Combination play to break lines 

1. Play as a normal rondo, with five in-possession players around the outside and one in the middle with the two defenders

2. The in-possession team earns a point for every five passes

3. If the defenders win the ball or it goes out of play, they switch with two in-possession players

Practice 1

WHY USE IT

This practice develops combination play, forcing players to adapt to inside/outside roles and introduces tempo variation. 

Set-up

Mark out an area relative to the age, ability and number of players. The area should be divided in half. One half has two attackers and two defenders in the middle, with two neutral players on the outside. The other half has one attacker and one defender, both resting to start with. 

HOW TO play

ADAPTATIONS & progressions

You can increase the minimum number of passes for the slow tempo section. If players are finding it too hard, remove a defender – they can be a central neutral player. You can also stipulate that the switch has to be received by an attacker on the run while switching sides, rather than the ball going to the attacker already in the other half. This will encourage more third-man runs off the ball and playing into space. 

COACHING POINTS

1. Playing in a slow tempo, the attacking players aim to switch play to the other half of the pitch, which they can do after four passes

2. When the ball is switched across, one attacker and one defender must move across too

3. When the coach shouts ’fast tempo’, players can switch play as quickly as they want
   
   
   

Practice 2

WHY USE IT

This practice encourages players to adjust to formation changes, use tempo changes to break lines and rotations between lines. 

Set-up

Use the final third of a pitch with a full-size goal and two mini goals at the other end. Play 6v6 in the middle, with two neutrals in wide channels and two neutrals in the middle. 

HOW TO play

Progressions/adaptations

You can increase the minimum number of passes for the slow tempo section. If players are finding it too hard, remove a defender – they can be a central neutral player. You can also stipulate that the switch has to be received by an attacker on the run while switching sides, rather than the ball going to the attacker already in the other half. This will encourage more third-man runs off the ball and playing into space.

COACHING POINTS

1. Teams look to break lines to score in the mini goals or full-size goal

2. ’Pause’ direction from the coach asks players to recycle and rebuild

3. ’Strike’ direction from the coach asks players to make an immediate forward pass or dribble forward