Annual training plan · U9–U13

Week 39: Individual Training – Dribbling & Feints

2 complete training sessions with 6 drills – created by licensed coaches. Open every drill in the easy2coach web app with one click.

This week’s focus

Individual training is not only a good way to keep fit during periods without team training. Training alone can also help to improve ball mastery and coordination. Players can also expand their repertoire of feints or learn or improve a shooting technique.

The decisive advantage of individual training is that the level of difficulty can be adapted more easily to a single player than to a whole training group. In addition, more time can be invested specifically in working on the player's weaknesses.

If the training is done alone, without a coach, motivation and self-discipline also play a key role. Give your players moderately difficult tasks. That way, the task is challenging enough to ensure basic motivation. At the same time, the practice is not too hard, so the drive to succeed does not fade after the first few attempts.

If the player does the sessions alone, this also has positive effects on personal development:

  • The player learns to organise himself, because he sets aside time in his day for training.
  • The player learns to motivate himself, because he is not spurred on by his team-mates or his coach. It helps that players aged 10 to 12 bring a very strong joy of movement and play as well as great enthusiasm for new things.
  • The player learns to assess his own performance, because he gets no feedback from his coach. Ask your player specifically how easy or hard he found the individual training, to encourage self-reflection. Also give credit to the player for doing his “homework”.

Author Luis Österlein

Session 1

3 drills

When training at home or in the garden, there are many ways to replace the usual training equipment. Cones can easily be replaced by items of clothing or plastic bottles. If passing and controlling the ball are to be practised alone, the ball can simply be played or thrown against a wall. This is an excellent way to practise controlling and playing both high balls and balls along the ground. Shooting can also be practised against a wall if no goal is available.

This session will mainly be about carrying the ball and feinting. At home, dribbling in tight spaces in particular can be practised well. Building in lots of changes of direction and different ways of carrying the ball can increase the level of difficulty. If you want to add a little pressure to the individual training, a course can be dribbled through against the clock.

When practising feinting, the usual skill moves such as step-overs, lunges, scissors or shot feints can be brushed up. In addition, new and more complex feints can also be learned well when practising alone. Where possible, attention should be paid to match-realistic execution when practising the feints. If there is only limited space for training, preference should be given to skill moves that can be used for sharp changes of direction. For example, scissors, pass feints or body feints.

Coaching points for this session
  • Close ball control
  • Look up from the ball as often as possible
  • Carry the ball in varied ways (sole, outside of the foot, inside of the foot, instep, left, right)
  • After feints, make a change of pace and direction
  • When feinting, shift the centre of gravity sufficiently
Drill 1

Feint Star

15 min
  • The player dribbles head-on at the pole in the middle and performs a feint.
  • Then the player dribbles at a cone and performs a turning technique there.
  • After that the player dribbles at the pole again, and the sequence starts again from the beginning.

Variations:

  • Specify the order of the colours.
  • Specify particular feints for the cone colours.
  • Later give the players' creativity room and let them choose the feints themselves.
Equipment & set-up

Pitch: A pole stands in the middle, around it five cones in different colours are spread out in a star shape.

Equipment: 1 pole, 5 cones in different colours and 1 ball.

Players: One player with a ball.

Coaching points
  • Cut sharply.
  • Perform a change of pace after the feints.
  • Shift the centre of gravity sufficiently.
  • Perform the feints with both feet.
Drill 2

Coordination with the Ball

15 min
  • The players work through the ladders as instructed.
  • Then they dribble a ball through the course.
  • On the way back they put the ball down again in front of the agility ladder.

Exercises for the agility ladder:

  • Short, quick steps.
  • Two steps forwards, one step back.
  • In from the side and forwards with short steps.
  • Single-leg jumps.
Equipment & set-up

Pitch: Agility ladders next to each other, behind them a tall cone course.

Equipment: Agility ladders, tall cones and several balls.

Players: Two groups of equal size, which line up behind the ladders.

Coaching points
  • Work on the balls of the feet at the agility ladder.
  • Bring the hands along properly.
  • Keep the ball close in the course.
  • Dribble with both feet.
  • Look up from the ball.
Drill 3

Dribbling with a Feint and a Shot

10 min
  • The player dribbles towards the dummy.
  • The player carries out a feint and goes past on the left or on the right.
  • The player then finishes.
Equipment & set-up

Pitch: One starting cone, in front of it a dummy as an opponent; behind that the goal.

Equipment: 1 cone, 1 dummy, 1 goal and several balls.

Players: The players start one after the other; plus a goalkeeper.

