Elite Soccer 5
Elite Soccer 5
NEW!
 SOCCER
  COACHING PRACTICES FROM ENGLISH
  FOOTBALL LEAGUE MANAGERS AND COACHES
 Exclusive
 Training practices nal
 from top professio
 managers
   BLACKBURN ROVERS
SAM ALLARDYCE
  PENALTY
  BOX
  PRECISION
  •PASSING•MOVEMENT•FINISHING
                                                                                  IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
                                                                                                                03
Green Star Media Ltd
Meadow View, Tannery Lane
Guildford, Surrey,
                                     Traininggrounddrillsfromthe                                                Sam
GU5 0AB, UK
Tel: +44 (0) 1483 892 894
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                                                                                                                Allardyce
                                                                                                                BLACKBURN
                                                                                                                ROVERS
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Email:                                        Dea Coach,
                                              Dear                                                              Penalty
                                                                                                                      ty
elitesoccer@greenstarmedia.net
                                                 Welcome
                                                 We        to the latest issue of Elite Soccer, the             box
Publisher:
Kevin Barrow
                                                   publication
                                                   p            that delves into the brilliant tactical minds
                                     of English football’s leading managers and coaches.
                                                                                                                     sion
                                                                                                                precision
Editor:
James Evans                          This month, our main session has been put together by one of
Contributing Editor:                 the most recognisable faces in the Premier League - Blackburn
Matthew Amos, LMA
Illustrator:
                                     Rovers manager Sam Allardyce. ‘Big Sam’ is one of the real                                05
                                     characters of the modern era, and the knack that all of his sides
Richard Palmer
                                     possess in providing great pace around the box is borne out in a
                                                                                                                               Neil Warnock
Customer Services:                                                                                                             QPR
                                     drill that tests attacking intent from all sides of the penalty area.
Duncan Heard
Operations Director:                 We’re also delighted to present an exclusive session by LMA
                                                                                                                               Defensive
Toby Curthoys
Managing Director:
                                     Chairman Howard Wilkinson. The former Leeds United boss                                     am
                                                                                                                               team
Andrew Griffiths                      has produced a fascinating editorial piece on the set-up and                               hape
                                                                                                                               shape
Photos: Action Images                psychology of the penalty shoot-out, utilising the experience he
                                     has gained from over 50 years in the professional game.                    07
                                     Moving into the Championship, QPR boss Neil Warnock chooses
Publishedinpartnershipwith:
                                     a set-up which helps backlines regain shape after being pushed
                                                                                                                Andy Scott
                                                                                                                BRENTFORD
                                     out of position, while Brentford boss Andy Scott is also ‘on the
                                     defensive’, explaining how to maintain a high back four.                   Adopting
League Managers                      We also have bespoke and exclusive training sessions from                  a high
Association                          Wycombe Wanderers manager Gary Waddock and Wolver-                         back
The Camkin Suite,                    hampton Wanderers fitness coach Tony Daley. Waddock con-                    four
1 Pegasus House,                     centrates on closing down and pressurising play in the final third,
Tachbrook Park, Warwick,
                                     while Daley focuses on a matchday recovery session that helps
CV34 6LW, UK
Tel: +(0)1926 831 556                players’ bodies revive and reacclimatise after a tough 90-minute minute          09
Email: lma@lmasecure.com             workout.                                                                               Gary Waddock
                                                                                                                            G
President:                                                                                                                   W
                                                                                                                             WYCOMBE
                                     As always, we hope you enjoy the issue, and look forward to                             W
                                                                                                                             WANDERERS
Fabio Capello
                                     seeing you again next month.
Chairman:
Howard Wilkinson
                                                                                                                            C
                                                                                                                            Closing
Chief Executive:                                                                                                            d
                                                                                                                            down and
Richard Bevan
                                                                                                                            p
                                                                                                                            pressurising
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                                                                                                                11
found to be infringing our rights,
and will make that action public.    James Evans, Editor                                                        Howard
Elite Soccer members who                                                                                        Wilkinson
have purchased this report may                                                                                  LMA CHAIRMAN
circulate electronic or hard
copies to members of their own                                                                                  Spot
club or school, provided this is
done without commercial gain.
