Soccer Systems of Play - A Global Perspecive

Today we want to focus on a debate that has been dividing soccer clubs, soccer coaches and even entire countries. The question is:

Should there be a unified system of play that is taught at all age groups, across all soccer clubs across a whole country? Or, should each team, coach and club be left to develop the system of their choice?

The Unified Approach

If an entire country adopts a unfied approach from the ground up, then players arriving at the national team will now the system to perfection and make the team stronger. For example, if a country chooses a 4-4-2 system with two central defensive midfielders, then starting from age 9 or so, all teams can train that system. Coaches will be taught how to develop players and as kids move up in age, they will be very familiar with their roles on the field. This allows coaches to focus on individual technique development, fine-tuning the system, teaching targeted variations. Coaches will not have to spend time retraining new kids arriving on the team with whatever system the coach prefers. Imagine you are taking on a competitive U17 team and everyone knows how to play their position. Or taking on a college team?

The downside is that teams become predictable to their opponents. Teams will find it difficult to adapt to a different system when the game situation calls for it.

The Individual Approach

At the youth level, players have different talents and skills and quite often the coaches have no influence over who shows up to play on the team. Since everyone wants the team to perform at its best, the coach needs to pick a system of play that best suits the abilities of the players and is most effective in their competitive environment. Therefore coaches train each team uniquely. The next year, new players arrive and a new system may be required. This keeps coaches thinking and trying to optimize performance. Players will learn different positions and different systems and become very adaptable. By the time kids reach adulthood, they should be able to quickly adapt to any system.

The downside is that you may develop generations of players who know a little bit about everything and aren't expert at any one thing.

The Answer ?

We will not pretend to know which is the better way. We do propose that each country and club within a country or region thinks about this topic and makes a strategic decision as to how they want to approach player and team development. It could be a unified approach, an individual approach or a hybrid of the two. Once a strategy has been selected, stick with it and implement it with discipline.

Let us all be mindful, that the fundamental goals of soccer have not changed:

1. Prevent the other team from scoring goals
2. Score goals yourself

Then develop the strategies and programs best suited for your environment.

At Soccer Drills and Soccer Practice Plans we offer soccer drills and complete soccer practice plans that fit either philosophy. Our soccer drills are designed to develop players and teams techniques and tactical understanding regardless of system used. Our Soccer Systems of Play book introduces all modern systems of play for you to choose from. Check it out.

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soccer drills

As we approach the new year it is time to plan your 2008 season. We are here to help by offering state of the art soccer coaching resources. Regardless of age group and skill level of your team, we have top quality soccer drills and soccer practice plans for you. That includes specialized goalkeeper training sessions. We also offer clear, up to date, explanation of modern formations and systems of play. Fully diagrammed with coaching tips. Click on any of the links below to get more info.

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soccer ball control drills

It is never too late to improve your soccer skills, however, the older a player is, the more difficult it becomes. It has been said that you need 4000 touches on the ball per week from early childhood on to develop excellent soccer skills.

We have developed a progressive skill development program for a team we are coaching right now. The focus is on ball control and passing. Both are individual development programs that are ideally suited for indoor gym training, but can also be used outdoors.

The concept is to challenge players through 10 levels of skill which they must achieve to demonstrate competence. Today, we want to share with you ball control skill development. If you combine the exercises with the idea of 4000 touches per week, then 2-3 hours per week doing these exercises will give you sufficient touches. The drills today are designed to play balls off a wall from various distances, various angles and various height of contact on the wall.

These exercises can be done outdoors by playing off walls. You may want to use rubber balls so you don't damage high quality and expensive regular balls. Players will improve weight of passing, ball receiving skills and 1/2 touch control. Other benefits are improving anticipation, movement without ball, reaction, decision making and aerobic conditioning.

Note: The number in the "passes" column is the number of consecutive successful passes following all rules a player must complete to move on to the next level.

