3 Football today

1. The modern game 1

2. Today’s game 7
3. Reflections on football and
football training and development 10
4. The learning process in and the training
and development of young footballers 13
 Football today 3
1. The modern game

Introduction

Football is undergoing constant transformation. The game is continuing to spread and conquer the world:
smaller countries are starting to become organised; borders are opening up for players; teams are travelling;
and the level of training and development of young players has reached new heights in many countries. In
short, the game is in a healthy state.

On the playing side as well, football is developing at a rapid pace: the game on the pitch is developing; the
issues surrounding the game and the competitions are also developing; and, more recently, we have seen
advances with the human-related factors and structures that lead to top-quality performance.

To enable us to understand this development better and also the issues facing the game of football in the
third millennium, we should perhaps take a brief glance at the current state of the game.

How the game has developed

“Faster, stronger, higher, more technical”. This succinct formula perfectly sums up the development of foot-
ball over the last few years.

• Speed is greater. This means not only running speed, but also and, in particular, the speed of execution of
basic actions such as taking possession of the ball, passing or shooting.
• Duel situations are more hard-fought, forcing the player to develop far more athletic qualities than were
called for in the past.
• Without doubt, the feature in the game that has undergone the most striking development is technical
skill. This, of course, is a real must for the development of the game as a whole. All the observers who were
present at the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan™ and at the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship and
the 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship will have appreciated the high technical level now being shown
by the top nations.

Tactical development

Tactics have, of course, also had their part to play in the global upsurge in football. New playing systems
have come into being: 4-4-2, 3-5-2, 4-5-1, 3-4-3. These systems and the way they are applied are even fre-
quently changed while a match is in progress (3-5-2 in an attacking phase changes to 4-4-2 in a defensive
phase), depending on the score and situations in a given match. But the most noteworthy change has been
the advent of “total football”, involving an increased playing tempo.

The notion of total football, which was born a quarter of a century ago and successfully promoted by, among
others, the Romanian Stefan Kovacs, former coach of the French national team and of AFC Ajax, involves
constant pressing.

Greater importance is also now given to changing the tempo of play. Winning teams are able to control the
tempo of the game by speeding up play or playing more slowly or more securely, thereby allowing them to
take their opponents by surprise. This alternation in tempo often provides the opening that makes the differ-
ence and can create a priceless breach of a defence that has been extremely tight thus far.

The tactical elements of the modern game have increased the importance and the technical quality of at-
tacking players. As a result, they have enriched their technical and athletic skills and their contribution to
the game considerably. To be efficient, these players have to be explosive and skilful in front of goal, as well
as being fast and able to head the ball extremely well. The great attackers in today’s game that fall into this
category are the Brazilian Ronaldo, the Englishman Owen, the Frenchman Henry and the Spaniard Raúl.

It goes without saying, though, that the high number of creative players has not been affected by this new or-
der in international football. The Platinis, Gascoignes, Laudrups, Rivaldos and those who model themselves
on these greats will always have a decisive influence. 1
 3 Football today

Development of the player

The development of the game in this way automatically implies that the player has to adapt as well. The
qualities demanded of today’s players if they are to succeed at the highest level are on an altogether differ-
ent scale from what was required just over a decade ago.

• Today’s player must have perfect technique. This is why it is essential for players to receive high-quality
pre-training (12-15 years of age) and training (16-19 years of age) in their youth. This is the ideal time
to improve their array of technical skills and to work on their strong points: shooting, heading and drib-
bling.

• He must develop an acute sense of tactical awareness to allow him to assimilate the orders issued by the
coach, while still maintaining his ability to react and adapt, this being essential when there is a change of
tactics during a match.

• Above all, he must be an athlete – a complete, top-level sportsman. It is imperative that he can rely on the
qualities of speed, power and recovery.

• As mental strength is also part of the winner’s armoury in today’s game, he must know how to assert him-
self as a player with strong mental resolve, who is in total control in difficult situations, and who is able to
surpass himself when the game demands this.

The development of the competitions and what the stakes are

Over the past few decades, the stakes involved in the game in both sporting and financial terms have in-
creased in a way that had never been seen before. The major international competitions have obviously not
been able to remain indifferent to this new trend. As was always the case in football, the game has had to
adapt.

