Children’s and Youth Soccer: 3 Drills for the Golden Learning Years

Inspiring children and teenagers to love soccer while addressing their individual developmental stages is one of the biggest challenges in youth coaching. It is crucial to design drills that not only enhance physical abilities but also develop cognitive and tactical skills. Askin Polat, a long-time youth coach at Bayer 04 Leverkusen, presents three soccer drills specifically designed for children’s and youth soccer.

Creating Passing Options in a Dynamic Endline Game

Setup/Procedure:

• Two teams, 6 vs. 6 (or more), with 2 neutral players on the outside. Mark out a 40m x 40m field.
• The goal is to get the ball from one neutral player to the other, after at least 2 passes between players on the inside, and then try to dribble the ball across the endline.
• The player with the ball can pass back to the neutral player from whom they received it to avoid losing possession.
• Neutral players must pass within 3 seconds of receiving the ball.
• If they don’t, the coach plays a new ball to the opposing team, and possession changes.

Objective:

Switch play by offering at least 3 passing options for the neutral players while maintaining possession.

Variation:

Start from both sides.

Coaching Points:

• Players should maintain proper body posture to switch the play.
• Emphasize posture to enable quick play or maintain tempo.

9 vs. 9 on Two Regular Goals (4 Mini Goals), Play Through the Wings (Crosses Behind the Defensive Line)

Setup/Procedure:

• A shortened half field with two full-size goals, goalkeepers included. Can also be played with four mini goals (approx. 2-3 m).
• Team A has 9 field players + 1 goalkeeper; Team B has 9 field players + 1 goalkeeper.
• 6 vs. 6 on goals with goalkeepers.
• Possession team can involve their wide players at any time during the attacking build-up.
• Defenders are not allowed to enter the wing zones.
• No corners or throw-ins.
• Every action starts with the goalkeepers.

Variation:

Limit touches.

Objective:

The goal is to practice quick transition play through the wings. Also emphasizes breaking through opponent pressing in the initial phase.

Coaching Points:

• Keep possession (control the tempo)
• Get behind the defensive line
• Intelligent movement (utilize spaces)
• Switching play
• Triangle formation
• One-two passes and quick combinations
• Play into depth and finish scoring chances

4 vs. 4 Square Within a Square

Setup/Procedure:

• Divide the field into a 30m x 30m playing area.
• 4 vs. 4 inside the field, with 4 neutral players outside.
• One player from the possession team wears a yellow vest (in the circle in the diagram), becoming the target player (the one to pass to the other side).
• The vest can be handed to a teammate even if the ball is still in play (e.g., if the opponent tightly marks the target player).
• A neutral player starts by dribbling the ball into the marked area, creating a 5 vs. 4 overload for the possession team.
• The target player must receive the ball and pass to the other side to score a point for their team.
• If the red team wins the ball, the same rule applies as they then gain the yellow vest.
• The neutral player returns to their starting position once the team completes the objective.
• Possession team can pass to the neutral player outside to avoid losing the ball. Neutral players are limited to one touch in this scenario.

Objective:

The drill promotes positional play in tight spaces, with added focus on pressing, secure passing under pressure, and switching play (transition game).

Variation:

Limit touches.

Coaching Point:

Triangle formation, one-two passes, and quick combination play.