U9 (Boys/Girls)

• Develop speed, agility, balance, lateral movements, and timing & coordination through a variety of fun, organized and spontaneous activities.
• Develop technical skills of ball control (all foot surfaces, thigh, chest), passing, receiving, dribbling (moves), running w/ball, shooting, and tackling/blocking shots through a variety of drills and progressions.

Technical Development

• Controlling and continuation with the ball by all allowed body parts with speed and resistance
• Passing the ball with inside foot , both right and left foot over distances ( on the ground)
• Working on being more creative by using fakes and feints
• Learning how to properly shield the ball with and without resistance
• Shielding the ball with and without resistance
• Learning how to play one/two touch passing

Tactical Development

• Positional covering of the field in length and width ( Spatial Awareness)
• Being Available for the ball ( Technical Preparation)
• Winning the ball back
• Individual Tactics (Shielding the ball, beginning to recognize options, etc…)
• Players to push on in attack  or drop back as a team

Physical Development

• Start developing a good running technique and Coordination
• Explosive first step
• Maintaining and improving flexibility
• Developing proper coordination and balance

Personality Development

• Fair play , sportsmanship and respect
• Learning to have fun and to develop passion for the sport
• Learning communication: Player-Player and Player- Coach, Being coachable, accept and take advantage of leadership moments, Accept Decision

Content Development

• Learn soccer rules
• Maintenance of materials, Gear and shoes
• Learn general rules of social behavior
• Have proper clothing suited to circumstances

What they Need

• Fun drills, w/lots of variety, different degrees of challenge.
• Need to be made aware of ‘why’ and ‘when’ we use different technical actions – like passing, moving, dribbling, and kicking.
• Need lots of technical repetitions, lots of ball contact…develop touch & feel.
• Need a great deal of dribbling.
• Need an appreciation for how the game is played – game objectives.

U10 (Boys/Girls)

For Motor skills and Technique

• Develop speed, agility, balance, lateral movements, and timing & coordination through a variety of fun, organized and spontaneous activities.
• Develop technical skills of ball control (all foot surfaces, thigh, chest), passing, receiving, dribbling (moves), running w/ball, shooting, and tackling/blocking shots through a variety of drills and progressions.

For understanding basic concepts and simple tactical actions:

• Setting up shooting opportunities.
• Apply basic skills of dribbling and passing to move the ball and player up the field towards the goal.
• Moving early to block the opposition attack, alone and together with teammates

Technical Development

• Controlling and continuation with the ball by all allowed body parts with speed and resistance
• Passing the ball with inside foot , both right and left foot over distances ( on the ground)
• Passing with the laces and instep passing, both right and left over longer distance in the ground and in the air
• Working on being more creative by using fakes and feints
• Learning how to properly shield the ball with and without resistance

Tactical Development

• Positional covering of the field in length and width ( Spatial Awareness)
• Being Available for the ball ( Technical Preparation)
• Winning the ball back
• Individual Tactics (Shielding the ball, beginning to recognize options, etc…)
• Players to push on in attack or drop back as a team
• Play from their own positions / zone ( pick up the runner who comes into the zone)

Physical Development

• Start developing a good running technique and Coordination
• Explosive first step
• Maintaining and improving flexibility
• Developing proper coordination and balance

Personality Development

• Fair play , sportsmanship and respect
• Learning to have fun and to develop passion for the sport
• Learning communication:
  • Player-Player and Player- Coach
  • Being coachable
  • Accept and take advantage of leadership moments
  • Accept Decision

Content Development

• Learn soccer rules
• Maintenance of materials, Gear and shoes
• Learn general rules of social behavior
• Have proper clothing suited to circumstances
• Take care of the body: Hygiene, Nutrition, and Rest.

What they Need

• Fun drills, w/lots of variety, different degrees of challenge.
• Need to be made aware of ‘why’ and ‘when’ we use different technical actions – like passing, moving, dribbling, and kicking.
• Need lots of technical repetitions, lots of ball contact…develop touch & feel.
• Need a great deal of dribbling.
• Need an appreciation for how the game is played – game objectives.