• National and international competitions

Played every four years, the FIFA World Cup remains the supreme event that is not to be missed in the
world of football. It also allows observers to take an instant snapshot of current trends in the game. In-
deed, it is often the starting point for new trends in the game that will have repercussions, in the short term
at least, on the training and development of young footballers, the game’s future professionals.

The following Championships are organised by the confederations on the different continents:
– African Cup of Nations – CAF – Africa
– Asian Cup – AFC – Asia
– Copa America – CONMEBOL – South America
– EURO – UEFA – Europe
– Gold Cup – CONCACAF – North, Central America and the Caribbean
– Nations Cup – OFC – Oceania

These competitions are played every four years or even every two years and also provide substantial infor-
mation on how the game is developing.

Even among young footballers, the various international competitions, and especially the youth World
Championships (U-20 and U-17), have become an important focus of attention as a pointer towards to-
morrow’s generation of players.

By virtue of the quality of play that it now produces, women’s football has also become extremely popular.
The most recent international competitions provide eloquent proof of this.
The international club competitions have undergone considerable changes. The UEFA Champions League,
the African Champions League, the Copa Libertadores and the AFC Champions League have now become

2
real championships, with a group system instead of direct knock-out. Indeed, it can be said that these are
now true continental championships.
 Football today 3

The structure of the domestic professional league championships (Bundesliga, Ligue 1, FA Premier
League, Primera División, Serie A) of the great football-playing countries, with each featuring between 18
and 20 clubs, often means that players are obliged to play two to three matches a week, not to mention
the traditional domestic cup competitions, which allow the minnows of the game to do battle with the gi-
ants.

As a result of all these domestic and international competitions, FIFA introduced an international match
calendar to be applied worldwide with effect from the 2001-2002 season, with the aim of achieving a bet-
ter co-ordination of all the competitions. On the basis of this calendar, international players should play
the following number of matches during one season:

• 46 club matches (domestic league/cup competitions)

• 16 matches in confederation club competitions (UEFA club competitions, Copa Libertadores, etc.)
• 12 international matches

Added to this are 4-5 weeks’ holiday.

• The issues facing the game

One of the major challenges facing the game today and in the future is knowing how to deal with the mas-
sive and often disordered influx of vast sums of money at all levels. The sudden and staggering rise in the
cost of television rights, the increased interest on the part of the sponsors, the development of marketing
and highly professionalised public relations operations and the flotation of certain clubs on the stock ex-
change (especially in England) have enabled professional clubs to enhance their funds appreciably. The
knock-on effects of this have also been particularly felt in the transfer market.

We can only rejoice at this inflow of funds into the coffers of the clubs – provided, of course, that the
money is used to profit the development of football. The risks of abusing funds are that much greater when
large sums of money are involved.

It would be suicidal to fly in the face of this economic development. If used judiciously, the money can only
serve to improve the quality of our sport in the long term. The more attractive the product is, the better the
spectacle it can offer – and this is how public interest is maintained. The quality of this spectacle cannot
be guaranteed, however, unless certain rules are adapted and unless there is innovation in certain areas
of the game. The issue of constant innovation is proving to be a crucial one.

If there is no audience, there will be no football. If there is no spectacle, there will be no audience. And
if there are no quality players on display, there will be no spectacular matches. Money obviously has its
part to play in the excellence of the team. We are all well aware, though, that appropriate infrastructures,
efficient management staff and properly adapted facilities are just as crucial for the success of a team. But
all of that costs money.

To sum up then: yes, we do need that money, but priority still has to be given to the game. There has to be
a similar upward curve with the level of play and with the income generated. This is a major issue in the
game. But any healthy vision of the future must be accompanied by a concern for sporting ethics.

Indeed, we can only applaud the numerous campaigns being organised at all levels to promote fair play
and sportsmanship in the game.

The development of human-related factors and structures in the game

There is sometimes a tendency on our part to believe that success and achievement depend solely on the
performance of players. This is much too simplistic. In a way, the game is the finished product of the relation-
ship between the players and those who train and look after them.

