2018 Coaching Thread

Discussion in 'Coach' started by stphnsn, Jan 5, 2018.

  1. elessar78

    elessar78 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 12, 2010
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    I have them play, 2-3-1, 3-2-1, and 3-1-2.

    It’s a good test to see if they understand the concepts.

    No. It’s not easy. I get high levels of anxiety because I know I’m setting them up to potentially lose. Most parents aren’t aware that you even shifted formation.
     
  2. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    I understand what the (1)231 does and how it plays. Essentially you have a CB pair, a CM, a forward and two flankers. You get all the movements associated with those positions. (The flankers do double duty as fullbacks and wingers. Short fields and no punting make this feasible.)

    I don't understand what the 321 and 312 does or how it plays. I can see the 312 provides a striker pair, but I don't see where either provides width to the attack. Are the 3 backs CBs or is just one a CB? Both do not look like they are designed to be conducive to movement off the ball. I would be afraid that those systems would actually discourage movement and become quite static like a poorly conducted pattern passing drill.

    What am I missing? Are these systems supposed to model the 433 without a back line? Interesting idea to make everyone midfielders and forwards (except the sweeper keeper of course).
     
  3. elessar78

    elessar78 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 12, 2010
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    So it (kinda) starts with build out.

    2-3-1 we have the CBs split wide and the CM drops into the middle.

    In a 3-2-1, the FBs split wide, CB stays central. The two CMs, either split to each touch line or they both shift to the aide the ball is played.

    3-1-2 is more associated with wide play if you have a capable CM and speedy players. The FBs and two strikers get players out in space
     
  4. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    #504 rca2, Nov 23, 2018
    Last edited: Nov 23, 2018
    @elessar78 Thanks for the explanation.

    Sounds like current USSF conventional thinking. I don't like it because it doesn't follow the Dutch Style principles of play, which I think are the Dutch version of the universal principles of good soccer.

    Specifically the USSF tactics do not follow the principles of compactness and being well positioned when attacking to immediately defend against a counter if the ball is lost. (Ironically USSF has a Dutchman in charge of coaching education.)

    For example: A winger advances the ball along the touch while the supporting midfielder would be inside of him so that if the winger loses the ball, the midfielder is already between the ball and the goal and he is facing the ball. Dutch principles do not allow an adult formation to stretch out even 40 yards from striker to CB and would never have a "hollow center". That is why they don't build out of their own half with long north south passes--because it destroys the compact shape of the team and gives the ball to an isolated forward. Both of which make it harder to defend against a counter if the ball is lost.

    Once the team shape occupies the middle third, long passes are fine because they will not pull apart the teams shape.

    Having 2 CMs shift to the strong side is consistent. Then the only problem would be if both of the 2 weak side players are out by the touch line. Out there, they would both be out of supporting range unless this is a very tiny field. Even if they are within supporting distance, the flank player to the rear should be inside of the winger instead of directly behind or further outside.
     
  5. LCLA

    LCLA New Member

    Arsenal
    Germany
    Dec 11, 2018
    Hi everyone,

    I'm interested in methods to combat performance anxiety. In my experience, the mental state of a player can have huge implications on their performance on the pitch. The factor this plays for the individual player will vary of course but I would love to hear about your approaches on how to prepare your players to perform at their very best on match day.

    I would argue that every player's anxiety is rooted in his/her individual weaknesses. Therefore, my assumption is, that practice sessions as close as possible to real in game situations are the best approach to target everyones anxiety at the same time. However, some situations will be less frequent than others which naturally can lead to exclusions. 1on1 talks with the player can give hints on the cause for their anxiety but depending on their age they might not even be aware of what is causing it.

    Do you have any experiences or tips for practice that can help to reduce your players anxiety?
     
  6. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    There are books about sports psychology, visualization techniques and positive thinking. Standard stress reduction techniques can be applied to sports too.

    How you coach makes a difference. For instance, praising effort instead of success, and using positive reinforcement of when players do well instead of negative comments when they don't do well. Also your demeanor and attitude sets the example for parents and players.

    Are you positive and confident? If you don't trust players to do well, they won't either. Coaches should value every player. My view is that if a coach doesn't give a player what is needed to succeed, that is a coaching failure. (I don't define success as "winning". Tony DiCicco's philosophy was "play to win" not "win".)

    I like to say that attitudes are contagious.
     
  7. LCLA

    LCLA New Member

    Arsenal
    Germany
    Dec 11, 2018
    Hi @rca2 , thanks a lot for your reply and the recommended topics.

    I agree, the coach has a huge influence on the team spirit. I always try to be positive with and around players. Not in an overly excited way but I'm trying to convey my enjoyment and love for the game to them. My believe is, that any player can learn something valuable from the coach and the coach can learn something valuable from any player.

    Besides the psychological techniques, what do you think about targeted practice of skills that seem to be lower during matches. I've experienced many players that have no effort to demonstrate a skill in practice only to seem to lack that exact skill on match days. And not only on the amateur level, I believe we all have seen professional players perform way below their skillset during certain games.

