In this Masterclass webinar replay, Player Development Project hosted Head of Coaching at UK Coaching, Nick Levett. Nick is joined by PDP Co-Founder & UEFA A licensed Coach, Dave Wright as well as PDP Technical Advisor & UEFA A licensed coach, Dan Wright. Nick has a huge amount of experience in coaching and development, having previously been Head of Talent ID at The FA and he has also worked as an Academy Coach in England. In this discussion Nick, Dan and Dave dive into a…
session design
In this Player Development Project webinar replay, we continue our series of discussions around position specific work and how you can create sessions to support their development across a variety of roles. This time, we focus on how coaches can support young players develop defensive skills and problem solving ability. PDP Co-Founder, Dave Wright hosts PDP Technical Advisor, Dan Wright & Leicester City FC Academy Coach, Mark Lyons for an interactive discussion with a defensive focus. Our panel of UEFA A licensed expert coaches present…
In this Masterclass Webinar replay, we’re joined by Head Coach of Portland Timbers T2 team, Cameron Knowles for a conversation on High Performance Coaching. Cameron is a former professional player who had a career in the USA with Real Salt Lake, Portland Timbers and Montreal Impact. He holds the US Pro License, a Masters in Psychology and was an Assistant Coach of the MLS Title Winning Portland Timbers staff in 2015 before taking up the role of Head Coach of the club’s T2 team who…
This Masterclass Webinar replay is a fantastic opportunity for you to explore the research behind scanning and awareness in football with Dave Eldridge, UEFA A licensed coach & lecturer at Chichester University in England. “I spend the entire 90 minutes looking for space on the pitch. I’m always between the opposition’s two holding midfielders and thinking, ‘The defence is here, so I get the ball and I go there to where the space is.” – Xavi The best players seem to always have time on the…
The question this week comes from Gav through the PDP Members Slack Community: Gav asks, “Should I have a theme for my sessions?” Your Turn: Ask PDP Anything Do you have a coaching question that we might be able to help with? We would love to hear from you! Here’s what you can do: 1. Tweet your questions to us @playerdp, or contact us on our Facebook page.2. PDP Members can chat directly with the PDP team to ask questions, share ideas, and support each other on our exclusive Coaching…
This blog contains two videos of a modified 3v3. In this session, PDP Lead Researcher & AIK Academy Coach, James Vaughan changes task constraints and encourages player reflection to create opportunities for learning with space for creative expression. A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to work with just 6 players for a whole session. This is something I really enjoy after years of coaching futsal. However, working with small numbers of players for a whole session can be daunting. In this blog, I want to…
PDP’s latest course covers the fundamentals of effective planning and session design for a youth soccer environment. By utilizing the experience of professional coaches and industry experts, we have created a course that teaches coaches how to design, organize, and deliver high-quality training sessions at all levels of participation. Participants will learn about the fundamentals of planning, how to place player development at the heart of session design, the different types of practice session, key communication and intervention techniques, and the value of reflection. Applying…
In this Masterclass Discussion, PDP Editor, Dave Wright is joined by Academy Manager of Birmingham City FC, Kristjaan Speakman for an in depth and wide ranging conversation. Kristjaan has been at the club for well over a decade and has also coached at Derby County under the guidance of Terry Westley. Now one of England’s most highly regarded Academy Managers, Kristjaan sits down with Dave to discuss leadership, coaching and coach development, shares insights into the journey of Demarai Gray & recent first team debutant,…
Rondos are a popular possession-based practice favored by many of the world’s best coaches. They allow players to experience being underloaded and overloaded, incorporate elements of positional play, and provide opportunities to coach tactical elements of the game. But when is it appropriate to use rondos while working with young players? Below, we look at both the benefits and the drawbacks of rondos, and consider the best time to utilize them while coaching youth soccer. In This Article What are Rondos? A rondo is a…
Passing and receiving are fundamental skills for developing players. In this live session, PDP Coaching Advisor, James Coutts shares an interference passing practice warm up which leads in to a session focussed on split passes and some key principles. In this session, James gets this group of U11 players moving with an interference practice designed to give the players high repetition with some elements of traffic and decision-making. The focus of part one is to get the players switched on and working on a range…
In this article, PDP Coaching Advisor, James Coutts shares some of his favourite passing and possession practices which can be adapted for players across all age groups. Like many coaches I love using rondos or small-sided positional games consistently in my sessions. There are so many variations that can be used, each with a variety of outcomes. I have implemented all the sessions below with a range of age groups from six-years-old right up to senior players, adapting the practices to suit the group in…
Good planning is an essential part of coaching. As coaches, we want kids to be respectful of the people around them and come to practice ready to learn and give their all. But we owe them the same respect in return — and this means preparing well-organized practices that are captivating, educational, and tailored to their needs as both individuals and a team. Session planning often seems daunting for inexperienced coaches, but it’s something we can all improve if we’re willing to learn. Below, we’ll…
In this Masterclass Webinar replay, the PDP team host FA National Goalkeeping coach, Yilmaz Aksoy for a fascinating discussion on how to develop goalkeepers. Most kids dream of scoring the perfect goal. I’ve always dreamed of stopping it. – Iker Casillas Goalkeepers are different. Whilst most kids fall in love with scoring the perfect goal, Goalkeepers thrive in denying these moments and keeping the ball out of the net. PDP Co-hosts Dave Wright & Dan Wright sit down for a discussion designed to help coaches…
The question this week comes from Frank via our Facebook Page: Frank asks, “How can I plan a technical or tactical theme for my players?” Your Turn: Ask PDP Anything Do you have a coaching question that we might be able to help with? We would love to hear from you! Here’s what you can do: 1. Tweet your questions to us @playerdp, or contact us on our Facebook page.2. PDP Members can chat directly with the PDP team to ask questions, share ideas, and support each other…
Coaches around the world are having to innovate with their session design as football training kicks off in some nations after the global pandemic. In this article, PDP Coaching Advisor, James Coutts shares some practical ideas for sessions that allow for social distancing. Like many coaches preparing to get back onto the grass I started designing my sessions for the various groups I’d be working with as football resumes with a whole new remit – social distancing. Most sessions I’d implemented prior to the Covid-19…
In this article, PDP Technical Advisor, Dan Wright wades into the opposed vs. unopposed practice debate. Dan shares his perspective on why this may be a redundant argument if we are to ensure that every player gets the individual support they require to maximise their potential. Each day I scroll through social media and see a similar discussion taking place. Every. Single. Day. The ‘unopposed versus opposed’ debate. Now, very quickly I will attempt to share with you my opinion on this and the context…
In this Masterclass Webinar replay, the PDP team host top academy coaches, Mark Lyons and Tom Mallinson for an in depth discussion on academy football in England. Mark Lyons is the Pre-Academy Co-ordinator & Lead Coach at Leicester City FC and Tom Mallinson is a Professional Development Phase Coach at Nottingham Forest FC. Experienced Academy Coaches, Dan Wright and Dave Wright will host Tom and Mark for a round table discussion on professional academy football in the UK. All four of our expert panel met…
In this Player Development Project webinar replay, the PDP team present a webinar focussed on building possession and in particular, switching play. Hosted by Dave Wright with guest experts Dan Wright & James Coutts, we bring you a presentation with a number of practical sessions for you to adapt to your players. Topics to be covered for members during this conversation include: – What is switching play and why we do it– What principles may need to be applied?– Using lanes as a guide– Positional…