Hey, I would like the forums advice on how to play successful soccer, (ie, smooth transitions down the field, and/or constant possession) with basically 5 or 6 players out of a starting 11. The reason why im asking this is because on my team, we have about 5 or 6 good players that i've played with for a while now, and we trust each other, and know when or when not to pass, and when to take players on. When were on the field together, and next to each other, our passing and movement is phenomenal, and many teams in our league can't get the ball if it remains within these 5 or 6 players. But the problem is that we have horrible players playing as the other 5 or 6 players in the starting 11. These include the wingbacks, who either kick the ball away in a random manner even though we could clearly keep possesion if they just passed it to someone else, or another who refuses to clear a ball from danger, and rather make passes out of the starting third and are forced to lose possesion due to their inhability to find passes. This goes along with some of the other positions, such as left mid, striker, center back, where the players either get the ball and refuse to make the simple passes to keep possesion of slow down the play to keep possession, or others who just kick it in the general direction of our players without seeing their positioning. I usually play holding mid, and act as the "engine" of the midfield, as the coach describes. My other 2 or 3 friends that play in the starting 11 play as a right winger, striker, and attacking mid respectively. It works between us when we play down the right hand side because once i get the pass to the right winger, our striker and attacking mid knows how to make runs to get into position, and he knows im always acting as a support behind him just in case. but once it goes anywhere else on the field, the play breaks down and we can't string 4 or 5 passes togethor. What is your advice to play succesful soccer with just a couple of players.( and there is no use in teaching the other players, as there is no time, or talent there for them to improve, except for making them realize that if we (the group of 5 or 6 players) call for the ball, they should give it to us.) tl;dr: how do i play succesful soccer with only 5 good players in a starting 11
It sounds to me like you wanna exclude the other players from the game because they are not good enough, if you do manage to do that you'll find that you will be playing 5 v 11 and still get nowhere, I'd suggest you guys find a team that's worth your skill. Go higher league where everyone will be at your level and you'll find that you enjoy the game a lot more.
It is a team sport. Every team, even Barca, is composed of individuals of varied abilities. The key to success is to effectively involve as many of your players in the attack and defense as possible. Players typically only have the ball for a few minutes in a match; most of the time is spent playing off the ball. The weakness you have described is a lack of ball skills in 4-5 field players. Except for professional teams, that is a typical soccer team. Even having a more defensively oriented left mid is typical. These are typical keys to success-- Control the midfield so that the opponent does not penetrate further When your better players are in possession of the ball, don't give up the ball quickly, keep possession among you until you get a quality opportunity for a shot (if you are ahead become more conservative about maintaing possession). Work hard on improving your team defense (it is not limited by lack of ball skills) On defense press your opponent denying them space and options (keep a compact shape) Work on improving your player's off the ball movement (a good supporting run pulls defenders and creates space for others) Make sure you have "mobility" in the attack so that the attack can be coming from any direction (the ball can provide the mobility through passing like Barca or else you can move players around the field so that sometimes the attack comes from for example the left side). This question should be asked of your coach (tactfully) in discussing the coaches' game plans and how you can improve your play.
The obvious answer is to make those other 5-6 players better. Pair strong players with weak players. There are things that players even with a bad touch can perform well at, such as off the ball movement and runs, assisting with team defense, and communicating situational awareness. Simply pass plays, wall passes etc. can be vital parts of a game that can easily be taught and coached depending on age. This is generally a problem for your coach, but if you lack a true team captain (your coach hasn't selected one, or whatever depending on age, league etc) take charge or have one of your friends who is a good leader, not necessarily the best player, take those player under his/your wing and work with them extra outside of practice. Feed them the ball more, if you guys already play well together, you're only good as your weakest link, involve those players more act practices, not less. If none of this is doable and your at an age where results are starting to matter, your only other option is to try for a better team, however this may be one of your, or your friends greatest opportunity to truly lead a team and experience what it's like to take an under achieving team to victory. Good luck, let us know how it goes.