Please click on the link below to open the program, print it and enjoy the improved skill of your players.

soccer skills - ball control

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Soccer Goal Scoring - Build-Up

A major international soccer league reported on where and how goals were scored. Over 400 goals were recorded and we will provide an analysis of the results, and what it means from a coaching point of view.

What was the build-up to scoring goals?

Goals in the study were scored after:

controlled attacking plays (slow or fast build-ups): 43%

set plays (corners, free kicks,etc.): 26%

counter attacks: 13%

turnovers: 10%

2nd efforts after set plays: 8%

Coaching Implications

The stats emphasize the needs to practice three key areas:

1. a strategy of play leading to scoring chances, be it slow possession, fast break, combination of above,etc.

2. set plays and second efforts after

3. turnovers/quick counters

Too many times coaches emphasize only one or two of the above strategies, thus limiting a good % of chances and making the opponent's defending job easier.

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Soccer Nutrition

THE ULTIMATE NUTRITION GUIDE For Soccer Families With Hectic Lifestyles! Answers the questions of what? when? where? and how much? to maximize your nutritional patterns for soccer performance Click on the book below for all the details:

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Soccer Goalkeeper Warm-Up

Far too often goalkeepers are left on their own while the team goes through their pre-game or practice warm-up and stretching routines. Maybe someone will throw some balls or take some shots at the goalie. At www.soccerpracticebooks.com we believe that a proper soccer goalie warm-up is essential. It gets your keeper game ready and sharp, therefore being in the best mental and physical condition to make the saves that count. Below is a soccer goalie warm-up plan for you to use. Click on the link and a PDF file will open in a new window.

Soccer Goalkeeper Warm-Up

Make sure the warm-up ends with a good save by the goalie !!!!

We offer an entire book of soccer goalkeeping practice plans and drills:

Soccer Goalie Practices

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Soccer Tryout

www.soccerpracticebooks.com has developed a quick tryout package for soccer teams. This package is ideally suited for situations with limited time prior to season start. The package includes information forms, evaluation charts and three tryout sessions. It is available as a free bonus with any soccer book combo deal available at:

Soccer Practice Special Offers

Soccer 4-4-2 Zonal System

The following is an example of systems explained in our Systems Of Play book. In the book are diagrams showing basic positioning for defending, transition, attacking.

Soccer Systems Of Play

OVERVIEW

This system is very popular and used by such great teams as the Dutch National and Manchester United. It is a very effective and versatile attacking system based on coming down the sides as well as spreading the defense and then penetrating through the center. With overlapping outside defenders and midfielders the 4-4-2 quickly converts to a 4-2-4 or 2-4-4 putting immense pressure on the opposing defensive units. The vulnerability of the 4-4-2 lies in its flat back defense which can be torn apart by diagonal runs through its center.

TEAM REQUIREMENTS

Teams employing this 4-4-2 system must have outside defenders and midfielders who are in exceptional aerobic shape as they will both make deep runs to attack and then need to chase back in the team's transition to defense. The zonal system requires a high degree of verbal and visual communication, particularly when defending, to ensure that opposing attackers are challenged and covered. This system relies on the off-side trap and that is where defenders need to be alert to ensure they step
up just before the ball is played in behind them. This requires almost automatic mechanisms because there is little time to provide each other with instructions.
When attacking, the outside players as well as the forwards all need to be able to play 1v1 and place accurate crosses into the penalty area. Both forwards and central midfielders must have goal scoring technique and capability for heading the ball.
Inside midfielders are the strategists who read the play, decide when to come back to support the defenders, where to distribute the ball and when to make penetrating runs down the middle. They require excellent vision and ability to read the position.

COACHING REQUIREMENTS

First and foremost, coaches need lots of time before the season starts to train the key elements of this system. Emphasis needs to be on keeping players in their zones and on getting them to make the right decisions regarding challenging penetrating opponents. Much work will be required to coordinate the off-side trap, which again requires verbal and visual communication. Players with ability to beat opponents 1v1 on the wings with the ability to play effective crosses into the target area need to be developed. Aerobic conditioning and speed training are a requirement, articularly for the outside players.