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 3 Football today

The former coach of the French national team, Michel Hidalgo, pertinently underlined this when he said:
“Nowadays, the demands that result from the excessive media coverage of football mean that the coach’s
public appearances are not confined solely to the pitch. He has to be able to count on competent assistants
to take on other functions, e.g. dealings with the directors and other elements in the club, as well as dealings
with the media and sponsors.”

The coach has an unquestionable role to play within this group of decision-making staff. He is often the one
to determine the style of play. He has to be able to decide when faced with the perennial dilemma of whether
to play entertaining football or whether just to settle for the result. At present, the trend is towards attacking
play, especially since the introduction of new rules concerning the backpass to goalkeepers, offside and
also the awarding of three points for a victory. The professionalism now demanded of the coach and the
qualifications that he requires to exercise his profession have served to reinforce his status and his influ-
ence on the game. Although the coach never will be a “miracle-worker”, he will nevertheless be able to exert
an influence on performance-related factors:

• Leadership: A team needs leaders – the coach and one of the players. The latter is a moral leader with
a strong personality who knows how to assert himself firmly. He is, as it were, the coach’s intermediary
among his team-mates. Such players are not often found, unfortunately. Consequently, they need to be
moulded from their youth onwards.

• The team: We can identify seven different types of player in a team: the leader, the goal scorer, the ener-
getic livewire (the “lungs” of the team), the creator, the versatile midfielder, the support player and the
protector. The team’s performance will be enhanced if the interplay between all these functions can be
optimised.

• Tactical strength: It sometimes happens that teams change their playing system in the course of a match.
For this reason, players in the future will have to be equipped with an acute sense of tactical awareness.
Educating and training players accordingly is obviously a key part of this development.

• Mentality: A lot of work still needs to be done in this area. From now on, education will have to be based
around three axes with equal weight: Technique, Tactics and Personality.

• Coaching: There are basically three types of coaching currently being applied: free coaching (where no
precise instructions are given), directional coaching (where orders are given), and creative coaching
(where suggestions are made, but not enforced). The football of tomorrow will demand an increase in
creative coaching. The idea behind this creative coaching is to introduce coaching situations and drills
that allow for several different solutions; this will then provoke the players into managing the situation
on their own. This method is therefore much less “hands-on” as far as the coach is concerned, and the
creativity practised in the training session will inevitably have a knock-on effect on the match situation.

• The artist: Now, more than ever, football has to ensure that great emphasis is placed on creative players,
those players who are capable of swinging a match in their team’s favour with a simple piece of individual
brilliance. Such players therefore have to be encouraged and their talent has to be allowed to blossom to
the full. In this case, a number is more eloquent than words to illustrate the supreme value of such play-
ers: 30% of goals are either scored or made as a result of an individual action. But beware! The artist also
has to fit in with the game played by the rest of the team.

• The team behind the team: We have already seen that the modern game is not restricted to what happens
on the pitch. There are many other elements to be taken into account. We can list three categories of peo-
ple who influence the life of the team, either at close quarters or from afar:

− the pitch people (players, technical staff, medical staff)

− the directors and senior officials, the sponsors, the media, the supporters (peripheral factors)
− the “enemies” of the game and the parasites

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 Football today 3

The coach therefore has to

• surround himself with an efficient “team behind the team”: the assistant coaches, fitness coaches, doc-
tors, physios, press spokesmen, kit managers and team secretaries have to protect him and support him
by assuming responsibility for those aspects that are linked to the preparation of the match and to deal-
ings with people.

• conduct himself in such a way that, as a result of the excessive media coverage given to football, he be-
comes a seminal figure within the club. This presupposes that he will be able to give judicious answers in
post-match interviews, that he will be capable of rapid reaction and analysis, and that he will be able to
assert himself as an outstanding coach with a strong and rich personality.

• be an innovator and someone with an enquiring mind.

The concept of education, i.e. the proper education and training of coaches, of technical staff and even ad-
ministrative staff, is therefore proving to be a fundamental building block in the football pyramid of today
and for the future.