                                      Elite Soccer is a monthly publication                                     kick
However, no part or whole of
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reserved
                                      £97 for 12 issues.                                                                         Tony Daley
                                                                                                                                  WOLVES
                                      To subscribe email                                                                         Matchday
                                      duncanh@greenstarmedia.net                                                                 recovery
                                      or call on +44 (0) 1483 892 894                                                            session
2 DECEMBER 2010                                                                                                             www.elitesoccercoaching.net
                                                                                  IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
 BLACKBURN ROVERS
 Sam                       PENALTY BOX PRECISION: MAIN SESSION
 Allardyce                 SETUP
 Penalty box               AREA
 precision                 Final third
 Overview:                 EQUIPMENT
 This is a pure
 technical session that
 works on finishing
                           Supply of balls, full-
                           size goal, six-a-side
                           goals, cones
                                                       1
                           NUMBER OF PLAYERS
 and movement. We
                           14 (12 outfield,
 will practise this at     2 goalkeepers)
 various intensities
 before taking what        What do I get the
 has been learned into     players to do?
 a game situation.
                           This session is to be       KEY
 As attacking drills go,   worked at relaxed, half     Ball
                                                       movement
                                                       Player
 this is an important                                  movement   The ball is served to the
                           and full pace for three     Dribble    first red player, who shoots
 one because it helps      minutes at a time. At                  then runs back to the start.
 players become            the edge of the penalty
 accustomed to             box, create three lines
 attacking the goal        of four players facing
 from different angles,    the goal - one at each
 therefore making it       side of the box (red and
 game realistic.           white teams) and the
 It is a session we use    other in the middle
 regularly at
 Blackburn Rovers,
 and is one that always
                           (yellow team). Set up
                           cones around the area
                           as obstacles.
                                                       2
 produces good             From the first line, a
 results. It was           red player receives a
 implemented               pass from the coach
 perfectly in the          positioned on the
 Carling Cup win           penalty spot, and
 against Norwich City      shoots at goal. He then
 in August when            spins around his cone       KEY
                                                       Ball
 El-Hadji Diouf            ready to lay a diagonal     movement
                                                       Player
 completed his hat-                                    movement   Next, the yellow player
                           pass.                       Dribble
                                                                  weaves through the cones
 trick by running                                                 and takes a shot.
 across the box to         The coach now serves
 head home Morten          to the first yellow
 Gamst Pedersen’s          player, who shoots.
 ball in from the left.    This man runs behind
                           the line of white players
                           and down the wing
                           where he is served
                           another ball to be
 QPR
 Neil                    DEFENSIVE TEAM SHAPE: MAIN SESSION
 Warnock                 SETUP
 Defensive               AREA
 team shape              Half pitch
 Overview:               EQUIPMENT
 BRENTFORD
 Andy Scott              ADOPTING A HIGH BACK FOUR: MAIN SESSION
 Adopting a              SETUP
 high back               AREA
 four                    Half pitch
 Overview:               EQUIPMENT
 WYCOMBE
 WANDERERS                 CLOSING DOWN AND PRESSURISING PLAY: MAIN SESSION
Gary
Waddock                    SETUP
Closing                    AREA
down and
pressurising
                           36x18 yards
                           EQUIPMENT
                           Ball, cones
                                                      1
play                       NUMBER OF PLAYERS
Overview:                  16
The more possession
the team has, the          What do I get the
more goalscoring           players to do?
opportunities they         We use 16 players in a
create. With that in       36x18 yard area – 8v4
mind, this session         in opposition with a
concerns itself with       further four resting.
winning the ball back      The team of eight
as quickly as possible     starts with the ball and   KEY
                                                      Ball
by closing down and        must retain possession     movement
                                                      Player
                           should be attempted
                           as quickly as possible.
