The Funnel This is the defensive shape the team must adopt inside the 'funnel' area. The team will move in relation to the ball so if the ball goes out wide, the defending team will 'shift' over to stop the play. Defending team stays compact to stop the ball playing through lines. If the ball is in the middle they adpat the current formation. The entire team must all know their roles. The trigger is once the opposition wins the ball.
Stay compact move as a team Stay wiythin the funnel area to avoid spaces Idea is to get opposition to play ball out wide.
This practice has no coaching points
This practice has no progressions
in more ways than one
sportplan_football
Deliberate heading is now out of U11 grassroots matches. Here is how to coach chest, thigh and foot control so your players still win the ball in the air.
Long-range goals doubled at the 2026 World Cup as teams sat deep. Here is how to coach when to shoot from distance, the technique, and the follow-up.
Under FutureFit, your Under-9s stay at 5v5, your Under-11s stay at 7v7 and your Under-13s stay at 9v9. Same pitch, same numbers, one more year. Here is how to make sure that year feels like a step forward rather than a repeat.
