Tag: 9v9 Soccer

Playing out from the Back (9v9)

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, World Football

Nearly every single professional team these days strives to play out from the back. Gone are the days when a goalkeeper would launch the ball up the field to a fast/tall striker to chase on to or nod down. Build-up play has become more and more important in the professional game and youth teams are beginning to take notice too. From a youth development perspective, playing out of the back is far more beneficial for all players than just one player kicking it up the field as far as they can in hopes that a fast, physical player will get on the end of in.

Pressing From The Front (9v9)

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, World Football

Pressing can be defined as the elimination of space and time by the defending team, through quick and immediate action. The goal of pressing is to delay the attacking team a route to go forward, while working as a unit to win the ball back. Pressing from the front takes place in the opposition’s half, … Continue reading Pressing From The Front (9v9)

Best Formations for 9v9 (Part 2)

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, Formations, World Football

Along with the growing popularity of the 9v9 game in youth soccer, is a growing popularity of the examination of different 9v9 formations. We pretty much covered it in Best Formations for 9v9 (part 1), but there are so many formations out there, so might as well explore some of the other best options in this part 2 of Best Formations for 9v9. Enjoy! 

Playing Out From The Back – Full Session Plan and Key Coaching Points

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching

Playing out from the back is far from a new concept, but the importance it has taken on in the last decade has grown immensely in the modern game. Nearly every team strives to play out from the back and with the recent rule change to allow defenders inside their own penalty area on goal kicks, playing out from the back is set to become even more encouraged for every team on the planet. Some less familiar to football may question why teams would want to play the ball around their own half off of goal kicks, rather than just clearing it away to the other half. However, playing out from the back is actually a far less dangerous option...

Attacking Transitions – Full Session Plan and Key Coaching Points

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching

INTRODUCTION Attacking transitions are one of the four key phases of the beautiful game. They can be defined as the movements and patterns of play after the first regain of possession in order to set up the attack. After regaining possession, there are two things that the team in possession can do to quickly catch … Continue reading Attacking Transitions – Full Session Plan and Key Coaching Points

Positions, Roles and Responsibilities in the 3-2-3 (9v9)

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, Formations

Over the past year of coaching 9v9 soccer, the 3-2-3 has become my favourite formation to use. I am a firm believer that the formation of any team should not be based around a club identity or a coach’s personal style of play, but rather based around the team’s style of play and the personnel of the team. However, I have found that the 3-2-3 is fantastic in suiting nearly every type of player and the simple and easy variations that can be created using the formation such as shifting into a 3-1-3-1, allow coaches to tweak and change their style of play to fit the needs of the vast majority of youth soccer players.

Coaching the 3-2-3 (9v9)

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching, Formations

Over the past year of coaching 9v9 soccer, the 3-2-3 has become my favourite formation to use. I am a firm believer that the formation of any team should not be based around a club identity or a coach's personal style of play, but rather based around the team's style of play and the personnel of the team. However, I have found that the 3-2-3 is fantastic in suiting nearly every type of player and the simple and easy variations that can be created using the formation such as shifting into a 3-1-3-1, allow coaches to tweak and change their style of play to fit the needs of the vast majority of youth soccer players.

Individual Marking & Defensive Awareness – Analytical Activity

by Rhys Desmond, posted in Coaching

As the great Sir Alex Ferguson once said - "Attack wins you games, defence wins you titles." This quotation does a fantastic job in highlighting the importance of a strong defence, but it's also important to note that defense also wins you games, which eventually then leads to those title wins that the legendary former … Continue reading Individual Marking & Defensive Awareness – Analytical Activity