Coaching points
  • Pick up speed.
  • Start the feint in good time.
  • Carry out a change of pace and direction after the feint.
  • If no chance to finish arises, use a shot feint.
The complete session as a ready-made training plan – with animated drills in the web app. Go to the web app

Session 2

3 drills

The 2nd session on individual training also works on feinting and dribbling. To improve your players' dribbling ability, you can support your players with the following tips for individual training:

  • Carry the ball with lots of short touches. This keeps the ball under control at all times and you can react as quickly as possible to new match situations
  • Build changes of pace into your dribbling. Sudden changes of speed let you surprise your opponent. This can be a sudden burst as well as an abrupt stop in your dribbling
  • Try to look up from the ball as often as possible. Like close control, this tip helps you react as quickly as possible to new match situations. In addition, good awareness of play while dribbling helps you spot as many follow-up actions as possible
  • Learn to carry the ball with both feet. If you can dribble with your left foot and your right foot, you are more flexible in the game. Being able to carry the ball with both feet helps you, for example, to carry the ball with the foot furthest from the opponent

Besides the dribbling tips, you can also support your players with guidance on feinting. When practising feints alone, the players should observe the following points:

  • After your feints, change pace to get away from your opponents or to beat them
  • Shift your body weight sufficiently with lunges, scissors and step-overs. Using your whole body when feinting makes it easier to deceive opponents
  • With shot feints and pass feints, make sure the kicking leg is drawn back far enough. In addition, the upper body should also be used when faking a pass or shot, to make the feint look as convincing as possible
Coaching points for this session

Dribbling:

  • Dribble with both feet
  • Close ball control
  • Build changes of pace into the dribbling
  • Flexible ball control (outside of the foot, inside of the foot, instep, sole)
  • Keep looking up from the ball

Feinting:

  • Start feints in good time
  • Step-over, scissors and lunge: shift the centre of gravity sufficiently
  • Pass and shot feints: make sure the movement looks authentic (use the upper body and draw back the kicking leg)
  • After the feint, make a change of pace
Drill 1

Dribbling Warm-Up

15 min

The drill consists of two lanes, which are completed one after the other.

  1. In lane 1 the players dribble through the channel and back again at the end.
  2. In lane 2 the players dribble up to the cones one after the other and cut at each one.

Variations:

  • Lane 1: alternating right outside of the foot, right inside of the foot, right outside of the foot, right inside of the foot.
  • Lane 1: take the ball along with the sole of the foot.
  • Lane 1: let the ball swing to and fro between the feet and look up from the ball.
  • Lane 2: add a feint in front of the cones and use the arms.
  • Lane 2: cut with the outside of the foot, with the inside of the foot or behind the standing leg.
Equipment & set-up

Pitch: Two separate lanes as shown in the graphic. In lane 1 the cones stand in two rows forming a channel, in lane 2 they are staggered one behind the other.

Equipment: 13 cones, 1 ball per player.

Players: The players spread out evenly over the two lanes and start one after the other.

Coaching points
  • Keep the ball close when dribbling.
  • Look up from the ball.
  • Start the feints in good time and keep an appropriate speed while doing so.
  • Use both feet.
  • Keep enough distance from the player in front.
Drill 2

Dribbling and Quick Turns

15 min
  • The player dribbles to the first cone and cuts in front of it.
  • The player dribbles back to the starting cone and cuts in front of that one as well.
  • Then the player dribbles to the third cone and cuts again just before it.
  • After that the player dribbles back to the starting position.

Variations — ways of cutting:

  • With the left or right inside of the foot.
  • With the left or right outside of the foot.
  • Pulling the ball back with the left or right sole.
  • Cutting behind the standing leg with the left or right inside of the foot.
  • Dragging the ball past behind the standing leg with the left or right sole.

Variations — feints before cutting: Shot feint, pass feint, scissors, lunge or a combination of two feints.

Equipment & set-up

Pitch: Three cones mark the starting cone and two turning points.

Equipment: 3 cones and one ball per player.

Players: Each player works alone.

Coaching points
  • Cut sharply.
  • Change pace as part of the cut.
Drill 3

Timed Slalom Dribbling

15 min
  • The cones are dribbled around as fast as possible.
  • The time is measured while doing so.
  • It is then assessed which player or which group was the fastest.

Variations: Extend the row or have the players dribble back again as well.

Equipment & set-up

Pitch: Three cones stand in a row.

Equipment: 3 cones and one ball per player.

Players: The players start one after the other; the time is measured.

Coaching points
  • Keep the ball close.
  • Dribble with both feet.
  • Dribble through the course by the shortest route.
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