GAME STRATEGY

This system works very well when attacking just about any other system an opponent might play. It is particularly effective against other zonal 4-4-2 systems or a 4-3-3 system because it outnumbers it in the critical midfield area. The weakness of this 4-4-2 lies in defense, particularly against a 3-5-2 system which can outnumber it in central midfield, thus pulling out a central defender causing difficulty with the integrity of the flat back zone. A 3-4-3 system can also cause difficulties, particularly if its three forwards get additional support
from overlapping midfielders. Ultimately, the strength of your own team will determine if the opponent is forced to make an adjustment to their system during the game or if you need to adjust because the opponent's system is dominating. This 4-4-2 is a very attractive attacking system with risks on defense.

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soccer passing drill - ages 9-12

Each month we will feature a soccer drill from one of our soccer practice books. We will show you the training secrets behind the drill, how and why they improve your players and your team. This information is exclusive to this site. All our soccer drills in all our books have the same depth and training benefits behind them.

Today's soccer drill is Technical Drill #8 from our Youth (9-12)Book. Please click on the link below to open the drill, print it and enjoy finding out the training concepts behind it:

4v2 passing drill

Skill Development

Attackers will learn receiving the ball in a tight space under pressure. They will need to move the ball quickly and therefore will need to set up a good first touch. Passing must be accurate over a short distance. Players will learn the proper weight (pace) of the pass for these short distances. One and two touch passing will quickly become the standard. The small size of the grid will ensure maximum number of passing opportunities in a very short period of time. There is very little opportunity to set up 1v1 moves. Attackers will learn to judge the movement of players and pass into space as well as to the feet.

Defenders will learn to close down players with the ball putting on pressure quickly. They will have opportunities to practice slide tackles at the appropriate times. Once defenders win the ball, passing is not likely an option. However, they will learn to keep possession, mostly through shielding the ball.

Tactical Development

The tactical underpinning for the attackers is to learn how to split the defense. That is why there are more points for a pass between defenders. They will learn to anticipate where spaces between defenders will open up. The player with the ball will need to develop vision and play a ball into the space that either is open or will open up shortly. The other attackers need to recognize the same space at the same time and move into it before the ball arrives. Therefore timing of runs and passes will develop into automatic movement after a while. It is a great drill to have two forwards and two midfielders play against two defenders.

Defenders will learn the key tactical element of "challenge and cover". One defender will put pressure on the ball carrier while the other needs to be in position to (a) challenge if their partner gets beat in a 1v1 or (b) intercept a pass to the most likely target. In particular, the covering defender is responsible to shut down the passing lane and opportunity between them. Once the ball is passed, it is typically the covering defender who now challenges and the challenger will move into covering position.

All players will learn quick transitions from offense to defense and vice versa. As soon as possession changes to defenders, defenders will now need to play a possession game to keep the ball away from attackers. Attackers on the other hand will learn how to apply pressure and win the ball back.

Mental Training

The key mental aspects being trained are anticipation and quick decision making.
Attackers need to make a decision first as to how to receive the ball, i.e. is the first touch a pass or a set up in a certain direction for the pass. Once in possession, they need to anticipate the runs of any of the other three, always looking for the pass between defenders. They then need to decide if the 3 point pass is available or not. There is little time. They also need to be able to change their decision quickly if the play they thought was available has been closed down.

Defenders also need to make quick decisions. They need to decide who will be the challenging and who the covering defender. That will require verbal communication. Once in position, they will need to read the movements of the attackers and anticipate the pass. The decision then becomes whether or not to move to close down a passing lane or to wait and intercept the actual pass. It all depends on what skill level and pace the attackers operate at. So defenders will also learn to judge the abilities of their opponents.

All players will rotate through all positions so they will all learn the responsibilities of various functions. That will make them better in reading opponents and ultimately get them to make better decisions. Communication, both verbal and non-verbal will be required and acquired.

Finally, the point system adds a natural competitive element, forcing players to play quickly and look for the play that gives maximum points.

