Small-sided games with constraints.
16 drills
16 drills
Horst Wein's small-sided game that inspired the DFB and FIFA 3v3 formats: 3v3 without keepers on 25x25 yards, each team defending two 3-yard goals set apart on its end line and attacking the two opposite ones. Players learn to look up and switch the point of attack.
Classic form of the Dutch (KNVB) 4v4 method: in 25x20 m you score by dribbling the ball under control and stopping it anywhere on the opposition end line, which forces the defence to protect the full width of the pitch.
2v2 game in a 20x20 m square with mini goals where the defending pair learns the roles of first defender (pressure) and second defender (cover), and how to swap them with every pass.
The Hoff interval protocol moved into the game: 4v4 without keepers on 35x25 m, four 4-minute bouts at 90-95% of maximum heart rate with 3 minutes of active recovery.
Raymond Verheijen's football conditioning game for the final weeks of pre-season: 4v4 to two mini goals on 30x20 m, two sets of six 1-minute repetitions with 2 minutes of rest.
In 27x18 m, two full-size goals side by side at one end and four cones at the other: the coach serves four attackers who must solve a 4v3 while three defenders protect both goals at once.
5v5 game with keepers in 40x32 m: a 14x14 m central box that cannot be passed through or dribbled into forces attacks down 4.5 m wing channels, where the winger gets three free touches before crossing.
7v7 match in 45x27 m with two 9 m end zones: goals can only be scored by entering the opposition end zone after a pass, and the edge of the zone acts as the offside line for the defence.
Two numbered teams wait on the touchlines of an 18x14 m pitch with mini goals; the coach rolls a ball in and calls one or more numbers: the players called sprint on and play a 1v1, 2v2 or 3v3.
Themed 3v3 game in 25x20 m with four 2x2 m squares in the corners: score by dribbling the ball into one of the two opposition zones, no offside and unlimited touches.
Continuous 2v2 game in 20x10 m where one defender must touch the opposition goal before defending: his partner faces a temporary 2v1 and learns to delay until help arrives.
A back four plus two strikers defend the big goal against a 4-1-2 circulating the ball; the pitch is split into two vertical halves and the defence must shift as a block until all four are in the half where the ball is.
Three defenders protect a 3 m goal against two attackers in 30x20 m. Work on the defensive triangle: pressure on the ball, angled cover and a third man giving depth; the defenders counter into two corner goals.
Two teams of seven on 30x40 m split into two zones, with two supports per team in 5 m end strips: five passes, pass to the support, one-touch lay-off and a finish into one of the two mini goals; the team that wins the ball immediately looks for its supports at the far end.
7v7 game with two stopwatches on the touchline: after every loss the team has 8 seconds to win the ball back and, once it has, 10 seconds to get a shot on target. The game Rangnick used to turn transition into an instinct.
4v4 small-sided game in 35x25 m in which each team defends two mini goals. Forces players to switch play, read the free goal and defend as a compact unit.