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Free activities · By topicMovement off the ball drills
5 free, with video
A player who stands still cannot receive; a player who moves badly cannot either. These drills teach the check, the double move, vacating a space and arriving in it, so the pass is on before the passer looks up.
What it means
Players spend almost all of a game without the ball, and what they do in that time decides whether they get it. “Get open” is the usual instruction, and it means very little to a young player. These drills give them specific moves: the check, the double move, leaving a space, and showing late.
The habit behind it is Look First. A good move starts with a look at where the defender is and where the ball is going. After that it is timing: arrive as the pass is played, not before.
What to coach
- Away first, then to the ball. Make the defender move.
- Sell the first move: it has to look real.
- Leave a space so a teammate can arrive in it.
- Show late: the defender cannot track what has not happened yet.
The ladder
Every theme in 100 Possession Activities climbs the same way. Rungs 1 to 3 are rondos for the start of a session. Rungs 4 to 7 are the middle: direction, goals, decisions. Rungs 8 to 10 are games with one rule. These are free:
Rung 1 · 1v1 + 2 serversCheck and ReceiveTwo servers twelve yards apart, a receiver in the middle with a shadow defender behind.
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Rung 2 · 4v1Vacate and FillA rondo that rotates: leave a space so a teammate can arrive in it.
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Rung 3 · 3v3+2Double Move to ReceiveOne way, then the other. You can’t receive until you’ve made a double move.
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Rung 4 · 5v2Show LateThe inside player can only receive if they arrive late.
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Rung 5 · 6v4Vacate the PocketNobody can receive in the pocket unless a teammate just left it.
Open the activity ›Rungs 6 to 10 are in the book
- 6Runs Off the Ball4v4+GK · 10 players
- 7Receive Between Two5v3 lines · 8 players
- 8Third-Man Runs to Goal5v4+GK · 12 players
- 9Rotations7v5 · 12 players
- 10Movement Game8v8 · 16 players
Build a session from it
One idea, start to finish. Change the topic next week and keep the rondo.
- Start, 10 min: Vacate and Fill
- Middle, 20 min: Show Late
- Middle, 20 min: Vacate the Pocket
- Finish, 25 min or more: Play your normal game with one rule: a goal only counts if the last pass was received on the move.
Keep going
Questions about movement off the ball
How do you teach movement off the ball?
Give players one specific move at a time and make the rule force it. Check and Receive teaches away, then show. Double Move to Receive makes a double move the price of getting the ball.
How do players get open in soccer?
By moving the defender first. Go one way, then come back the other, so the defender is a step behind when the ball arrives. Standing in space works for a second, then the defender catches up.
What does checking to the ball mean?
It means moving away from the ball first, then coming back toward it to receive. The first step pulls the defender away, and the second gives you room to take the ball and turn.
Or pick by number of players
Rungs 6 to 10 of this ladder are in the book
100 Possession Activities has all ten rungs of every theme, right up to the full game that keeps the idea alive. 115 pages and 100 animated videos, one activity per page. Print the page, watch the clip, run the session.