Soccer drills

6 drills coaches already run every week, each written out with the setup, the coaching points and how to make it harder — and each one animated, so your players can see it before they do it.

Add any drill to a practice plan in one tap and it prints on your run sheet with its time and its coaching cue. Free, and it does not use up a saved play.

• Under-8 and upRondo 4v1Four players on the sides of a square keep the ball from one defender in the middle. It is the most-used passing drill in the game because it trains the first touch, the angle and the decision all at once, and it needs four cones. 12 min 5 per square: 4 on the outside, 1 defender
• Under-7 and upPass and follow triangleThree cones in a triangle and a simple rule: pass to the next cone, then run and follow your pass. Everyone touches the ball every few seconds, nobody stands in a long line, and it works from under-7s to adults. 10 min 4 per triangle: 2 at the first cone, 1 at each of the others
• Under-8 and up1v1 to goalOne attacker, one defender, one goal with a keeper. The defender plays the ball in and closes down; the attacker has to commit them, get past and finish. It trains both halves of the most important duel in the game at once. 15 min 2 at a time plus a keeper, with queues of attackers and defenders
• Under-9 and upGive-and-go to goalThe one-two is the simplest way to beat a defender who is doing everything right. The player on the ball draws the defender, plays it into a team-mate, sprints past on the blind side and gets it straight back to shoot. 15 min 3 at a time plus a keeper: attacker, wall player, defender
• Under-11 and upPossession 3v3 plus 2Three against three is too crowded to keep the ball and too few to learn from. Put a neutral player on each end line who always plays for the team in possession and the game opens up: there is always a way out, and a team that keeps the ball can play end to end. 15 min 8: two teams of 3 and 2 neutral end players
• Under-10 and upCrossing and finishingA winger runs the ball down the line and crosses, and two strikers attack the box: one to the near post, one to the far. It is the most common way goals are scored from open play, and a drill that rehearses the runs as carefully as the cross. 15 min 3 at a time plus a keeper, with a queue on each wing