Great drills for developing young midfielders

     In developing soccer drills for young midfielders there are a number of things that you should take into consideration. The first and most obvious, yet often overlooked is how the drills relate to the skills that you are trying to develop in your young players. The second consideration is what are the important elements of a good soccer drill, and finally what are the skills that you are trying to develop?

     In deciding what drills to perform with your players there are a number of things you should take into consideration. What formation are you going to use on the field, and what strategy are you going to use? What are the respective strengths and weaknesses of your players? What skills do you need to develop your midfielders and maintain in your players? I have been guilty in the past of using drills at training because another coach had told me about a good drill, or I found it on the internet, when in reality the drill did not really help develop the skills that my players required. You should only decide what drills you are going to perform at training after you have decided what skills you are trying to develop.

     This decision should be based on what formation you are looking to play, and the current skill levels of your players.
What makes a good soccer drill? There are a number of important elements of any soccer drill. The first of these is that it should involve each of the players as much as possible. This is measured by the number of ball touches that each player gets during the drill. The second important element is that it should be fun. Players learn better when they are involved and they are having fun. The third element that I consider is that the drill should have a large element of realism. Drills should teach players how to react in game situations, and so should mimic these game situations as much as possible. The final element is that the drill should relate to the skill that you are trying to develop.

      What key Factors and skills are you looking to develop in your midfielders? Midfielders need to have good mobility, passing skills, first touch skills, defensive skills, and be able to work in limited space. I find small sided games a great way to develop these skills. 1 vs 1, 2 vs 2, 3 vs 3, or you can use unbalanced numbers like 2 vs 3. There are many variations you can use with these games depending on the skills you are trying to develop. I sometimes use 4 vs 4 but I find that this starts to limit the number of ball touches that some players will receive. Depending on the number of players at that you have on your team you may have a number of these games running at the same time.

      In deciding what drills you are going to use with your young midfielders, you must first decide what skills you are looking to develop. You should then ensure that the drills you use involve all players as much as possible, are fun, and relate directly to game situations and the skills you are trying to develop. You can then use a variety of small sided games at training to help develop these skills.

Soccer Coaching Develop your Midfielders