                           In an overload
Gary Waddock               situation, an opponent
 WYCOMBE                   who has possession                       m
 WANDERERS                 should always be                       30
Gary Waddock took over
a manager of Wycombe
Wanderers in October
2009 having started
                           ‘shown inside’. If not in
                           an overload situation,
                           the opponent should
                                                       1                10
                                                                          m
                                                       2
In Aldershot’s first        remain in the square,
season in the Football     but begin a passing
League, Waddock
                           game involving the
steered the club to a
comfortable mid-table
                           other nine players - in
finish, and when he         effect an 11v5 game.
departed for Wycombe       The group of five must
in October 2009, the       move to the outer
Shots were sixth in        square and attempt to
League Two.                win the ball back.
Gary has put his own       When possession is          KEY
                                                       Ball
                                                       movement
mark on Wanderers,         retrieved by the group      Player                 A tackle is made and the
                                                       movement
who have started the       of five, play reverts        Dribble                ball is released to the
2010/11 season well,                                                          outer players. Attackers
                           back to the smaller                                must break out and regain
having lost only two
                           10x10 yard area. Each                              possession.
of their first 16 league
matches.
                           of these sessions lasts
                           20 minutes, with a
As a player, he made
                           break in between for
over 500 senior
appearances with
                           drinks and a recap of
spells at QPR, Luton       the exercise’s goals
Town, Millwall, Bristol
Rovers and Belgian side
Charleroi.
                           and aims.
                                                       3
                                                       KEY
                                                       Ball
                                                       movement
                                                       Player
                                                       movement
                                                       Dribble                  If the ball is won back, play
                                                                                reverts back to the smaller
                                                                                playing area.
 LMA CHAIRMAN
Howard                       SPOT KICK TUTORIAL
Wilkinson
Spot kick                                            83%                                  87%                              83%
tutorial                                             SUCCESS                              SUCCESS                          SUCCESS
Overview:
The penalty shoot-
out is an incredible
phenomenon in the            13%
                             SHOTS TAKEN
                                                           2                                 0                                  1
game of football,
and responsible for
producing some of
the most memorable
moments in the               30%
                             SHOTS TAKEN
                                                           2                                 3                                  3
history of sport. Yet it
has almost nothing in
common with normal
events in a football
match. It is for that        57%
                             SHOTS TAKEN                   6                                 2                                11
reason that it deserves
special attention.
The shoot-out
represents a part of                                                                                    Penalty taking
the game that requires                                                                                  The ‘grid’, within the goal above, shows
fantastictemperament,                                                                                   the placement of all 30 successful
and this session aims                                                                                   penalties in the Barclays Premier
to highlight some of                                                                                    League for the first three months of
                                                                                                        the 2010/11 season (source: Prozone).
the tactics, techniques,                                                                                The percentage statistics, around the
psychology and               Practising                                                                 edge of the goal, relate to the Journal
philosophy involved.         Penalty Kicks                                                              of Sports Science’s 2009 research
It is a challenge that       Practice has to be as real                                                 detailing the previous year’s worth of
even some of the best                                                                                   penalty data from the same league.
                             as possible in order to be                                                 It shows horizontally where penalty
players in the world         as effective as possible.                                                  shots are placed, and vertically the
have found too great –       Clearly it is difficult to                                                  relative success of aiming at either
there are many tales         replicate pressure,                                                        the left, centre or right of the goal.
of the most technically      nevertheless to not                                                        The research also revealed that in a
gifted players who           practise because of that                                                   shoot-out scenario, the first penalty
have failed in a high-       would be a big mistake.                                                    was the one most often converted
pressure shoot-out           Golfers spend hours on                                                     (87% of the time), while the fourth kick
                                                                                                        was the least (73%), notwithstanding
scenario.                    the practice green and I                                                   sudden death efforts (64%).
