Soccer Field Diagram: Secrets Revealed
Do you remember the last time when you explained soccer formations to your team with the help of a soccer field diagram? If yours answer is “long time back” or “never”, it means that your team does not know much about positions and formations.
The biggest mistake coaches make is to assume that giving verbal instructions is enough and that the kids would have understood everything. Since formations are an important topic, you must always chat about it with the players before the match.
The soccer positions of the players in every area from the defensive line are depicted in these by way of strategic choices made generally in terms of numbers. The formations should never be inflexible and so the coach must continue to exchange players in every game. Something very important which should be kept in mind is that formations must be decided after taking into consideration each player’s strong and weak points.
Following are some of the common formations used in soccer:
4-4-2: This one is used most frequently. It derives its number sequence from the fact that there are four defenders, four midfielders and two attackers, not including the goalkeeper.
It is the midfielders who play the most important part by way of supporting the forward players through defense. In case of an attack, they must draw near the goal line and help out the defenders.
4-5-1: This is called a defensive formation with one forward and five mid-fielders. The advantage with this formation is that since the midfielders are stacked up in the center, the opponents have a hard time attacking.
And then, due to the fact that there is only 1 forward, the midfielders proceed forward leaving the opponents yearning for the ball.
3-5-2: In this, there are three defenders, five midfielders, and two forwards. This formation makes attacking as well as defending easy as 2 wingmen take up the attacking role and the center midfielder does not allow counter attacks from the opposition.
3-4-3: This is the most violent form of formation on the soccer field diagram that the players resort to when the opponents are defending. Using three defenders, four midfielders and three forwards, the plan is to attack using the forwards and make use of the defenders in case the opposition pierces the defensive line.
There is no specific plan that will help throughout the match. It must be flexible enough to change with the situation in the game. So a coach should employ the strategy of rotating the players as and when required. However, any formation can either be offensive or defensive.
Superior soccer tactics in formations play a deciding role in a team’s victory or defeat. As the game leads to more action and dynamism, it demands more from the soccer formation policies.
Now go ahead and use the soccer field diagram to teach the players. In case you are interested in more such tips, our youth soccer coaching community is the perfect resource for it.
Andre Botelho is a recognized authority in youth soccer coaching and has already helped thousands of youth coaches to dramatically improve their coaching skills. Learn how to explode your players’ skills and make training fun by downloading your free ebook at: Soccer Drills.