43: Grow Coach Newsletter
Football Coaches: Develop your Coaching Craft.
Welcome from JustCoachMD. We are happy to have you on board and look forward to providing you with helpful content.
Here is what to expect:
Coaching Craft: Are you making the most of your position on the pitch?
Full 60-Minute Practice: Purposeful Possession
Coach Project: Switching Up Your Coaching Positions
“The reason we play with positional play is to move the opponent, not the ball. The ball moves the opponent to disorganize the system, and that’s when we can attack.” - Pep Guardiola
Maximise Your Impact: The Power of Coaching Positions
Are you making the most of your position on the pitch, or is your perspective limiting your ability to see the bigger picture?
As a coach, your position on the field isn’t just about where you stand—it’s about what you see and how you influence your players.
Whether you are behind the goal, on the sideline or in the middle of the action, where you choose to position yourself can dramatically impact your ability to observe, communicate and develop the team.
Here’s a breakdown of the pros and cons of popular coaching positions during practice:
1. Behind the Goal
It allows a great perspective on attacking players’ decisions and the goalkeeper’s positioning.
Helps analyse finishing technique and movements in and around the box.
Limited view of the midfield and defensive play build-up.
Can only focus on one side of the pitch, missing the overall team shape.
2. On the Sideline
Gives a panoramic view of the entire field, helping observe the overall team structure.
Enables real-time interaction with players on that side of the field.
Can miss detailed individual movements far from the sideline, especially on the opposite side.
Limited view of specific areas, like player positioning in central zones.
3. In Line with a Unit (e.g., Defence or Midfield)
Can closely monitor the tactical alignment, spacing, and communication within that specific unit.
Provides a direct angle to assess pressing and positioning within the unit.
Narrow focus means you lose sight of the entire team dynamic, especially interactions with other units.
Difficult to assess off-the-ball movement and positioning of the opposite unit.
4. Middle of the Practice (Among the Players)
Provides an immersive perspective, helping you feel the pace and intensity of play firsthand.
Facilitates close coaching with players in real-time, especially regarding positioning and decision-making.
Limits the visibility of the entire game flow, as you’re only seeing what happens near you.
Risk of physically interfering with play, which can disrupt game dynamics.
5. Behind the Direction of Play
Offers a great perspective to assess team shape, pressing, and off-the-ball movement from a tactical standpoint.
Helps see how players read the game in transition from defence to attack.
Can limit your ability to see what’s happening in the build-up play or further down the pitch.
You may miss individual technical actions in close quarters.
6. From Above (Using a Drone)
Provides a unique, top-down perspective, giving full visibility of team structure, shape, and player positioning across the pitch.
Ideal for analysing tactical elements like spacing, pressing, and positional play from an unbiased angle.
Requires technological setup and expertise, which may not be accessible for all training sessions.
You lose the ability to coach players during play directly; post-training analysis is needed for feedback.
10 Tips to Improve Your Coaching Position
1. Vary Your Position to Gain Multiple Perspectives
Move around during practice to see different angles of play. For instance, spend time behind the goal to observe attacking play, on the sideline to see team shape, and in the middle to feel the game’s intensity.
This helps you get a comprehensive understanding of player performance, team structure, and areas for improvement.
2. Position Yourself to Anticipate Key Moments
Stand in areas where important tactical moments are likely to happen. For example, positioning near the halfway line allows you to observe transitions between attack and defence.
This ensures you’re well-placed to catch teachable moments, helping you give timely feedback on decision-making.
3. Stay Close for Real-Time Feedback but Know When to Step Back
During technical drills or smaller-sided games, position yourself close enough to offer immediate feedback, but in larger games or practices, step back to allow players to make decisions without interference.
This balance lets you correct individual skills without disrupting team dynamics, while also encouraging autonomy.
4. Use the Sideline for a Panoramic View
When working on team shape or tactical practices, stay on the sideline to see the whole pitch. This gives you a broader perspective on how players move and how units are connected.
You can address team cohesion, spacing, and balance, ensuring players understand their roles and the collective strategy.
5. Position Yourself in Line with Specific Units
If your session focuses on defensive shape or midfield transitions, align yourself with that specific unit. This will allow you to give direct feedback to the players involved and better understand their movements.
You can focus on how that specific unit is working and whether it’s functioning properly in relation to the rest of the team.
6. Use Drone Footage for Tactical Review
If available, use a drone or video from above for post-training analysis. While you can’t coach in real time from this angle, reviewing footage with your players afterwards can provide them with valuable visual feedback on positioning and spacing.
This helps players see the bigger tactical picture and understand their role within the team structure.
7. Rotate Between Active and Passive Coaching Positions
Sometimes being actively involved (e.g., in the middle of the practice) is important for offering real-time corrections, but at other times, positioning yourself passively on the sideline to observe the whole game will allow you to identify bigger-picture issues.
This allows you to fine-tune individual technical skills and, when needed, shift to a macro view for tactical adjustments.
8. Observe Play Behind the Direction of Attack
Stand behind the direction of play to see how your team builds up from the back, or how they press defensively. This vantage point is great for analysing how players read the game and manage transitions.