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Table 1 : Peripheral factors in the modern game

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 Football today 3
2. Today’s game

A general technical and tactical analysis

(2002 FIFA World Cup™, 2003 FIFA World Youth Championships
and 2003 FIFA U-17 World Championship)

• The playing systems

− Basic: 4-4-2, 3-5-2, 3-4-3 (three lines)

− Variations: 3-4-1-2, 4-2-3-1, 4-1-3-2, 5-3-1-1 (four lines)
− Variable playing systems with flexible frameworks; change of system depending on the score or the situ-
ation of the game.
− Playing in a defensive formation, teams change from 4-4-2 to 5-4-1 or from 3-5-2 to 4-4-2.
− Playing in an attacking formation, teams change from 3-4-3 to 3-2-5 or from 4-4-2 to 3-3-4.
− In the course of the same match, a team adopts a quick playing tempo, moving the ball around in the
opponents’ half and trying to score. The team then changes its approach and lets the opponents come
on to them, harassing them; after this the team breaks on the counter-attack, either individually or col-
lectively.
− Utility players who can occupy more than one position will have a considerable advantage in the future.
This does not mean that a defender, for example, will have to play as an attacker, but players will have
to be able to switch rapidly from a defensive situation to an attacking one. Alternatively, an attacker will
need to harass opposing defences into playing the ball once he has lost possession, or a centre-forward
will have to be able to play anywhere in the forward line. This versatility has not only tactical implica-
tions, but also technical ones, as appropriate skills are called for (delivering the first pass once the ball
has been controlled), not to mention the mental implications of switching from defence to attack or at-
tack to defence.

Should the players adapt to suit the playing system, or should the playing system be adapted to suit the
players?

This question is one that remains open for debate.

• Defending and attacking – how it is done

The most common defensive system is zonal marking with four or three defenders, or sometimes man-to-
man marking (mixed marking)

− A libero is still being used – especially in youth teams.

− Most teams defend with two lines, the defence and the midfield.
− A four-man or even five-man midfield, with two defensive players in front of the defence or with just one
player in front of the defence (a pivot) who is able to win back the ball and to provide the link between
defence and attack (a libero playing in a forward position)
− The attackers (two or even just one ) hustle opponents into playing the ball sideways or backwards.
− Some teams relieve their attackers (either one or two of them) of all defensive duties; these teams de-
fend with eight or nine players.
− Several top-level teams play pressing football, especially in midfield and on the wings.
− The opponent in possession of the ball is pressed by two or three players or collectively using tight-knit,
compact and mobile lines.
− Pressing requires considerable physical capacities and stamina (aerobic strength). 7
 3 Football today

The most common attacking system is one with two target players spearheading the attack, or a lone
striker and a “pivot player” (Morientes/Raúl, Batitusta/Totti)

− Back-to-front movement, high-intensity diagonal runs (15 to 20 metres), crossover runs, position
switches, quick individual breaks and one-twos are used frequently.
− As the central midfielder is often defensive, the creative schemer tends to play out on the wings more
(Zidane, Figo, Beckham, Veron, Olembe).
− The position of the old-style no. 10 playing behind the strikers and supporting them has now been re-
placed. However, the creative player, the player with a good footballing brain, who is able to dictate the
tempo of the game and how it develops, continues to have a key influence on a team’s destiny.
− Attacking play can vary between swift passing combinations involving three to four players or long
passes to the strikers getting behind the defence.
− The central midfielders or even the right and left-sided midfielders provide support up front, resulting in
four attackers when the midfielders play as wingers with the whole team in the opponent’s half. 20% of
the goals scored at the 2002 FIFA World Cup™ were the result of counter-attacks launched in the half of
the field of the team that scored the goal – the result of a switch from midfield to attack.
− There are also individual counter-attacks involving one to two players or extremely fast collective breaks
involving three to five players (Brazil, Senegal).
− Individual skill remains one of the key elements in the game that makes the difference. This can be a
piece of technical brilliance, an individual break (with dribbling, feinting and shooting), or a dead-ball
situation.