In most cases, the           am sure the stars of the
failure is due to a break-   game will tell you that the
down in technique            best practice available is
which, given the skill of    better than no practice
the players in question,     at all.                       penalty taker faces, and       Tactics                        Kickers should always be
can only be because of       While we cannot replicate     gradually build within the     As a coach, you must           ranked before the game
the combined effects of      pressure, we can make         taker a routine. The coach     consider carefully the         – this is generally a task
pressure and tension.        every other condition the     is instilling in the team,     best permutation for           for the assistant coach
                             same. The player must         and the individual, the        penalty kickers. There         – and never rule out
                             treat every penalty as a      philosophy that they have      are varying schools of         the possibility that your
                             crucial match-deciding        been ‘there’ before.           thought in this regard.        goalkeeper may be better
                             moment. The coach             And this formal practice       Some managers will             at despatching a penalty
                             needs to control this         needs to be for all players.   prefer that the club’s best    than an outfield player.
                             setting, making sure          I have often found that                                       In addition, you should
“There are                   players go through the        quieter or less prominent
                                                                                          penalty taker steps up
                                                                                          first to set the tone for the   know long before the coin
 only ever                   whole routine, including      squad members have             others to follow.              toss if you want your team
                             the walk from the centre      exactly the right tem-                                        to go first or second. And
 two types of                circle and the kick only      perament for taking a
                                                                                          Others have been known
                                                                                          to adopt the idea that the     obviously, at the end of
 penalties -                 being taken when the
                             whistle is blown. The
                                                           penalty, even if they are
                                                           one of the final few to
                                                                                          best penalty taker should      standard play, you need
                                                                                                                         all of your key penalty
                                                                                          go up third, because this
 good ones                   coach should also use         come forward. Use your         is the first point at which a   takers on the pitch.
                             different goalkeepers to      practice, not a matchday
 and bad                     present new challenges        situation, to find these
                                                                                          penalty shoot-out could
                                                                                          potentially be lost.
 ones!”                      in terms of who the           players.
 WOLVES
 Tony Daley                MATCHDAY RECOVERY SESSION
 Matchday                  What do I get the      again, the better their      of the laps slightly, but   contract more
 recovery                  players to do?         condition, and the           each of the first two        efficiently, and helps
 session                   Recovery Session
                                                  fresher they will be for
                                                  the next game.
                                                                               should be taken at less
                                                                               than 50% of running
                                                                                                           the players’ ability to
                                                                                                           recover.
 Overview:                 schedule
                                                  The basis of the             speed – not much            During the third lap,
 It is important for       To play for 90 minutes                              more than walking
                                                  Recovery Session is                                      include gentle dynamic
 players to ensure         is demanding, but we                                pace. This helps to get
                                                  a combination of lap                                     stretches as the
 their bodies recover      are always looking for                              the body at the correct
                                                  running and stretches.                                   players are moving,
 well from the rigours     players to be disci-                                temperature whilst
                                                  Players jog around a                                     concentrating on the
 of matchday, so this      plined and to adopt                                 allowing the muscles
                                                  full-size pitch three                                    groin and hamstrings.
 session is designed       good habits. This                                   to move and relax.          The dynamic stretches
 as a recovery             applies as much on the times at a very gentle
                                                  pace. The aim of this        A gentle jog also helps     should be conducted
 programme to be           training ground as it
                                                                               to disperse lactic          as explained in the
 conducted no more         does on the pitch. The is to get joints moving
                                                  but only in the form of a    acid around the body.       table below:
 than 24 hours after       sooner players are
                                                  light jog. Vary the pace     This makes muscles
 the game.                 active and training
 The main reason
 for doing this is to      Dynamic stretches
 prevent injuries
 suffered post-match.       GROINS
 We need to reduce
 fatiguing effects as
 soon as possible,                                Lateral movement, bend knee, straight upper body, swing arms.
                            Sides
 because in a tired                               Continue over 10 metres, then repeat on the opposite side.
 state they are more
 likely to suffer tweaks                          Over 10 metres, laterally, bring the left leg up and down in a circular
 and knocks.                Pre–turn              motion (do not bring left leg across the right). Then repeat on the
                                                  opposite side.
