Dominating the 1v1.....THE single most important element of a young players game

If you study the game and look for all the situations where players either lose possession or fail to improve possession because they were unable to dominate an opponent when the pressure is applied at the side, in front or behind you will notice that it occurs often - the kind of situation where a player looks to complete a pass....looks again....looks again and despite not having a good option to pass to, the player just passes and hopes for the best.....the mere thought of a simple change of direction didn't even enter their robotic, one-dimension-thinking, 'must pass forward' conditioned brain.

Change direction - 'unpredictable'



All top players excel in 1v1 situations











Teach your players to cope with different types of pressure. Add a few intelligent methods of receiving and varied, purposeful passing and you have the foundation of a development program that you can implement over 6-weeks, 3 months or as a continuous and age-specific 12 month program as part of a long term strategy.


KEY FACTORS ('Gold nuggets' of information)

Change Direction: NO straight lines, Turn AWAY from pressure, fake (clever, deceptive), positive
Change Pace: Sharp, explosive, varied
Change Play: Switch left to right, back to front, back again

Dominating the defender at the side

Dominating the defender in front

Before progressing onto the actual micro elements of a curriculum where players are encouraged to be creative, thoughtful and free from restriction the most important, yet most understated element of coaching and coach education must be discussed.

So much in youth development is focused on 'WHAT' to coach. In 28 days total of a UEFA A License course with the English Football Association, only one '90-minute' seminar on 'communication' was dedicated to 'HOW' to coach. Being able to impart knowledge and experience to players of any age in order to produce evidence of learning and development and not just to dictate what to and what not to do, is vital - and so very often ignored.

Communication....communication....communication - not 'WHAT' but 'HOW'!