• Technique and mental factors

− The ability to play a defensive game, coping with confined spaces and pressing opponents all call for
increasingly honed skills in players. These might be technical skills (supreme accuracy with passing,
for example), physical skills (especially speed, speed of gestures and speed of action), and mental
strength (decision-making qualities, determination, self-confidence).
− The technical qualities seen at the top level are greater than ever, but also at youth level (U-17). Con-
siderable progress has been made at this level since the last world championships (2000-2003), espe-
cially with passing, controlling the ball, dribbling, feinting and shooting.
− When opting for a skilful technical move and speed of execution, it is now common for certain players
(Rivaldo, Zidane, Roberto Carlos) to use different areas of the body to bring the ball under control (inside
and outside of the foot, instep, toes and heel, both feet and the head).
− While there have been technical and tactical advances, there has also been an improvement in mental
preparation, especially among young players. This enables players to:
> Cope with pressure
> Show optimum concentration throughout the match
> Have confidence in themselves in difficult situations
> Show determination in the match and in front of goal
> Have a better personal mental preparation

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• Physical condition

At the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan™, we saw a big difference in the physical capacity of teams,
compared with teams in the past. We noticed that:

− Pace, power and explosive speed are becoming more and more important.
− The intensity of the game, the attacking movements, the breaks from out of defence and changes in the
tempo of the game all require greater and non-stop endurance on the part of the players.

“It was the work on the players’ endurance that allowed the Korean team to maintain the
intensive tempo of matches - not allowing opponents to relax but tiring them out.”
Guus Hiddink, ex-coach of the Korean Republic team

− The players’ athletic build, muscle strength and muscle tone are what gives them their speed, their
power as well as a psychological weapon in 1v1 situations.
− Co-ordination (the ability to make body movements with ease) is the key to speed of execution of techni-
cal skills and other movements in the game.

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3. Reflections on football and football training and development

From reading the FIFA reports and statistics for 2001-2002 and by taking a look at today’s game around the
world, we can see that the sport of football is in a healthy state, that it has embraced the whole world and
that it is still very popular. Young nations are developing, and some of these are already starting to match
the major football-playing countries.

On the playing side, the game is developing and progressing in terms of tactics. It is becoming faster, more
goals are being scored, and exceptionally talented players are able to assert themselves more and more.
However, there are still those experts who maintain that a player’s array of technical skills, his tactical aware-
ness of the game and his mental approach can be improved upon even more

Such statements merely reinforce our view that the preparation of players, but more especially the pre-train-
ing and training of young footballers, which has experienced a boom in recent years, must remain even more
of a priority in our development programmes.

“Football has levelled out. There is more power, more speed and endless physical
training, but the tactics remain the same. This is where individual and technical
skills count.”
Luiz Felipe Scolari, coach of the Brazilian team at the 2002 World Cup

In other words, the game has to ensure that it maintains for the future the spectacular and emotional aspect
that it enjoys today, with players like Zidane, Ronaldo, Del Piero or Figo, or those of yesteryear: Beckenbauer,
Cruyff, Pele, Platini and Maradona.

We must pursue a policy of providing a rigorous education, but with expanded horizons as well. Football
must be a school of life in the broadest sense, not only as vehicle for moulding professional players, but
also as a medium for helping youngsters to allow their personality, i.e. their general intelligence, culture and
social interaction skills, to blossom to the full.

The coaches and instructors of tomorrow will be entrusted with the noble and educative task of teaching
youngsters to shape themselves and of bringing out “hidden” talents by allowing these youngsters to ex-
press themselves freely with their own individual qualities.

Bearing all of this in mind, it is essential to place even greater emphasis on individual development by re-
specting the rate of growth, the tempo of learning and the level of natural potential that has already been
acquired.

With training, it is really important to start by working on technique, which forms not only an essential foun-
dation for any further progression in young footballers, but also acts as a motivating factor. We have to in-
crease their range of movements, their confidence on the ball, as well as enriching their technique when they
are moving, running at speed or under pressure from an opponent. Only after that come physical preparation
and collective tactics – and not the contrary, as is all too frequently the case in current training programmes.
Only players with great technical qualities are able to produce attractive football. And these qualities are
acquired from the very earliest stages of youth training and development.