Fitness Impact

This drill will have lots of short sprints for all players. As the players get better there will be a lot more running. The drill will deliver both aerobic and anaerobic benefits when the players are good enough to keep in constant motion, playing with few interruptions. Initially, however, expect some static breaks and hence the key benefit will be short distance speed development. There will also be lots of turns and quick body rotations so that flexibility and co-ordination should benefit.

Game Application

Playing the ball through lanes between defenders is one of the most effective ways to penetrate a defense. Two attackers can easily play through two, three or even four defenders. For instance, your team has possession in the opponent's half. The opponent plays with a flat back four defense and your forwards are covered by the central defenders. The ball carrier anticipates a diagonal run by the striker in behind defenders and plays the ball between the neares two defenders. That can open up much more space and a quicker attack than playing the ball to the feet of a covered striker with their back to the goal. Also this is a crucial technique to play the ball out of defense when being pressured.

If you watch some soccer on TV you will see this play a lot and you will see its effectiveness. It is valuable in all areas of the field.

Coaching Tips

Introduce the drill to the players, stating the objective and ask them to do a quick demonstration. If they don't seem to understand, step in and show them. Do not explain the entire theory behind the drill up front. Getting them organized and started should not take any more than two minutes.

To get the maximum benefit out of this drill, encourage the players to be in constant motion.

Do not stand in the practice grid, but rather on the side to be able to observe. Let them play without constant interruption or shouting of instructions by you. They need to learn to make decisions on their own. If the drill really is slowing down or the players are not catching on, then take a brief time out and show them what they could have done better in a specific situation. Give positive feedback as they improve. You will notice smoother and faster play as time progresses.

Have two or three grids going at the same time and spend time which each group. That allows the two groups not being observed to develop independence. Do glance over though and see if they are doing the drill or slacking off because you're not there.

This drill may give you new ideas as to which positions might be better suited for some players than where you thought. Some good passers, communicators and decision makers may offer themselves for midfield positions. Quick runners with good sense of spaces opening up may be new candidates for forwards. A forward who slide tackles may be a defender in the next game.

After the drill is done, call everyone in and ask what they learned or thought was important. They should mention most of the points above. The missing ones, you fill in. Take no more than a minute for the review.

If you think the team didn't quite get as far as you'd like, repeat the drill at the next practice, explaining clearly what needs improvement.

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Soccer Tryouts II - Player Positions

If your league is starting soon, you may be involved in running tryouts for your team.

You will need to have some objective way of selecting your players. We believe that a measurement system is very safe and fair. In our last article, we offered a template leading to ranking players from best to worst. Today, we offer you a second evaluation tool.

This model helps you determine which position a player is best suited for. It is based on the skills mostly required for either defense, midfield or forward. Once you have rated your players, you can see which score highest for various positions.

This is important because you need to establish how many players you need for each position. For example, if you wanted 18 players on your team, 2 goalies, 6 defenders, 6 midfielders, 4 forwards, you may find out that the 19th best overall player is your 6th best defender. Now you have a choice. Do I keep one less defender because the 7th best midfielder and 18th ranked player could be converted to a defender? Or, do I keep the 6th best defender and drop the 18th ranked player?

If you are familiar with MS spreadsheets, you can easily adapt the template provided based on your own preferences.

Soccer Tryout - Position Profiles

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Soccer Goal Scoring - Distance of Shots

A major international soccer league reported on where and how goals were scored. Over 400 goals were recorded and we will provide an analysis of the results, and what it means from a coaching point of view.

From Which Distance Goals Are Scored

Goals in the study were scored as follows:

from inside the 6yd (5m) box: 28%

from outside the 6yd box but inside the penalty box: 55%

from outside the penalty box: 17%

In total then, 83% of all goals are scored from inside the penalty box.

Coaching Implications

This confirms what good coaches have been practicing for a long time. They get theri team to work the ball into the target area inside the box, which almost forms a triangle with the 6yd box as its basr and the penalty spot at its tip.

Next we will talk about which build-ups lead to the goals.

the practice books below have many drills emphasizing attacking plays to the target areas.

