Jan, 2009
TRANSITION GAMES
If we want our players to be able to think on the field, to be ready for what comes next, and to be alert to opportunities as they present themselves, then we need to give due attention to the area of transitions. Here are a number of activities from the GFC Academy & Teams curriculums that will help to develop players with the ability to transition back and forth between attacking and defending (gaining possession and losing possession).
Thinking Ahead. Soccer is game of transitions. Because the game never stops the players must continually adjust to everything going on around them. The most profound transitions in the game are between winning and losing possession of the ball. Here the ability to think for oneself and the ability to make decisions quickly is critically important. Players must be able adjust to losing the ball to the opposing team, and to gaining possession of the ball. What is more, soccer players need to think ahead of moment of losing or gaining possession of the ball. They need constantly ask themselves, "What if the ball is given away at this moment? Can we defend? What if we win the ball at this moment? Can we attack?" To help players develop the thinking skills required to handle the transitional nature of soccer, coaches must guide players to the necessary insights into the game.
Continuous Action Games. These setups involves non-stop action where after a player/team score they go directly into defending, and where after conceding a goal or absorbing an attack a player/team immediately go on the attack. These activities provide a constant source of transitional play opportunities. The numbers can be varied depending on level and objectives (1v1, 2v2, 3v3, 2v1, 3v2, etc.). Below we show 1v1 Continuous Action to 4 Goals (Attack 2 Goals, Defend 2 Goals). Here when the red player scores a goal (or misses a goal), the next white player enters the field to attack. That same red player who completed her attack now must immediately defend. The setup below shows a shooting line inside of which all goals must be scored. This line forces the attacking player to penetrate to score (1 training objective), but still allows the shooter to score in a position from which he can transition to defending (a 2nd training objective). This would not be possible in a 1v1 game where goals have to be scored by dribbling over end-lines.
We also show 3v3 Continuous Action to 4 Goals (Attack 2 Goals, Defend 2 Goals). Normally this game is played with 3 new players entering the field of play from their own end-line after the opposing team either scores are misses over the end-line. Within this setup however, the starting points for players can be varied to create exposure to specific situations or to focus on certain types of play. For instance, the variation shown below has 1 white player entering with the ball from his own end-line, while 1 white player enters from the midline, and a third white teammate enters from the opposing team's end-line as a target player. This variation provides the opportunity for players on the ball to explore counterattacking with early penetrating passes, for instance. And at the same time, the game forces the team just having completed an attack to consider how to transition to defending.
3v2 Transition to 2v1 Counterattack. This is a good activity for working on 2v1 & 3v2 attacking in transition to winning the ball. It is an even better activity for teaching players to think about defensive shape while in possession of the ball because they know that when their attack ends (loss of possession, goal, or ball over end-line) they will need to be able to transition to defending immediately. This game can be altered in a variety for ways to change the dynamics, depending on training objectives and level of players. For example, 3v3 with transition to 2v2 counterattack is more challenging. This game can be made more complex by simply adding numbers, such as 4v3 with a transition to 3v2 counterattack.
The setup shows a team with 17 players. 3 white players attack 2 red players. Upon completion of an attack (goal or ball over end-line), 2 new red players enter the field with a ball. The 2 red players attack against 1 white player. Rules for which white player stays on to defend can vary. Options include player who started with the ball on the previous attack, or player in best position to defend. After the 2v1 attack, 3 new white players enter the field with a ball to attack the existing 2 red players. Etc.
(5+2) v (5+2) Counterattack or Build the Attack. This is a good training game for helping the entire team to make better decisions about when to quickly attack, versus when to slow things down in order re-organize a more deliberate attacking effort. The setup shows 2 teams of 8 (7 field players + gk). Teams play 7v5. If the team with 5 wins the ball, the can choose to attack the team with 7, or bring on their 2 outside players to join them. As shown below, to bring on their 2 outside players, the white team must play them into the game with a back pass. As soon as they make this choice, the red team must take 2 players off the field, giving the team now in possession a 7v5 advantage. This game forces players to look for conditions for a successful attack (adequate numbers, adequate space, players facing forward, etc.) This game format can be played easily with fewer numbers (6v4+2 ,4v3+1, etc.).
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