    I've been thinking about creating these "stressfull" situations in practice. My hope would be, that as they find themselves in those situations more often, they will learn to handle them better due to the increased experience.

    This might create negative experiences first however, before it can have any positive impact. Their anxiety might carry over to practice which, in the worst case, will make them lose the joy of playing. I gues what I'm looking for is some kind of exercise that lets them practice these anxiety inducing situations in a "safe" environment. But then again, maybe it is the coach's responsibility to create this environment...
     
  8. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    @LCLA Training is based on the body's adaption to stress. No stress means no adaption. Efficient training requires monitoring performance adjusting the level of stress so that successful performance is neither too difficult nor too easy for the athlete.

    For player development, coaches typically follow a season plan while monitoring performance in matches. For competition, this week's training should be based on the game plan for the next match. Obviously, that is for senior competitive soccer where the objective is match results rather than player development.

    In reality at high school ages and above for instance, coaches may be concerned about both player development and match results. So what coaches are looking at in a match can vary a lot, and how they use the observations can vary a lot too.

    For player development situations matches give the coach feedback about coaching performance. The danger of using development matches to determine training subjects is that training may become focused on team performance rather than player performance and may miss important subjects. Good development plans cover strengths as well as weak areas.
     
  9. elessar78

    elessar78 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 12, 2010
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    It's F'n crap when the club schedules an indoor game at 10 am knowing full well way in advance that we have 90 minute practice the same day at noon. Team basically has to come from indoor, jump in the car, drive 30-40 minutes to get to practice on time. Quality of practice, I can imagine is going to be stellar. These kids will probably have only eaten breakfast at that point (if they even ate that). /rant
     
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  10. Timbuck

    Timbuck Member

    Jul 31, 2012
    Could you cancel the pratice? Seems if you have a game at 10 am that is intense (as games should be) then your practice session won't be stellar.
     
  11. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    That was a sympathy rep :)
     
  12. Soccer Dad & Ref

    Oct 19, 2017
    San Diego
    We've got 2 hour practice tomorrow morning and then indoor in the afternoon. Indoor scheduled independently of the club's practices though.

    These kids can handle it fine though. After the indoor game I could offer to go to laser tag or something similar and they could do that for two hours as well without complaining.
     
  13. Buckingham Badger

    May 28, 2003
    Indoor starts for us this weekend. Most of my kids are also playing basketball on 2 1 of 2 teams. (The teams have games at 8:00 and 9:00 or 8:00 and 10:00 so 2 games done by 11:00. The kids have their first indoor game at 2:00 and one kid invited the team to his birthday party at a indoor trampoline at 4:00-6:00. The kids will be wiped but my family is skiing on Sunday (snow or no snow) so we'll be up and on the slopes by 9:00 or 10:00. The kids can sleep in school on Monday.
     
  14. Zeedahn

    Zeedahn New Member

    Jan 15, 2019
    Hey all, first timer here.

    I'm a D-License coach for a pay-to-play club. Been coaching a little over a decade now.

    I decided to look online for some advice because all my coaching colleagues here are connected to my current club in some way and every coach (at other clubs) knows everyone else and I can't expect discretion.

    My daughter plays for the team I coach, but I already plan on leaving for a new club at the end of the season, because the direction of the club doesn't match what I believe philosophically anymore.

    What I'm realizing is that what's best for my coaching career doesn't always align with what's best for my daughter. Problem is, pay to play is so expensive that if I don't coach for a club I can't afford it. Travel soccer can be an option but only if I can coach her, but then I probably can't coach for pay as well, because my schedule will be too full.

    my options:
    1. Current club:
    Pros: pays well, best facilities
    Cons: too far, philosophically not aligned with me

    2. I'll call them "Idealist United":
    Pros: more affordable for players (1/3 of the cost of typical Pay to play in my area), philosophically aligned (development-focused, style of play)
    Cons: less pay, no team in my daughter's age group

    3. "Winfirst City"
    Pros: close to home, close to work, teammates would be kids my daughter goes to school with, philosophical alignment "depends" (I've heard they can be good or win-first especially with older age groups)
    Cons: average facilities, infrastructure,
     
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  15. stphnsn

    stphnsn Member+

    Jan 30, 2009
    How old is your daughter, and what are her goals?

    You mentioned your coaching career so what are your goals for your coaching career?
     
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  16. Zeedahn

    Zeedahn New Member

    Jan 15, 2019
    Good question. She is 9. Has been playing club soccer since 7. Her goals? I'm not sure. If I'm being honest, she enjoys playing soccer but if I'm reading the signs correctly she wants to go be just a kid too. Weekends are dominated by soccer as you can imagine. She just wants to play with her best friend. Ironically, her best friend is also in her own activities (like swimming). So even if we took her out of soccer, it's not like she's going to play with her friend all the time on the weekend.