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Soccer Tryouts I

If your league is starting soon, you may be involved in running tryouts for your team.

You will need to have some objective way of selecting your players. We believe that a measurement system is very safe and fair. Today, we offer you one such evaluation tool. You will see that it is actually filled out from a real tryout we conducted with our team. There are many ways to score and rate players, this is just one of them. We will provide another method in a future article.

The link below gets you to a spreadsheet with all the mathematical formulae intact, so be careful when you make changes.

This model places equal value on attendance, effort and skills, breaking down skills into 7 categories. The last four areas are weighted at 50% of the first three: skill application (in games), movement (off the ball, requiring vision), attitude (leadership, passion, interest, focus) and communication (verbal, non verbal.

There is a % rating excluding attendance for those coaches who place less emphasis on it and a total. You can change the weightings or the categories to whatever you like, this is just one suggested format.

The key then is to run tryout practices in which you can observe these categories and skills and get at least three opportunities to rate each player. You can use the drills from our practice books, they are well suited for this purpose.

Experience has shown that the top 10 players coming out of this rating scheme will provide at least 7 of your future starting line-up.

Soccer Tryout

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Soccer Tactics - Learning By Watching

We all watch live soccer games in the stadium or on TV. Some of us even watch taped classics. When we watch as a supporter of a specific team, or simply as a fan of the sport, we get totally immersed in the competitive aspect, in the drama unfolding, in the great plays, the goals, the referees. It's fun, it's excitement and it is what makes it the beautiful game.

There is another way we can watch soccer games, through the eyes of the learning coach. And learn we can. Instead of reading up on particular team's strategies and coaches, why not watch the strategy, the tactical manouvering, the coaching adjustments unfold before your very own eyes.

It is a matter of mindset and discipline to watch a game and learn tactics. You need to pretend that you are scouting the two teams you are watching.

Try to figure out their formations, not by what the reporter tells you, but by what you see. Write it down.

Then look at defensive and offensive moves of each team. these moves are the result of the game strategy and tactics, they just don't happen. Professional coaches also have a game plan.

If you know something about the teams, like the playmakers, the scoring threats, the unbeatable defender, the weak spots, that will help.

Remember also the basic objectives of each team: Score goals and prevent the other team from scoring. So what are the defensive tactics. How is the other team trying to crack the opposing defense. How are they trying to get players into scoring positions.

Try to notice transition plays - fast or slow. Vertical or horizontal build-ups? Possession game or fast break attack? Lots of switching side of attack or flooding one side? Overlapping or not. And so on.

Try to read each team's game plan and watch the opponent adjust. Take notes. Before your next practice, decide if something you saw is relevant for your team. Incorporate it into practice and try it in the next game.

Learning By Watching - one interesting way of developing coaching skills.

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Ideal Performance State II - Soccer

Today we will discover the ideal performance state (IPS) for soccer players. The IPS is the mental, emotional and physical condition at game time which allows a player to perform at their peak.

Each player has a different IPS and it is up to the coach to work with the players to a)find out the player's IPS and b)help the player create it before the game.

The tool we use is the IPS Evaluation sheet (click on link below). First you ask the player to reflect on past experience. Fill out section A. This will help the player remember any special thoughts, feelings, pre-game activities or special events around the best game they ever played.

Then ask the player to fill out section B for at lease 3 games, ideally 5 games. The answers in the evaluation chart will give coach and player a definition of which emotional, mental and physical state gets a player to perform best.

In conjunction with the answers to part A, develop a specific pre-game routine for each player that creates the IPS. It is important to build the individual pre-game routine into the pre-game preparation for the team. Creativity here is the key.

Ideal Performance State Evaluation Sheet

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Soccer Fitness - Active Rest

It pains me to see soccer practices where players sit down after sprinting exercises or aerobically demanding drills. The same way it pains me to see players sit on the bench after they come off the field during substitutions, half-time or at the end of the game. I have even witnessed entire teams sitting down on the field when a player gets injured and is being tended to.