U11 (Boys/Girls)

Preliminary Phase – The goals for this phase are improved motor skill, improved basic technical skill (kicking, dribbling, stopping the ball, and ball control), an appreciation for what the game is about, a basic understanding of when and why: we pass, we dribble, we kick, and we move.

Technical Development

• Controlling and continuation with the ball by all allowed body parts with speed and resistance
• Passing the ball with inside foot , both right and left foot over distances ( on the ground)
• Passing with the laces and instep passing, both right and left over longer distance in the ground and in the air
• Working on being more creative by using fakes and feints
• Learning how to properly shield the ball with and without resistance

Tactical Development

• The basics of individual tactics
  • 1 v 1 activities
  • Getting open
  • Marking and opponent
  • Simple dribbling and faking
  • Correct form and timing for tackling

• Positional covering of the field in length and width (Spatial Awareness)
• Being Available for the ball (develop an understanding of triangle on the field)
• Adapting to opponents system of play:

Physical Development

• Continue developing a good running technique and Coordination
• Explosive first step
• Maintaining and improving flexibility
• Continue Developing proper coordination and balance
• Emphasis on explosive actions

Personality Development

• Fair play, sportsmanship, and respect
• Learning to have fun and to develop passion for the sport
• Learning communication:
  • Player-Player and Player- Coach
  • Being coachable
  • Accept and take advantage of leadership moments
  • Accept Decision
  • Learn to Analyze own performance

Content Development

• Learn soccer rules
• Maintenance of materials, gear and shoes
• Learn general rules of social behavior
• Have proper clothing suited to circumstances
• Take care of the body: Hygiene, Nutrition, and Rest.
• Learn to read the game / opponent / Systems

What they Need

• Need much technical repetitions
• Require much individual tactics learned in 1 v 1, 2v 2,3 v 3,3 v 2 …etc
• Do not need fitness training without the ball, basic endurance is developed almost exclusively via ball games built around the technical-tactical concepts
• Need small-sided games
• Need small field
• Need many developmental-diagnostic activities
• Too much technical repetitions can be boring, need decision making activities, technique is incidental to tactical focus

U12 (Boys/Girls)

Players should be learning to solve soccer problems, with the emphasis on how to choose the correct option in respect to the player’s position of the team or in a particular unit of the team i.g. the defensive line, etc.  In this phase the player must be able to combine with her/his teammates in order to get past an opponent (the most important thing is the result of what the player does).  Emphasis is on learning with more attention given to performance in games as the determining factor in playing time.  The time played in more competitive games is up to the discretion of the coach.

Technical Development

• Controlling and continuation with the ball by all allowed body parts with speed and resistance
• Passing the ball with inside foot , both right and left foot over distances ( on the ground)
• Passing with the laces and instep passing, both right and left over longer distance in the ground and in the air
• Working on being more creative by using fakes and feints
• Learning how to properly shield the ball with and without resistance

Tactical Development

The basics of individual tactics

• 1 v 1 activities
• Getting open
• Marking and opponent
• Simple dribbling and faking
• Correct form and timing for tackling

Improving and expanding basics of individual tactics

• Assertive 1 V 1 play
• Combination play
• Choosing the right right technique for the situation
• Improving faking for ball control, dribbling, and shooting

Physical Development

• Continue developing a good running technique and Coordination
• Explosive first step
• Maintaining and improving flexibility
• Continue Developing proper coordination and balance
• Emphasis on explosive actions
  • Starts
  • Sprints
  • Jumps

Personality Development

• Fair play , sportsmanship and respect
• Learning to have fun and to develop passion for the sport
• Learning communication:
  • Player-Player and Player- Coach
  • Being coachable
  • Accept and take advantage of leadership moments
  • Accept Decision
  • Learn to Analyze own performance
  • Listen to your own body and be able to report injuries
  • Game mentality