    My coaching career goals? I'm happy being a staff coach and continuing to add to my knowledge either through licenses or non-affiliated courses. I saw there's a 3four3 thread in the forum and I've taken their course, for example. Last year, an opposing coach came over and complimented me on how "technical my players are". That's really what I aspire to—to develop very technical players and good people. I've been hamstrung the past few years and the direction the club is taking is that they don't care about producing technical players. Under the new methodology the kids aren't learning anything. A year in and there's a whole group of players who are still not comfortable with the ball at their feet, which is very different than previous years.
     
  17. stphnsn

    stphnsn Member+

    Jan 30, 2009
    1. Decide whether you can continue to coach at a club that you disagree with on philosophy if you determine that club is the best fit for your daughter.
    2a. If you're able/willing to do that, decide which club is best for your daughter at this point in time, and swallow the philosophical differences as they arise.
    2b. If you're not able/willing to do that, decide which clubs fit with your philosophy.
    3. See which of those clubs will hire you.
    4. Decide which of the clubs who match your philosophy and who will hire you is the best for your daughter at this point in time.
    5. Reevaluate decisions as things evolve.

    When you look at the best fit for your daughter, look at the non-soccer issues too: travel, cost, etc. Those are absolutely relevant for determining which is the best club for your family.
     
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  18. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    One point I want to mention. At age 9, a typical child is just before the point in development where they start making independent decisions about their life. Her attitudes and decisions may change several times over the next two years.

    For example, at age 10 Mia Hamm quit soccer. Her parents didn't pressure her, and her dad continued to coach. Six months later she changed her mind and started playing again. Six years later she was playing on the WNT. You just never know what the future will bring.
     
  19. Zeedahn

    Zeedahn New Member

    Jan 15, 2019
    I don't think I'm pushy on this regard. When she first started playing we didn't even think of registering her because she didn't express any interest. One day she just spouted out, "I want to play soccer". And that's where it started. I do think her body language is telling me she likes it but not as a year round commitment. And I'm fine with that.

    I don't even think we need to make the time investment unless she's really into it.

    The only problem is I think that she's too good now for rec and travel.
     
  20. rca2

    rca2 Member+

    Nov 25, 2005
    The message I was trying to get across is not about parents being pushy. The point is that kids change their minds about what they want, and not just once.
     
  21. CoachP365

    CoachP365 Member+

    Money Grab FC
    Apr 26, 2012
    Idealist United. What better reason for them to have a team at your daughter's age group than they have a high level coach joining the staff. Plus you probably have a network through the other pay to play clubs. Surely they all will have some kids your daughter's age that aren't quite ready for pay-to-play with them but their parents have demonstrated their potential so sign the big checks - you seem to be in a good position to take those kids and work with them for lower cost. Seems like a win win for the kids and you and who knows, maybe a couple of years in the parents are happy, they've had good coaching, you start knocking off "Winfirst City" and "TrendyEuroNamewithnoStylisticSimilarities" they no longer view you as a stepping stone.

    Dream big....
     
  22. elessar78

    elessar78 Moderator
    Staff Member

    May 12, 2010
    Club:
    Arsenal FC
    I agree with rca2 and stphnsn—ask your kid what she wants to do. Also, the soccer landscape is crap these days it'd be good to do something different. For these young ages, the technical training matters more.
     
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  23. Zeedahn

    Zeedahn New Member

    Jan 15, 2019
    I asked my daughter last night what she wanted to do and it echoes what I mentioned above: loves playing but sometimes wants weekends off. There have been times where there is something great (like a bday party of a friend's) but she can't go to it because it's on a saturday afternoon and there's usually soccer. The year-long commitment is probably too much for her.
     
  24. TobyJC93

    TobyJC93 New Member

    AFC Bournemouth
    England
    Jan 20, 2019
    Hi LCLA,

    I agree with your this of this coaching style! in my experiences from coaching I feel the best way to develop confident players is to create an environment where they comfortable to try new things and not worrying about the consequences. The best way to try implement this into a session is to have technical aspect where players repetitively practice the skill without pressure, as the session progresses gradually increase the pressure to still allow for success of the skill but there is still an opportunity for players to make mistakes and learn from them.

    Use this alongside questioning to highlight the decisions they can make in these scenarios and you help them get a better understanding of the skill and how to effectively use them in a game scenarios.

    I recently wrote a piece on how to include decision making in your sessions and promote it with in your players:

    https://soccersourcecoaching.com/create-soccer-session-promote-decision-making/

    I hope this helps!
     
  25. danielpeebles2

    Dec 3, 2013
    haven't been on here much, just wanted to brag on my oldest son a bit.

    My boys have both decided they don't want the commitment of playing for a club team, but my oldest has taken to playing indoor soccer lately. He joined up with a club team a friend of mine coaches so that he could have subs to rest his players. So, my rec player ends up scoring in 2 games in a row! yes, he's clearly not to the level of foot skills and coordination of the other players, but he's clearly trying. He's also playing for the local underdog team this winter. A team of local rec players in a league vs mostly select teams, they are 0-whatever. Hopefully he can make a difference, but they have a lot of trouble clearing the ball and give the opposition multiple chances to score. I want to tell him he can't play too far forward if they can't get him the ball, but I'm not coaching the team so I just keep my mouth shut.
     

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