After the childhood phase, the “golden age” for psychomotor development, comes the pre-training stage
(12-15 years of age); this is when work has to be done on footballing skills, particularly technique and the
technical and tactical basics of the game. This is followed by the training stage (16-19 years of age), during
which specific performance-related skills are worked on.

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This general emphasis for training forms the basis of this new FIFA technical development programme, with
the following main aims:

• To improve the training and development of young footballers by providing a better quality of coaching
and instruction. The players themselves must be at the centre of the training process (see Table 2, page
13).
• To develop the training of coaches and to help them improve, especially those coaches who are working
with young footballers at the learning phase.
• To develop and improve staff structures, the conditions for coaching and training programmes.

The following pages provide recommendations and technical trends to be followed in order to further the
training of tomorrow’s young footballers.

“Talent doesn’t suddenly explode at the age of 25. A good player is good from his early
youth. Mistakes are often made at the basic training and development stage. The coaches
are responsible for this, because they think they’re working with professional teams.”
Johann Cruyff, 1994

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Table 2 : The young footballer – a formative approach

COMPETITION
• Match

YOUNG FOOTBALLER
• Development
• Training

PROCESS OF
COACHING AND COACH/INSTRUCTOR
EDUCATION • Quality
• Methods • Personality
• Principles • Knowledge

SUPPORT NETWORK
AND SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT
• Family
• School
• Private life

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4. The learning process in and the training and development
of young footballers

Continuum of learning

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4

EDUCATION PRE-TRAINING TRAINING POST-TRAINING

7 – 11 years 12 – 15 years 16 – 19 years 19 – 21 years

Psychomotricity Technique Tactics Physical condition

Pleasure Mental aspects Mental aspects Technique and
mental aspects

Basis of physical condition Athletic and physical build

The ages given for the different learning stages are merely an indication. They will vary according to the de-
velopment of the young player and his level of play.

• The training phase and especially the pre-training phase are decisive learning stages. The key points of
emphasis and objectives for training that we shall be expanding on in subsequent chapters therefore
concentrate mainly on these two levels.

• Stage 1 Education: The discovery of the ball and of the game by playing, and development of basic psy-
chomotor skills with and without the ball, are fundamental elements in the educational process.

• Stage 4 Post-training: This involves the young player aged between 19 and 21, who, although not having
completely finished his training and development especially as far as the development of physical and
mental attributes is concerned, is already being called upon to play in the first team of his club. For this
important stage we advocate a specific, individually tailored programme to ensure that the various per-
formance-related capacities that he cannot work on with the first team or with the professionals can still
be improved.

All the information and recommendations presented on the following pages are of value only if they are
accompanied by quality coaching and are adapted to suit the player, the team and the objectives of the
training.

NB: More detailed methodological information about the preparation of young footballers can be found in
Chapter 10 - The Player of Tomorrow.

The main points of emphasis in training and the objectives of learning: technical, tactical, physical, psycho-
logical and educational aspects are covered in Tables 3 and 4.
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Table 3: Main points of emphasis in training and objectives of learning: The technical and tactical aspects
Technical aspect Technical and tactical aspect Collective tactical aspect

Individual ball control Technical move in a match situation Integration of the player in the team
For development and improvement For development and improvement For development and improvement
• The repertoire of skilled technical moves and the confi- • Defending and attacking skills in a match situation • Tactical behaviour in the game, in the playing system
dence of the player on the ball • Cognitive skills (tactical awareness), individual tacti- and the tactical organisation
Football today

• Co-ordination skills cal behaviour • Tactical versatility in the game, in the lines (attack,
• Bringing the ball under control: under pressure, at high • The rapid switch from defence to attack – or vice versa midfield, defence) and in the switch from attack to
speed, in a state of fatigue, when being harassed by an defence or vice versa
• Change in tempo
opponent • Versatility in the zonal game, in mixed forms
• The tactical relations between the players and the
• Skilled technical movements while on the move lines (attack, midfield, defence) • Tactical changes, changes in systems and in game
− receiving the ball, controlling it on the turn and mak- organisation
• Zonal play as a basis for tactical learning
ing the 1st pass • Dead-ball situations (standard situations): technique
• General understanding and culture of the game and tactics
− dribbling, feinting, different types of cross
− receiving the ball (with the head and feet) and
finishing
− direct play (1 or 2 touches)
• Speed of execution when making moves
(making the right choice and quickly)