You can assess how well players track back or move into attacking positions when their team regains possession.
9. Keep Track of Off-the-Ball Movement
Don’t just focus on the ball. Your positioning should allow you to monitor off-the-ball actions, such as defensive positioning, support play, and pressing.
Encouraging players to remain engaged and strategically positioned even when they’re not directly involved leads to a more cohesive and tactically aware team.
10. Pick the Best Locations for Clear Communication
Ensure that wherever you position yourself, players can hear and see you when you provide instructions. In larger practices or games, avoid getting stuck in a corner of the field where you can’t effectively reach all players.
Clear communication ensures that all players understand your coaching points, improving the effectiveness of your interventions.
“In my teams, the goalkeeper is the first attacker, and the striker the first defender.” - Johan Cruyff
Full Practice: Possession with a Purpose
Technical Practice | Fast Passing
⚽️ Created On: @SSPlanner
Aim:
Use fast passing to break the opponent’s pressure.
Set-Up:
On a 20 by 20 space set up the manikins as shown and place players (⚫️) in each position. Add a 🟢 GK to the goal.
👕 Teams: ⚫️ Attackers, 🟢 Goalkeeper
How to Play:
Players pass around the manikins using various passing patterns. Each player moves around one place following their pass.
🚧 Constraints:
🏆Reward: Points for scoring (The first player to 5 goals wins the round)
👨🏫 Review: Quality of pass, Timing of movement and body position to set up next pass.
🚫 Restriction: Touch limits to move around the sequence.
The Double 2v2 +2 | Possession and Regains
⚽️ Created On: @SSPlanner
Aim:
Playing under pressure in tight spaces.
Set-Up:
30 by 30 spaces with 4x mini goals offset on each side of the pitch
👕 Teams: ⚫️s Attacking and Defending team,🔴s Attacking and Defending team, 🟡 Support Players.
How to Play:
🔴1️⃣s vs ⚫️1️⃣s play North to South
🔴 vs ⚫️s play East to West
Teams score each time they work the ball from one 🟡 to the other.
Progress by making one team keep possession as described and the other team regain the ball play off a 🟡 then finish 1st time in mini goal.
🚧 Constraints:
🏆Reward: The possession team add extra time to the defending team each time they work ball target to target
👨🏫 Review: Quality of pass and support play.
🚫 Restriction: 🟡 targets are limited to one touch and players cannot pass straight back to them once they have passed the ball ⚽️ into the practice.
Three Team Possession Game | Forward Passing | Regains to Score.
⚽️ Created On: @SSPlanner
Aim:
Score quickly upon regaining possession.
Set-Up:
30 by 30 pitch space with 4 x mini goals positioned as shown.
👕 Teams: ⚫️ Possession and defending team, 🔴 Possession and defending team,🟡 Support players.
How to Play:
⚫️s and 🔴s compete for possession, 🔴s work from one red mini goal to the other, ⚫️s win the ball and work from one black mini goal to the other.
Each team is looking to play off the 🟡 support player and finish first time into the mini goal 🥅
🚧 Constraints:
🏆Reward: 3 one-touch passes that lead to a goal = Double.
👨🏫 Review: Quality of passing and support play.
🚫 Restriction: 🟡s limited to one touch to set up or secure possession.
"I have always believed that when you play a game of football, you need to have at least eight players playing well. If you have only six or seven playing well, you don’t win.” - Sir Alex Ferguson
Coach Project
Objective:
Help coaches reflect on, experiment with, and refine their positioning during practices to improve observation, feedback, and overall coaching effectiveness.
Coach Task: Spend 2 sessions analysing your current positioning during practices without making any changes. Focus on different sessions such as technical drills, tactical sessions, and games.
Task Overview:
Reflect on Current Practice: During each session, take note of where you naturally position yourself.
Ask yourself: What do I see well from this position? What am I missing? How easily can I communicate with players from here?
Observation Checklist:
How well do I see the overall team shape?
How well do I observe individual players’ decision-making?
Can I easily give immediate feedback? Am I over-coaching?
Can I track both on-the-ball and off-the-ball movements?
How well do I see transitions (defence to attack, and vice versa)?
End-of-Week Reflection:
Write a summary of your findings: Which positions worked best for what purpose? Where did you struggle to observe certain aspects of play?
Task: Try different coaching positions during various parts of your next practice deliveries. Use the insights from previous observations. Focus on both individual practices and team-wide tactical exercises.
Use the Following Variations: (Guidance)
Behind the Goal: Use this during shooting drills or attacking plays to observe finishing techniques and the goalkeeper’s reaction.
On the Sideline: Monitor team shape and transitions. Walk up and down the sideline to vary your perspective.
In-Line with a Unit (Defense/Midfield): Focus on unit-specific positioning (e.g., defence in transition).
In the Middle of the Play: Get involved closely during small-sided games to offer real-time feedback.
Behind the Direction of Play: Observe how your team transitions from defence to attack, and their pressing structure.
Please feel free to get in touch or share your ideas, actions, and interventions. We would love to hear from you. If you have any questions, post them here; we will do our best to answer them.
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