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Taking what I’ve gained here and elsewhere. The go to activities this season in every training session for the high school program will include possession, choreographed pressure and building from the back. My assistant coach is working with the defensive unit on the build up while I work on the choreographed pressure piece with the attacking unit. Please note we have only had two partical days outside due to weather last week so definitely limited when working with the program’s two teams (JV and Varsity) in one small gym. However, here is the contrast compared to the 2013 season.
Last year when playing 5v5 soccer in the gym with no goal keepers, (please note, two touch only, shots have to be one touch and on the offensive half of the gym), using a futsal, my defensive unit had a field day in possession using the build up from the back training. The attacking unit rarely could get the ball let alone convert into a goal.
This year with choreographed pressure, my defensive unit is completely unraveled in their possession and I’m seeing even my JV attacking unit score goals against my Varsity defensive unit. An area of weakness when pressuring is actually with my Varsity attacking unit attacking mids who have a tendancy to stay back versus man up and cover passing lanes against the opponent “up” players. A carry over from last year. However, the little work we managed with choreographed pressure has made a difference in play and gotten the buy in from the attacking players. Gone is the 1st and 2nd defender pressing. Adopted is choreographed pressure that forced play specific to a field of play that gives us an advantage. Also, just need to remember to give up space on opponent goal kicks and throw ins so the opponent plays their ball negative or lateral. Do not want to get kicked or thrown over. Basically we’re encouraging the opponent to play from their back to which we have a tactical piece designed to take advantage of that play with choreographed pressure.
Tonight, we work on goal kicks, both the defensive unit taking them, and the attacking unit choreographing their pressure against it. its a two hour training session and the majority of it will be this activity starting with shadow play from both units to full on pressure game with the defensive unit to flanking targets and our attacking unit to goal.
I will post how I think the activity went. The key points for the defensive unit taking the goal kicks is quickness in getting the ball in play and catching the opponent with their backs toward the ball and getting behind them before they are set in position.
For the attacking unit, they will need to hustle back to their starting positions as soon as a shot is missed, which is addressed in the training activities under choreographed pressure.
Paul-
Choregraphed pressure can be a bitch to teach and execute if everyone doesn’t buy in. It’s doable though, man!!!
This was my team from two season ago, long before the 3four3 content was made available. I was humbled to find out that Brian runs a very similar exercise to what I do when it comes to pressuring from the front. As a coach, I decided to not have our team pressure inside the other teams penalty area when we were at risk of getting too stretched out. If we were already in the area, then yes, of course, go get the ball. But I didn’t want my girls chasing down a ball by themselves for 20+ yards and leaving a gaping hole in the middle of the field for a counter.
This video shows a little bit of it in action. You can hear my cues as well.
Let me know if you want to talk more about it!
I think the video that is in this education series is a solid foundation piece for organized pressure, but I think you need to add live players to the mix and stop and explain very specifically where they need to be in relation to the player they are marking/ pressuring.
After we run the pressure exercise vs cones we add a defense and have them work playing out from the back / The players can then see the movement of the holding mids and why they need to take a specific angle to pressure.
My kids can pressure cones real well but it didnt translate to field in a live game until I added live elements.
NOTE- im not saying dont run the activity. We do regularly. But, I think you need to see it vs live players.
KEY COACHING POINTS- ball starting at the outside back vs center back are two very different things. Ball starting with the center back is much more difficult for my kids to do.
1) if pressuring the outside backs (with the ball) the player MUST pressure using an outside in angle and force the player to play the ball to the middle
2) if pressuring a center (with the ball) back make him play the ball back toward where the ball came from (another good strategy is to pressure the ball to the players weak foot) I like the first strategy as at age 10/11 the kid away from the pressure sometimes arrives to his mark late. The player “ON” initial pressure still has the light switch on.
3) the mids must step to their mark quickly and allow zero space for the mark.
with the switch to 11 v 11 we didnt look too good the first two games doing this but looked real solid the last two with my more experienced players. Some of the new adds are behind the curve a bit.
Not sure if you want to use a tactic like ‘outside in’ and set it in stone.
You can see a few examples in this video where Bayern players just run straight at the ball, not curving their runs or anything. It’s tricky. You’ll notice teams like Bayern, Barcelona, Dortmund, etc. just try to make the field smaller for the player with the ball. That could mean pushing them to the middle, sideline, backwards, or in some cases… forcing them to play forward! This shit is beyond dynamic.
Using the exercise in the 3four3 curriculum is a start, and the core, to pressing from the front. You can take that and run a million different directions with it. Adding in live players is great and necessary at some point. Determining when you’ve reached that point and what you do with it from there is why you make the big bucks! (Or in most of our cases… little to no bucks!!!!) haha
Its interesting to see their press, as you say straight at the ball but it almost appears to be bait and its apparent the opponent is not comfortable with the short possession game against Bayern. Bayern in a way is encouraging the opponent to take a touch to one side or another and with that I’m certain they would go into another gear and attack that touch forcing an errant pass. I think the sophistication of it is their recognition of how they are baiting the opponent and the players in the 2nd/3rd defensive positions are in a spot ready to intercept a pass, but not making it too obvious to the opponent, yet their presense is still sensed by the opponent. To get there….
As for our pressure, we have the mentality, just not quite the choreography down. Regardless it has changed our mindset up top when it comes to defending and that is already apparent. As we improve our play together, with our three forwards pressing and forcing play, the next is getting our attacking mids into the next line of support of the opponent. There is a lack of committing all out with all 5 top players in the press, but again, we are getting results from it even at its current state.
I have started running phase games with the attacking 5 with the defending 5+GK. I address the pressure element of the attacking unit and the build up phase of the defending unit, usually starting from a goal kick. The intent is to get play going within 5 seconds of a ball going out of play. Often we’ll switch teams (Varsity to JV) so both units have to complete wipe themselves off the field so the new teams take it. That transtional element helps keep the fitness level up and the team that is better organized is more likely to get play off and resultant chance at scoring (defending to two outside targets).
Tonight is a recovery day and we’ll introduce the midfield pressure activity as a “game”. It is my intent to use that activity to help create that mindset of our attacking mids linking in with the front three on the press. An activity so they can see how to properly support the press by engaging the passing lanes and anticipating/reading a play to get a jump upon the passing attempt of the opponent.
At 10 years old we want to make our opponents play as predictable as possible so we use the outside in angle. Important to note we teach it as an outside shoulder not a wide arch. also, most backs are placed on preferred foot. Rt back is usually rt footed and a left back (less often but still statistically more often on the left) so pressuring outside in creates the ball being played with the weak foot and reduces the in game decision making. To be honest the footedness of the player is not the key but forcing the ball centrally in front of their own goal with predictability is.
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