The first 10 minutes of the session will involve a drill that works on crossing the ball into the box. A set of cones will be placed down one side of the pitch. Each player will take it in turns to dribble through the cones and then cross the ball into a target player who will stand on the penalty spot. The player who receives the ball will then take a touch and shoot at goal. The player who passes the ball will then move to the penalty spot so the next player can dribble through the cones and cross the ball. We will run through this drill to give each individual practice of travelling with the ball at pace and then delivering the ball into the box. After everyone has been through the drill twice we will add in a defender instead of cones and this creates a challenge for each player. If they are successful in beating the defender then they again have to get their cross away continuing the practice of the session goal which is to develop the success rate of attacking in wide channels and crossing the ball into the box. We could use a benchmark for
in more ways than one
sportplan_netball
in more ways than one
sportplan_football
Roughly a fifth of Premier League goals come from set pieces, and the gap between teams who plan their routines and teams who do not has never been wider. Here is how the modern set-piece specialists design attacking corners, free kicks, and throw-ins - and how you can apply their ideas at any level.
The next frontier in football coaching is not physical, it is mental. Cognitive load training - the deliberate use of perception, decision-making and dual-task demands inside football drills - is reshaping how the best academies develop players. Here is what it means and how to use it.
If the last decade taught us about pressing, this one is teaching us about what stands behind it. Rest defence is the shape your team holds while attacking, and it is the difference between dominating a game and getting picked off on the counter.