Methodology of training Methodology of training Methodology of training

• From the player with the ball to the 1v1 situation • From 2v1, 2v2 to 4v4, 5v4 to 9v9, real game situation • By line to team unit with 10 or 11 players,
• Individual exercises, then using a partner as a skills • Situations and actions from a real game situation, from 7v6 to 9v9; 11v1, 11v4 to 11v11
practice aid with a change in tempo • Drills based around a game and tactical drills with
• Variations on simple exercises, using dynamic and • Exercises with various match situations to improve game organisation
rhythmic movements and gradually aiming to reach concentration and cognitive skills • Attack against defence or vice versa
optimum speed • Progressive repetitive exercises, either without an e.g. a 6-man defence v. a 7 or 8-man attack or an
• Co-ordination skills and skilled technical moves using opponent or with a passive opponent, then an active 11-man team practising gradual build-up against
all contact areas of the body (feet, rest of body) or semi-active opponent at match tempo, with the aim a 6-man defence
• The player with the ball traing to achieve efficiency of achieving optimum execution speed • Normal game or with specific instructions
and creativity • Game, exercise, practice match routines • Promoting understanding and spontaneous adopting
Training using progressive exercises, workshops, • Varying the playing area for the same type of game of tactics
technical circuits, skills contests and games format • Use of video, match analysis
• Playing with numerical superiority and inferiority
• Boosting a player’s confidence and encouraging him
to take risks
Table 4: Main points of emphasis in training and objectives of learning: The physical, psychological and educational aspect
The athletic and physical aspect The psychological and mental aspect Other aspects to be improved

Performance-related psychomotor Performance-related mental attitudes Education and training-related notions

and athletic skills
To be developed To be improved To be learned and improved
• Optimum physical preparation • The mental preparation of players a) Education
• The basic athletic and physical requirements for the • Knowledge of psychological factors that influence • The personal preparation of players
game, both in general and specific terms performance
− life hygiene, nutrition
• Injury prevention • Training of mental attributes on the pitch: − knowing about the body and how to look after it
• Monitoring of the state of performance − concentration, attention, self-confidence, willpower, − methods of recovery and regeneration
Consideration of physical development and age perseverance, aggressiveness, control of one’s emo- − preparing one’s own body to perform well
tions, determination, etc. − managing school life and a playing career
• The wherewithal to improve the mental strength of the − general culture and knowledge about sport
players as a whole
− knowledge of the Laws of the Game
Training methodology Training methodology − fair play
− doping
• The basic physical factors: aerobic endurance, muscle • Training games and drills that regularly take the mental
strength, suppleness, co-ordination and speed, from side into account
b) Training
the age of 10 onwards • Goals of a psychological nature should be included in
learning and training activities • Individual training session in small groups
• The specific factors: aerobic endurance (aerobic pow-
(2 to 8 players)
er), muscular strength and relaxation, rhythmic speed e.g. 1v1 duel; concentration, perseverance, aggressive-
and cyclical speed from 15 to 18 years of age ness, cognitive skills (perception/anticipation) − Basic technique
• Tactical games with instructions, or games to develop For attackers, midfielders, defenders
• Multiple-objective training session:
perception skills (anticipation, analysis, decision- Co-ordination, basic running exercises
− co-ordination + technique and endurance etc. ...
making)
− strength and co-ordination – speed and technique • Improve the way in which the training session is
• Drills or games involving drills played under pressure
− aerobic and anaerobic and technical and tactical and in a state of fatigue adapted to suit individual needs
endurance • Always ascertain with the player the mental cause(s) of • Optimise the quality of coaching, feedback and the
− aerobic power and speed – strength and technique success and lack of success player-coach relationship
− speed + co-ordination and suppleness • Other training techniques: • Compensate for the lack of structures and equip-
• Integrated training session with the ball − visualisation, communication (speaking to each ment
other)
• Separate training session and additional sports
− self-evaluation of performances
− relaxation
– personal preparation
Football today
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