winger who is already running.
From 7v7
Penalties
A simple routine for both ends. Our taker picks a corner early, our keeper stands on the line, and everyone else waits on the edge of the box, outside the arc, ready for a rebound.
Outline · from 11v11
Long throws
Using a long throw like a corner, and defending one.
Outline · from 9v9
Defending throw-ins
Marking the short options and guarding the space down the line.