Press, then recover
Transcript
Sprint to press, then jog back into shape. Here's the drill. Warm up first. You need two partners, a ball, and six cones for a box twenty metres by fifteen and a gate. Watch. They pass, you press. They pass back, you jog back. First, curve your run to block the gate. Then, jog back to your spot. Not this. Flying in lets them go past. Fast out, slow in, on your feet. After any knock to the head, if in doubt, sit them out. Our target is three sets of five, resting two minutes. Any chest pain or dizziness, stop. Then take the free test at footballreach.com.
What it trains
Repeated pressing bouts: sprint out to press the ball, curving your run to cut off a pass, slow down as you arrive, then jog straight back into position and go again. Conditioning with a football shape, with full rest between sets.
Set up
- 2 partners
- A ball
- 6 cones: box and gate
- 20 x 15 m box
How it works
- Warm up first. On flat grass, mark a 20 x 15 m box with 4 cones, and a 2 m gate with 2 more, on one side about a third of the way down from your end.
- Start in the middle of your end. The attacker stands near the far end, about 14 m away, with the server and the ball about 7 m to their side.
- The server passes to the attacker. Go on the pass: curve your run so you block the pass to the gate, and slow down over the last 3 m, side-on and low.
- The attacker scores a point by passing through the gate; otherwise they pass back to the server. Then turn and jog back to your spot, and go again on the next pass.
- Do 5 presses in a row, then swap roles. Rest about 2 minutes between your sets of 5.
Coaching points
- Curve to block the gate. Set off towards the gate side, then bend your run in towards the ball, so you arrive between the ball and the gate. Your run cuts off that pass and shows them one way: back to the server.
- Jog back to your spot. The moment they pass back, turn and jog straight back to your spot, then face the play again, ready for the next pass. Jog, do not walk, and do not stop to watch.
Not this
Flying in at full speed. You cannot stop or turn, so the attacker goes past you. Fast out, slow in: brake over your last 3 m, side-on and low, knees bent.
Dose
- 3 sets of 5 presses
- 2 min rest between sets
Our target: 3 sets of 5 presses, about 2 minutes' rest between sets (the Football Reach target, not an FA rule).
Harder / Easier
Harder
The attacker may dribble past you if you arrive too fast (the age ladder's harder version). Stay on your feet and keep showing them one way.
Easier
Press at about 70% speed and jog back slowly until the curve and the slow-down feel natural, or do 3 presses a set instead of 5.
Safety
- Warm up first: the FIFA 11+ (from 14) or your club warm-up. Flat grass with space all round, never a road or driveway.
- No tackling: stay on your feet, no slide tackles, no pushing or pulling. If in doubt, sit them out: anyone with a suspected concussion stops straight away, does no training for at least 24 hours and plays no matches for at least 21 days (UK concussion guidelines).
- Chest pain, or feeling faint or dizzy: stop straight away, see a GP or call NHS 111 the same day, and call 999 if someone collapses. Stop too if unusually out of breath.
- Don't train through pain (a tight hamstring, sore knees or heels): stop and get it checked by a GP or physio.
Sources
- England Football Learning - pressing session: press for success (opens in a new tab)
- England Football Learning - pressing session: pressing zones (opens in a new tab)
- FIFA Training Centre - preventing progression through central areas (opens in a new tab)
- England Football Learning - transition from attack to defence (opens in a new tab)
- England Football - UK concussion guidelines for grassroots sport (opens in a new tab)
- FIFA - injury prevention (FIFA 11+, ages 14+) (opens in a new tab)
Not sure which skill to work on first? The free Football Reach test gives you a Player Development Score and shows which of the four corners of your game to work on next, in about two minutes.
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