Soccer Stuff is a collection of youth soccer coaching essays written to help educate novice soccer coaches that are trying to learn more about the great game of soccer.
Play The Way You Face
I’ve been coaching for eight years now and it’s amazing how much I still don’t know. This is my daughter’s first year on a cup team (U-12) and now she’s with a coach that really knows what he’s doing. Believe it or not, this guy has actually played the game! Professionally! I’m not saying that her previous coaches were bad, as a matter of fact the one guy was very smart and quite handsome too… But this new guy really knows his stuff.
This guy has been stressing something that never occurred to me as being important, but the more I see what he’s getting at, the more I realize that I still have much to learn about this game. The concept he’s been working on lately is “Pass the way you’re facing.” Sounds simple right? Here’s why it’s so important. Think about it. How many times have you seen a player receive a pass and then turn up field directly into pressure only to lose the ball attempting to plow through three defenders? Way too many times, I’m sure. So, what’s the alternative?
Pass the way you’re facing. For a forward, that means either passing laterally across the field, or heaven forbid, even passing backwards! Why would anyone want to pass backwards when it took so much trouble getting the darn ball up field in the first place? It’s good soccer, that’s why. In professional soccer, it’s estimated that every third pass is backwards. Passing backwards tends to reshuffle the defense. The defender nearest the ball has to decide to either follow the pass or stay with their original mark. Indecision creates opportunities.
If your players have the good habit of passing and then moving into space, your team will always have open players to pass to. Pass and sprint into space! That’s the best way to move the ball. Think about it. Let’s say you’re a player and you make a pass to a player facing you. Here’s what happens. First, that defender that was coming to pressure you, will at the very least, be momentarily distracted watching to see where the ball is going. Usually that gives you just a second to separate from that defender and move into open space unmolested. Secondly, the player receiving the pass is facing whom? You, right! As the ball rolls to your teammate, she can’t help but see you moving and who do you think she is most likely to pass to, YOU! (GIVE & GO)
Pass the way you’re facing and move! It’s a great habit and a great way to move the ball. Try it with you’re team, you’ll see.