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Home/Training Drills/Possession Drills/Dropping the Pivot to Play Out (Salida)
PossessionAdvanced

Dropping the Pivot to Play Out (Salida)

Play out with a dropping pivot. Drop the holding midfielder between the centre-backs to make a spare man, feed him, receive on the half-turn, and progress past the press.

Create your own drill
Live animationPOS
Duration
12 min
Total drill time
Players
5
Recommended
Pitch
52 × 40 m
Setup space
Level
Advanced
Skill required
Intensity
Medium
Physical demand
Age band
U13-U14
Any format

Setup & instructions

Against a pressing forward, the holding midfielder drops between the centre-backs to form a back three. The keeper or a centre-back feeds the dropped pivot, who receives on the half-turn and progresses the ball. Emphasise the timing of the drop, an open body to receive, and playing forward past the press. Rotate the roles.

Setup time: 2 min

Tactical breakdown

Dropping the pivot every time you have the ball just gives away your midfield. The pattern has a name, the salida lavolpiana, and having a name makes it feel like a system to install rather than what it actually is: a specific response to a specific problem, which is two strikers pressing two centre-backs. Against one striker it is unnecessary. Against a midfield that follows the pivot down, it is actively harmful, because you have vacated the space you were trying to play into.

So timing is the whole coaching point. The drop happens as the press commits, not as a permanent starting position, and a pivot who is already standing between the centre-backs before anybody has pressed has surrendered the element that makes it work.

When it does work the effect is immediate. Three players across the back against two pressers means one of them cannot be covered, and the free man is whichever the strikers leave. Feeding him is straightforward once players stop looking for the pass they had planned and start looking for the man nobody is near.

Receiving on the half-turn is what converts the spare man into progress. A pivot who takes the ball facing his own goal has created an overload and then wasted it, and the team is passing sideways in its own third with the same problem it started with.

The honest prerequisite: this only works if your holding midfielder can receive under pressure and turn. If he cannot, dropping him deeper simply relocates the turnover closer to your own goal.

How to run this drill

  1. Use it against two pressers, not always. Against a single striker the drop is unnecessary, and against a following midfield it vacates the space you wanted to use.
  2. Time the drop to the press. It is a response, not a starting position. A pivot already sitting between the centre-backs has given the game away early.
  3. Split the centre-backs as he drops. Three across the back against two pressers is what manufactures the spare man. Without the split there is no extra passing angle.
  4. Feed whoever the strikers leave. Stop looking for the pass you planned and find the man nobody is near. Which player that is changes every repetition.
  5. Receive on the half-turn. Taking it facing your own goal creates an overload and immediately wastes it, leaving you sideways in your own third.
  6. Check your pivot can actually do it. If he cannot receive under pressure and turn, dropping him deeper just moves the turnover nearer your own goal.

Coaching focus

FROM SESSION PLAN

Coaching points

  • Time the drop to make the spare man
  • Feed the free player the presser cannot reach
  • Receive on the half-turn, open the body
  • Face the game and progress past the first line
  • Keep the spacing wide so the press is stretched

Common mistakes

  • Dropping too late, after the press has set
  • Feeding a marked player instead of the free man
  • Receiving square, unable to play forward
  • Spacing too narrow, easy for the press to cover

Progressions & regressions

VARIATIONS

Progressions

  • Add a second presser to test the overload
  • Progress into a finish beyond midfield
  • Live from a small-sided game

Regressions

  • Presser at a set pace to groove the pattern
  • Walk the drop and the feed first
  • Bigger area for more time
Equipment
Cones×1
Tactical principles
salida lavolpianadropping the pivotplaying out from the backcreating a spare manholding midfielder dropsreceiving on the half turnbeating a two man pressu14 possession drillbuild up patternthird centre back
Audience
U13-U14

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All Possession drillsAll drill collectionsPossession for U13-U14

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