Practice length:
75-90 minutes
Emphasis:
Fitness 20% | Technical 40% | Tactical 40%
If players at this age level have had the proper emphasis on technique in their earlier years, they will now be quite technically skilled. They will establish comfort with the ball at their feet and under pressure, receive with good control, proficient in 1v1 situations, good at juggling, and they’ll know several good moves that help them create time, space, and beat opponents. If not, you’ll need to spend more time on technique than recommended below. Tactically, they should be quite good at 3v3 to 6v6 and keep-away games. The pace of development quickens at this time due to the acceleration of physical and metal maturation. The demands of skill training and training loads should increase thus provoking improvement in mental toughness, concentration and diligence. Awareness of tactics within the game becomes an important fact of the learning process. Players should be able to perform all training under pressure of the opponent with increased speed.
Technique:
- Dribbling: Encourage to take player on 1v1 — Feints/moves; Keep possession — shielding/spin turns. More Coerver moves and other fakes
- Receiving: Quality first touch — take balls out of the air/turning: All surfaces, on the run.
- Shooting: On the run; On the turn; From all angles/ crosses, volleys. Emphasize Finishing vs. just shooting the ball.
- Passing: Short, long, bent, crosses, driven, chipped. All surfaces, ALL on the run.
- Heading: To goal (Shoot/glance), to pass, to clear (attack and defense).
- Tackling: Proper techniques.
- Goalkeeper: (more advanced technique, tactics, should attend camps)
Tactics:
Increase Tactical Speed (decision making under pressure) 1,2, and 3 touch games combined with play is expected and consistently emphasized.
- Individual: 1v1, in attacking and defense
- Attacking: Keep possession; Encourage risk taking: taking players on in the proper areas of the field.
- Defending: Proper pressure (in front and behind); Channel player; Immediate chase, angles of pressure.
- Small Group: 2v1, 2v2, 3v2, 3v3, 4v2, 4v4.
- Attacking: Keep possession: Support; Combination play: wall pass, take-over, overlap, double pass. Width, depth, penetration; Crossing with proper runs in the box; Simple set plays.
- Defending: Angle and distance of cover. Balance. Delaying and pressing as a group
- Team:
- Attacking: Keep possession. Play the ball away from pressure. Maintain balance in the chosen system. Interchange of positions during the run of play. Encourage attackers to take defenders on in the final third. Keeper as an integral part of the attack (play balls back to the keeper). Players play a variety of positions.
- Defending: Maintain good “shape”. Zonal concepts. Know when to “delay” or “step.” Clear decision on where the “line of confrontation” will be. Maintaining good “pressure and cover” through all three thirds of the field.
Physical:
All fitness work with the ball.
- Flexibility: Static Stretching and Dynamic Flexibility
- Agility: Coordination with and without the ball.
- Speed
- Strength: non-weight bearing, core strength and stability
- Endurance
- Balance
Psychological:
- The game should remain fun and enjoyable. Players should have a passion for the game.
- Imagination/creativity
- Increase demands
- Establish training targets
- Maintain discipline
- Encourage player/teams to watch professional and national teams games on TV.