The practice of coming to a complete rest after strenuous exercise is very dangerous to anyone's health. The heart is pumping at elevated speeds from the stress and then the body stops. Blood is still being pumped at high speed to muscles delivering oxygen, except the muscles aren't moving anymore. That is a precarious imbalance.

That is why the concept of active rest was developed. It calls for a tapering down of the heart rate after it has been elevated. Instead of elaborating on theory, I'd like to give some practical suggestions.

Practice

After elevated heart training such as sprints or high speed drills, have the players work with a ball at walking pace. They can walk it on their own or pass it back and forth with a team mate.

When the team takes a (water) break, don't let them sit down, keep them moving for at least a couple of minutes. If the break extends, then they can sit.

Game

Players on the field need to keep moving. If there is a break in the action, they can walk around (even to the coach for some advice) or do some stretching exercises.

Allow the team coming off the field at half time a few minutes to walk and stretch before you sit them down for the half time talk. Same idea about drinking - have them drink and walk.

After the game, we recommend a slight cool down jog followed by a complete set of stretching exercises before the post game meeting/talk.

It is equally important to loosen up and stretch before going into action. So players on the bench being substituted in need to move, warm-up and stretch before they get on the field.

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Soccer Goalkeeping Drill

Each month we will feature a soccer drill from one of our soccer practice books. We will show you the training secrets behind the drill, how and why they improve your players and your team. This information is exclusive to this site. All our soccer drills in all our books have the same depth and training benefits behind them.

Today's soccer drill is Technical Drill #9 from our Soccer Goalie Practice Book. Please click on the link below to open the drill, print it and enjoy finding out the training concepts behind it:

continuous saves

Diving Technique

This drill practices low and high dives. By standing at one goal post, the keeper has the opportunity to come to full stretch. On the high throw, the keeper needs to push off the leg and dive up and across. On low shots, the keeper needs to crouch quickly, push off and dive down. It is important to keep proper shape. The keeper needs to reach for the ball with the hand that initially is closest to the ball. A lot of keepers want to reach over their head with the hand that is away from the ball initially. We recommend against that. Avoid rotating the body in the air. On the high shots yoy will likely land on your rib cage and the upper leg. On the low shots you will likely touch down with the leading hand/arm. We have lots of pictures showing proper positions on our goalie page (click link above)

Recovery

Recovery for goalkeepers means getting up as quickly as possible after a dive and be back in the "ready position" for the next shot. This drill is excellent to train recovery. After the first save, the keeper needs get up as quickly as possible, turn to face the opposite attacker, get back to the post and be ready. Stress proper and fast recovery.

Reflex

The reflex motion in this drill is in the recovery motion. After the save, the keeper needs to get up and quickly pivot to face the opposite attacker.

Fitness Development

The continuous crouching, pushing off and jumping develops upper leg strength. Be sure to alternate starting position between the two posts to ensure both legs develop evenly.

The recovery process and hustling back to the post after a save combined with the continuous shooting will increase the keepers heart rate. The aerobic base is being developed.

Game Application

Statistics show that most goals are scored in the corners, and the majority of those in the low corner. So this directly trains the most important shot stopping. Also goals are scored from within the penalty box, so these close in shots are ideal for game prep. Finally, goalies always need to recover quickly in games to face the next shot after a rebound.

Coaching Tips

Choose a striker for the shots and the second goalie for the throws. Alternate the goalies.

Soccer Goal Scoring - Where The Ball Hits

A major international soccer league reported on where and how goals were scored. Over 400 goals were recorded and we will provide an analysis of the results, and what it means from a coaching point of view.

Where The Ball Struck

In percentages, here is where the ball went into the net, looking at the goal:

Top Left: 8%
Top Center: 4%
Top Right: 5%
Middle Left: 7%
Middle Center: 8%
Middle Right: 6%
Bottom Left: 22%
Bottom Center: 21%
Bottom Right: 19%

What It means

This clearly validates what good coaches have been teaching their players for ages:
Shoot Low: 62% of all goals were scored low. This makes sense because it is most difficult for goalkeepers, especially tall ones, to get down to the ground. It is more natural for goalkeepers to jump high.

