Soccer coaching session for support play skills

Use these soccer (football) drills to coach players so they are comfortable running off the ball. This soccer coaching session will help them think about where they are in relation to their team-mates and how they can best find a position to receive a pass and offer support.

Soccer drill to coach players to be comfortable running off the ball

Running off the ball soccer drills

Diagram 1, above: You need a large area, usually half a pitch, to run these two soccer drills.

Start player A and player B 10 yards apart with the X marker five yards ahead, and the Y marker five yards further on. You can use disc cones to identify these markers.

Player A starts with the ball and plays a pass ahead of player B to run on to at the X marker. Player B runs with the ball to position B1. Player A runs behind player B (so they don't get in the way of the ball) to position A1, then checks back to collect a pass at the Y marker. Player A runs on with the ball to A2 and the exercise progresses.

Advance the soccer coaching drill

Diagram 2, above: Advance the soccer coaching session by adding another player to make teams of three.

This is a more creative session, requiring individual movement and passing all around the training pitch. Walk your players through this soccer drill first. They don't have to get it exactly right, as long as they follow an ABC pattern.

Run the soccer drill

Give each team one ball. Start the players in a row with a five yards gap between them.
Players B and C start their runs to positions B1 and C1.
Player A passes to position B1 for player B to run on to.
Player B passes to position C1, where player C runs on to the pass.
Player A runs around the back of player B to position A1 to receive the pass from player C.
Player B must be moving around the back of player C to position B2 to receive a pass from player A, and so on.

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