 Our final league
 game in October was
 a Saturday Premier                               Conduct side steps, followed by three side squats, then repeat on the
                            Side groin drops
 League clash                                     opposite side.
 against Manchester
 City, which we won         Wide skips            Skip with legs bent and raised, facing outwards. Repeat over 10 metres.
 2-1. Sunday was
 therefore designated       HAMSTRINGS
 as a rest day, with
 Monday the recovery                              Walk a distance of 10 metres, raising a straight leg with each step at a
 day, which included        High leg raise        comfortable height. Keep the head forward and the upper body still.
 this session. By                                 Then jog back to the start and repeat.
 conducting this, we
 enabled players to                               Walking, raise a bent leg towards the chest, then straighten leg out – the
 be ready again for                               movement is similar to a door in front of you that you are trying to scrape
 full training on the       Russian walk
                                                  your studs down. Keep the head forward and the upper body still. Jog
 Tuesday.                                         back and repeat.
                                                  Walking, lean forward with a straight leg, then raise leg backwards at
                            Stork stretch         45 degrees. This pattern of movement should be done with every step.
                                                  Repeat over 10 metres then jog back.
“The sooner
 players are                Quick feet
                                                  Over 10 metres, shuffle feet in numerous directions for a couple of
                                                  metres followed immediately by touching toes with a slightly bent lower
 active and                 hamstring
                                                  limb. Repeat over 10 metres.
 training
                                                  In a dynamic manner, raise leg and clap hands underneath raised lower
 again, the                 Hamstring clap
                                                  limb. Continue over 10 metres then jog back to the start.
 better their
 condition.”
 13 DECEMBER 2010                                                                                           www.elitesoccercoaching.net
                                                                                                                         IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
                           Static stretches
                           At the completion of the three laps, players assemble in a group to perform static stretches.
Tony Daley                 Here we concentrate on each muscle group for no more than 20 seconds, but will repeat the
 WOLVES
                           stretches two or three times. For static stretches, we concentrate on the quads, hamstrings,
Tony Daley is fitness       calfs and groin. Two sets of each stretch below should be performed, at 15 seconds per stretch.
coach at Barclays
Premier League
side Wolverhampton
Wanderers. The
43-year-old took up the
position at Molineux in
2007 having previously
filled coaching roles at
Sheffield United, Aston
Villa and Forest Green
Rovers.
As a player, Daley
was a livewire winger,
shooting to prominence
in Graham Taylor’s
successful Aston Villa
                                                                                 Static groin stretch
side of the late 1980s,                                                          Sit with soles of the feet together on the floor
and later won seven        Static calf stretch                                   and close to the body. Grasp feet with both
England caps under the                                                           hands and position elbows on the inside of
same manager. Indeed,      Starting with the left calf, stand facing a wall      the lower legs. Press knees towards the floor
the Birmingham-born        at arms’ length. Place hands on the wall at           with elbows and hold the stretch.
flanker would be signed     shoulder height, then step back slightly with the
twice more by Taylor       left leg, keeping the back upright. Keeping your
before the end of his      weight through the left heel, sway forwards
playing days.              onto a slightly bent right knee. You should feel a
He made over 200           stretch in your left calf. Repeat on the right.
appearances for Villa
before switching to
Wolves in 1994, though
appeared only 21 times
in four years after
injured curtailed his
progress. He finished
his career with spells
at Watford, Walsall and
Forest Green Rovers.       Side-lying quad stretch                              Hamstring wall stretch
Daley has a Bachelor       Lie on your side with the leg to be worked           Lie on your back with a leg elevated and
of Science degree in
                           positioned on top of the other. Reach back           positioned against a doorway wall, as shown.
Sports and Exercise
Science from
                           and grasp the ankle. Relax the leg and gently        Buttocks should be about five inches from
Wolverhampton              pull the ankle towards your buttocks.                the wall, and your back flat on the floor. Gently
University.                                                                     slide your buttocks towards the wall, keeping
                                                                                the knee straight, until a stretch is felt. Relax
                                                                                and repeat.