Content Development

• Take care of the body: Hygiene, Nutrition, and Rest.
• Learn to read the game / opponent / Systems
• Learn to think about and analyze the game
• Learn to be able to have a fundamental discussion about the 1-4-3-3 system and how it works
• Learn to deal with the pressure of training amount, school work and living an active lifestyle
• Learn to deal with the pressure of playing on a more competitive level (accept results)

What they Need

• Need technical repetitions (Too much technical repetitions can be boring, need decision making activities, technique is incidental to tactical focus)
• Require much individual tactics learned in 1 v 1, 2v 2,3 v 3,3 v 2 …etc
• Do not need fitness training without the ball, basic endurance is developed almost exclusively via ball games built a round the technical-tactical concepts
• Need interval training, may need fitness training without the ball if they cheat in workouts
• Need small-sided games
• Need many developmental-diagnostic activities

U13-U19 (Boys/Girls)

In this phase learning to win, and use of all available sources to achieve a good result players should be thinking about and consciously working on the planned and systematic improvement of performance. The organization and intensity of training sessions becomes important.  Coaches should use scrimmages to have the players learn to face the systems, and opponents who they will play against in competitive games.

• learning correct and physically assertive 1 v 1 play
• developing position- specific tactics
• Learning more complex group and team tactics
• the concept of Possession -Build up and space through positional play
• Counter attack
• Frontal attack, game on the wings, switching the area of play
• Playing zone (ball oriented) defense as a team, pressing and depressing
• Variations on set plays

Technical Development

• Controlling and continuation with the ball by all allowed body parts with speed and resistance
• Passing the ball with inside foot , both right and left foot over distances ( on the ground)
• Passing with the laces and instep passing, both right and left over longer distance in the ground and in the air
• Working on being more creative by using fakes and feints
• Learning how to properly shield the ball with and without resistance
• Shielding the ball with and without resistance
• Learning how to play one/two touch passing

Tactical Development    

The basics of individual tactics

• 1 v 1 activities
• Getting open
• Marking and opponent
• Simple dribbling and faking
• Correct form and timing for tackling
• Improving and expanding basics of individual tactics
  • Assertive 1 V 1 play
  • Combination play
  • Choosing the right technique for the situation
  • Improving faking for ball control, dribbling, and shooting
  • Positional covering of the field in length and width ( Spatial Awareness)
  • Being Available for the ball ( develop an understanding of triangle on the field)

Physical Development  

• Continue developing a good running technique and Coordination
• Explosive first step
• Maintaining and improving flexibility
• Continue Developing proper coordination and balance
• Emphasis on explosive actions
  • Starts
  • Sprints
  • Jumps

Personality Development  

• Ability to handle pressure
• Self-confidence
• Concentration
• Mentality/ work rate
• Motivation
• Attitude
• Self – Discipline
• Courage and determination
• Have study discipline (school)

Content Development  

• Learn soccer rules
• Maintenance of materials, Gear and shoes
• Learn general rules of social behavior
• Have proper clothing suited to circumstances
• Take care of the body: Hygiene, Nutrition, and Rest.
• Learn to read the game / opponent / Systems
• Learn to think about and analyze the game
• Learn to be able to have a fundamental discussion about the 1-4-3-3 system and how it works
• Learn to deal with the pressure of training amount, school work and living an active lifestyle
• Learn to deal with the pressure of playing on a more competitive level ( accept results)

What they Need    

• Too much technical repetitions can be boring, need decision making activities, technique is incidental to tactical focus
• Need more passing-receiving and team tactics
• Need functional training basically positional play
• Need team tactics and game plan
• Need interval training, need fitness training without the ball
• Need some 11 a side, but 8 v8 and 6 v 4 will often suffice
• Need full field
• Need diagnostic-prescriptive activities

Enjoyment at this age is vital for players to learn and develop