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Free activities · By topicSoccer overload drills
5 free, with video
An overload is three against two, somewhere on the field, on purpose. These drills teach players to create one, recognize it, and use it before it disappears.
What it means
An overload means having more attackers than defenders in one part of the field. Teams rarely get one by luck. Somebody has to leave one area and arrive in another at the right moment, and the team has to notice before the defense catches up.
The habit behind it is Help the Ball. The decision inside an overload is simple to say and hard to do: make the defender choose, then play the free player. Pass too early and the defender recovers. Wait too long and the numbers even up.
What to coach
- Attack the defender’s front foot. Make them choose.
- Pass when the defender’s hips turn, not before.
- Find the free player: with three against two, there always is one.
- Create the overload before you use it: one runner, one moment.
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 · 2v12v1 to the LineTwo attackers against one defender in a 15x10 channel, ten seconds to dribble over the end line.
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Rung 2 · 3v23v2 to Two GoalsThree attackers against two defenders on a 20x15 with two mini goals on the far line and twelve seconds to score.
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Rung 3 · 4v2 + 2v2Overload Rondo4v2 on one side, 2v2 on the other. Move a player across and make it 3v2.
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Rung 4 · 4v3 + GKFull-Back JoinsTwo wide players and a striker against three defenders and a keeper on a 30x25.
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Rung 5 · 5v3Overload the Middle3v1 in the middle, then one player goes forward to make it 2v1.
Open the activity ›Rungs 6 to 10 are in the book
- 6Numbers Up on the Far Side6v4 · 12 players
- 73v2 to 4v33v2+ · 12 players
- 8Wing Overload4v2 + 3v3 · 14 players
- 9Overload Transition6v4 to 4v6 · 10 players
- 10Overload Game8v8+2 · 18 players
Build a session from it
One idea, start to finish. Change the topic next week and keep the rondo.
- Start, 10 min: Overload Rondo
- Middle, 20 min: Full-Back Joins
- Middle, 20 min: Overload the Middle
- Finish, 25 min or more: Play your normal game with a neutral who always plays for the team with the ball.
Keep going
Questions about overload
What is an overload in soccer?
It is more attackers than defenders in one area of the field: 2v1, 3v2, 4v3. It can happen anywhere, and good teams make one on purpose.
How do you create an overload?
Move a player into the area at the right moment. It might be a full-back joining from behind, as in Full-Back Joins, or a midfielder stepping forward, as in Overload the Middle.
What is the best overload drill for young players?
2v1 to the Line. It has three players, one decision and ten seconds. Once that is working, move on to 3v2 to Two Goals.
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.