Surprisingly, the numbers were evenly distributed between left, center and right of goal. However, when isolating the corners, 67% of goals were scored in the corners and 33% down the middle.

Combining the above two statistics: Shoot Low into the corners.

From a goalkeepers perspective, the biggest improvement would result from training hard and diligent on saving low shots. Spend extra time and improve your positioning and agility to get the keeper low and into the corners faster. You might reconsider an old technique that has come somewhat out of favour, one which this author hasn't seen practiced very much: the foot save. It is a natural save to stop low shots.

Practice Idea

Take some time at the end of the practice with your strikers and goalkeepers and train shooting low in the corners. It will benefit attackers and goalies. Make a competition out of it. Every ball scored low in the corners is a point for the attackers and everyone saved is two points for the goalies. See who wins.

Next we will look at from which distance goals were scored.

Coaching Tool - Soccer Tactics

Now this tool is not your scientific data processing or template type tool. It's a "let's get back to basics" tool.

I was researching some more soccer game tactics and was reading about how pro teams develop and practice tactics today. They talk about breaking up the field into spaces, assignments of each players within these spaces. Differences between how to act and react depending on which team has possession. Then there is the synchronization of running patterns between players, timing of passes, etc. That is all great for professional teams. And then I thought about how to apply all this to kids and youth teams.

I reflected back on how we were taught tactics and game strategy when we were youngsters. The surprising answer was: WE WERE NOT!! Our coach's (at a competitive level) tactical training consisted of telling us how many defenders, midfielders and forwards we would play with and which players would occupy which positions. And somehow, when we got to play the game, we knew what to do. We knew where to run to, we knew when to pass, we knew the pace of the ball required. We moved the ball up the field and scored goals and we knew to defend against the other team. The game flowed. How was that possible without specific and detailed tactical training???? Magic????

NO MAGIC. We simply used the basic tools most humans are given:

Eyes - Voice - Ears

We saw and recognized the game situation as it happened. We recognized the spaces available and we knew that if we played a pass into space someone would be there. We also read body signals of players physical movements and saw their intended moves before they happened (anticipation). If the ball carrier didn't see the play develop, we used our voices to tell them. If the players without ball didn't seem to be moving to the right spots, the ball carrier would tell them. And of course, we had to be attentive to hearing the verbal instructions.

We knew that we had to get somewhere inside the penalty box to get a decent scoring chance and we knew to keep the other team out of our box.

How did this all develop?

It develop through playing lots and lots and lots of soccer. Today it would be called "small group games". We also played full field pick up games. As with other activities, the key to success was REPETITION.

What did our coach do during practice? Skill finetuning - general skills for everyone and some specific positional skill. Then came some fitness work and then lots of scrimmages.

So I would encourage coaches of youngsters to get their players to use the tools of

EYES - VOICE -EARS.

Is David Beckham Good For U.S. Soccer?

I would like to look at David Beckham's signing with L.A. Galaxy from a soccer coaching perspective. Will David Beckham be beneficial to soccer coaches at the grass roots level and will his move help your team?

Beckham's trade mark are his crosses, diagonal (long) passes and free kicks. He can and does switch play. So you can tell your team to watch him play and look at his skill elements. And that's about it. Beckham is far from being a complete soccer player. To see that, I would tape Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Robben, Deco and many others. So his coaching value from a soccer purist point of view is limited.

Beckham will draw media attention in the U.S. and that will be the biggest benefit. Soccer will become more popular, more kids will be attracted to the sport and registrations at club level will rise. So coaches will have the opportunity to turn more kids to the greatest sport on the planet. And that will be your challenge. To retain the wave of newcomers as a result of Beckham, to teach them, turn them into future stars.

So all in all, the answer is YES. Beckham will help U.S. soccer, the coaches, the teams and the players. It's up to all of us to make it endure past the time he plays.