52: Grow Coach Newsletter
Football Coaches: Develop your Coaching Craft.
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Here is What to Expect:
Coaching Craft: Teaching Players to use line-breaking passes.
Full 60-Minute Practice: 3 x practices to help you break the lines
Coach Project: Observation of breaking the lines activities
"You have to be in the right place at the right moment, not too early, not too late. Timing is everything." - Johan Cruyff
Breaking Blocks: Mastering Line-Breaking Passes in Football
Ever watched a team carve through their opponents with precision, unlocking defences seemingly at will?
The secret lies in breaking lines—a skill that can transform your team’s attacking play from predictable to unstoppable.
But how can you teach your players to execute this effectively? Let’s dive in."
What Does It Mean to Break Lines?
Breaking lines refers to playing the ball past one or more layers of the opponent's defensive structure—whether bypassing their forwards, midfield, or even their backline.
It’s not just about long balls or lucky passes; it’s about deliberate, precise actions that create opportunities to progress toward the goal.
To help your team master this skill, focus on tactical understanding, technical execution, and mental sharpness.
Key Coaching Points
Positioning: Finding Gaps
Teach your players to scan and position themselves between lines of pressure—ideally between the opponent's midfield and defensive lines.
Encourage midfielders and forwards to constantly adjust their positions to make themselves available for passes.
Coaching Tip: Use rondos or positional games where players must receive the ball in tight spaces to emphasise positioning.
Timing: Synchronising Movements
Successful line-breaking passes rely on perfect timing. The passer and receiver must work in unison, with the receiver moving into space as the passer is ready to deliver.
Coaching Tip: Create exercises where the pass is delayed unless the receiver's movement is well-timed to meet the ball in space.
Technique: Precision Passing & Receiving
Players need the technical skills to execute sharp, accurate passes and clean first touches to control the ball under pressure. Focus on body positioning to cushion the ball or turn away from pressure.
Coaching Tip: Include passing drills that mimic match intensity—short, firm passes combined with controlled first touches.
Deception & Disguise: Hiding Intentions
Breaking lines often involves fooling the opponent. Encourage your players to use subtle body feints or no-look passes to disguise their intentions, keeping defenders guessing.
Coaching Tip: Use 2v2 or 3v3 exercises where players score points for deceptive moves leading to a line-breaking pass.
Scanning: Awareness Before Receiving
Teach your players to check their surroundings frequently before receiving the ball. This ensures they’re aware of available options and pressure, allowing for quicker decisions.
Coaching Tip: Incorporate scanning challenges into small-sided games. Award points for players who make decisions based on pre-scan awareness.
Player Capabilities for Line-Breaking Success
Decision-Making Under Pressure: Encourage players to analyze risk versus reward.
Mobility Off the Ball: Players must be constantly creating space or exploiting gaps.
Bravery: Breaking lines requires confidence to attempt difficult passes or receive in high-pressure zones.
Tactical Considerations
Vertical vs. Diagonal Passes: While vertical passes are direct, diagonal passes can often break lines with less risk by creating better angles for the receiver.
Patience vs. Urgency: Not every forward pass needs to break a line. Teach players to recognise when to circulate the ball versus when to take a risk.
Support After the Break: Breaking lines is just the first step. Ensure that teammates support the receiver immediately, either with runs beyond or quick lateral options.
Final Thought:
Line-breaking is as much a mindset as it is a skill. Help your players build confidence through repetition, tactical clarity, and freedom to experiment. Breaking lines isn’t just about beating defenders; it’s about empowering your team to control the game and dictate the tempo.
Challenge your players this week: how often can they break lines in training? Start small, build awareness, and watch as your team’s attack transforms into a potent force.
10 Questions to Ask the Players About Breaking Lines
Use these questions to check the players’ understanding and to challenge them to think clearly about how they can be more effective at breaking lines.
Where can you position yourself to be available between the opponent’s lines?
What cues can you look for from your teammates to know when to move into a gap?
How do you decide when to move into space for a line-breaking pass?"
What’s the best way to control the ball when receiving under pressure from behind?
What type of pass most effectively breaks a defensive line—flat, driven, chipped, or another?
How can you use your body to trick an opponent before passing or receiving?
What are some ways to make a defender think you’re passing somewhere else?
What’s the advantage of knowing where your next pass will go before the ball reaches you?
How do you decide whether to attempt a risky line-breaking pass or play it safe?"
What should you do after breaking a line to help maintain possession or create a scoring chance?
"The secret is in the off-the-ball movement. If you stand still, you are easy to mark. But if you move, you create space—not just for yourself, but for your teammates." - Pep Guardiola
Full Practice: Line Breaking Activities
Rondo | 3v2 Breakout
⚽️ Created On: @SSPlanner
Aim:
Play through a press to earn an overloaded attack at goal.
Set-Up:
Split the pitch into thirds and then section off the middle third into thirds again. Place 🟡 target players in the central third (C) and defenders in the middle third (D)
🔴s have x 2 players pressing in zone (A), 1 x player screening in zone (B) and x 2 defenders in zone (D). They collectively try to regain the ball and score in zone (A) goal.
