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Home/Training Drills/Finishing Drills/Attacking a Cutback with Multiple Runners
FinishingIntermediate

Attacking a Cutback with Multiple Runners

Attack a cutback with coordinated runs. Stagger the runs to the near post, spot, and back post so one runner is always free, then finish the pull-back first time.

Create your own drill
Live animationFIN
Duration
12 min
Total drill time
Players
5
Recommended
Pitch
48 × 36 m
Setup space
Level
Intermediate
Skill required
Intensity
High
Physical demand
Age band
U9-U10
Any format

Setup & instructions

The winger drives to the byline and pulls the ball back while three runners attack the near post, the penalty spot, and the back post at staggered times. The cutback finds the free runner, who finishes first time. Emphasise the timing and spacing of the runs so one is always open. Vary which runner is free. Rotate the roles.

Setup time: 1 min

Tactical breakdown

Three runners arriving together is one runner. They occupy the same few square yards, one defender covers all of them, and a pull-back that misses that spot by three yards finds nobody at all. Staggering the arrivals is what turns three attackers into three separate problems.

The zones are near post, penalty spot and back post, and they should be assigned rather than discovered. Without allocation, players default to the most attractive area, which is the six-yard box, and the box gets crowded while the edge stays empty. That is the same failure as defending the cutback, seen from the other side.

The near-post runner is often a decoy and should be told so. His job is to take a defender with him and to convert anything overhit in his direction. If he is judged only on goals scored, he stops making the run, and the space he was creating for the spot runner closes.

Timing differs by zone and this is the detail that gets missed. The near-post run goes early, because it is arriving at a ball delivered before the byline. The spot run arrives with the ball. The back-post runner holds longest, because the pull-back he is attacking has furthest to travel.

The finish is first time from all three positions, since the ball has pace and defenders are recovering.

One caution: this needs a genuine delivery to be worth running. Serving predictable cutbacks to the same spot every repetition trains the runs but not the reading, and the reading is what makes them work.

How to run this drill

  1. Assign the three zones explicitly. Near post, penalty spot, back post. Without allocation everyone gravitates to the six-yard box and the edge of the area stays empty.
  2. Stagger the timing by zone. Near post goes early, the spot arrives with the ball, the back post holds longest. The pull-back each is attacking has a different distance to travel.
  3. Keep the runs on separate lines. Three attackers converging on the same few yards is one attacker as far as a defender is concerned, and it makes a good delivery look like a bad one.
  4. Tell the near-post runner he is a decoy. His job is to take a defender with him and convert anything overhit. Judged only on goals, he stops running and the space he created closes.
  5. Read where the ball is going and attack it. The runners adjust to the delivery rather than running fixed routes. A pull-back is rarely perfect and the reading is what converts an imperfect one.
  6. Vary the delivery. Serving the same cutback to the same spot trains the runs but not the reading, and the reading is what makes the runs work in a match.

Coaching focus

FROM SESSION PLAN

Coaching points

  • Stagger the runs: near, spot, and back post
  • Do not all arrive together and clog the box
  • Read where the pull-back is going, attack the ball
  • Finish first time, low and on target
  • Winger picks out the free runner

Common mistakes

  • Runners arriving together, clogging the box
  • Poor timing, arriving before or after the ball
  • Winger not to the byline, cutting back from deep
  • Snatching at the finish instead of a clean strike

Progressions & regressions

VARIATIONS

Progressions

  • Add defenders to mark the runners
  • Vary the pull-back to each of the three
  • Two-touch limit in the box

Regressions

  • Fewer runners to start
  • Pull it back to a set runner to groove it
  • Walk the timing of the runs first
Equipment
Cones×1
Full Goals×1
Tactical principles
cutback runnersattacking the boxstaggered runsnear post spot back postfinishing drilltiming runs in the boxbox occupationcrossing and finishingmultiple runnersu10 finishing drill
Audience
U9-U10

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