👕 Teams: ⚫️s vs 🔴s - 🟢 = GK for the defending team, 🟡s Target attackers
How to Play:
⚫️s start the attack in section (A) of the pitch they look to play into the 🟡s who turn to attack the goal vs 2 x 🔴s. One of the ⚫️s from zone (A) can join in to create an overload of 3v2 toward the large goal in zone (E).
At this point (Attack in zone (E), the coach can serve a 2nd ball into zone (A) so the ⚫️s can retain the ball until the 🟡s are back in position and ready for another attack.
🚧 Constraints:
🏆Reward: Double goals for an attack that is finished within 8 seconds
👨🏫 Review: Intent to pass forward, the body shape of the receiver to turn, and the forward runs to support the attack.
🚫 Restriction: Time limit to score, the defending team get the ball if the attacking team don’t get a shot away within X amount of seconds.
Rondo | 3v3 BreakOut
⚽️ Created On: @SSPlanner
Aim:
Breaking lines with fast passes then finishing the attack.
Set-Up:
Split the pitch into thirds and then section off the middle third into thirds again. Place 2x ⚫️ target players in the central third (C) and 1x⚫️ in zone (D).
🔴s have x 2 players pressing in zone (A), 3 x players screening in zone (B) and x 2 defenders in zone (E). They collectively try to regain the ball and score in zone (A) goals.
👕 Teams: ⚫️s vs 🔴s
How to Play:
If the 🔴s win the ball they attack the goals in zone A and the game is played until a finish.
⚫️s start with a 4v2 rondo where they look to play through the 🔴s in zone B into one of their 3 attacking players in zone (C or D). Once this occurs the ⚫️s attack the 🔴s in a 3v3 toward the goal in zone (E).
🚧 Constraints:
🏆Reward: Each team gets 5 balls to attack with but they get 1 extra ball for each goal they score.
👨🏫 Review: Ball speed to break the line of the 🔴s in zone (B)
🚫 Restriction: Pass limit in zone A for the ⚫️s to play then ball ⚽️ into zones C or D.
Breaking Lines Game | Drop In Zones
⚽️ Created On: @SSPlanner
Aim:
In-game moments use the correct weight and timing of pass to break lines.
Set-Up:
Split the field into thirds then split the middle third in half. Teams are locked in zones but IN possession a player can drop into the central zone to receive the ball
Teams attack and defend a large goal (+GK (🟢s).
Once the attacker has played into the outer third and the attacker has turned an attacker from behind the ball can join in.
👕 Teams: ⚫️s vs 🔴s plus a GK (🟢s).
How to Play:
The ⚫️s start in their half and try to build an attack. They aim to play through the 🔴s press into an attacker who has dropped into the central zone.
Once the ⚫️’s attacker has turned and either dribbled or passed into the final third a player from the defensive third can join in to overload the practice.
You can progress to allowing all players to move freely once the line-breaking pass occurs and it’s a normal game until a goal is scored. 🔴
🚧 Constraints:
🏆Reward: Bonus ball (GK keeps possession) if the team scores from an attack.
👨🏫 Review: Player’s willingness to pass forward using disguise.
🚫 Restriction: Players are locked in zones until a line-breaking pass occurs
“ The goal is to move the opponent vertically and quickly. Breaking lines disrupts the opponents shape - Ralf Rangnick
Coach Project: Observation Task
Observation Task: Evaluating Line-Breaking Passes in Practice
Objective:
To observe and analyse the effectiveness of line-breaking passes with player positioning, timing, and decision-making during an attacking phase.
Setup:
Use one of the practices above that focuses on breaking lines.
Assign one coach to observe players attempting line-breaking passes and their outcomes.
Key Observations:
Positioning
Are players finding and utilizing spaces between the defensive lines?
Do players adjust their positioning based on where the ball is and the defenders’ movement?
Timing
Are the passes delivered at the right moment to exploit gaps?
Are runs timed to receive the ball in stride, avoiding offsides or defensive pressure?
Technique
Is the pass weighted appropriately to allow the receiver to maintain momentum?
Are players using the correct type of pass (e.g., driven, lofted, disguised) to bypass opponents?
Scanning
Are players scanning the field before passing or receiving to identify options and anticipate pressure?
Support Play
After the pass, do teammates provide immediate support to maintain possession or advance the attack?
Lessons to Highlight Post-Observation:
Execution vs. Decision-Making: Discuss whether errors are technical (e.g., poor weight of pass) or tactical (e.g., forcing the pass when options are limited).
Triggers for Line-Breaking Passes: Emphasise what triggers a good opportunity (e.g., opponent stepping out, teammate finding space).
Risk vs. Reward: Encourage players to balance boldness with patience.
Tip for the Coach: Use a clipboard or tablet to note specific moments for feedback during breaks or post-session debriefing. Visual examples help players understand better!
“ It's not about the opponent in front of you. It's about the fight within you."
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