Possession
Positional Play: 4v4 plus 4 Neutrals (Two Pivots)
Use an 8v4 superiority to play through the middle rather than around it: find the pivots between the lines, combine pivot to pivot and with the third man, and progress from one end neutral to the other. When the ball changes hands, the team that won it escapes through a neutral and the team that lost it counter-presses at once.
Live animation
Duration
20 min
Total drill time
Players
12
Recommended
Pitch
18 × 25 yd
Setup space
Level
Intermediate
Skill required
Intensity
High
Physical demand
Age band
U11-U12
7v7
Setup & instructions
Mark an 18 x 25 yd grid with a disc on each corner and at halfway (FIFA's version uses 20 x 20 m). Three teams of four in three bib colours. Two teams play 4v4 inside. The third team are neutrals who always play for the team with the ball: one on each end line and two pivots inside, one in each half. Score a goal by moving the ball from one end neutral to the other. The ball has to go through the middle: a pass from an end neutral to a wide player and straight on to the other end neutral does not count, it must go through a pivot or a player inside. A pass into a pivot that splits two defenders on the way counts double. When the defending four win it they attack at once, towards either end neutral, and the team that lost it has five seconds to win it back. Start with free touches, then limit the neutrals to one or two touches. Play rounds of three to four minutes and rotate the three teams one for one, so everyone plays every role.
Setup time: 5 min
Tactical breakdown
The 4v4+4 is the natural next step from Guardiola's 4v4+3. Two teams of four play inside an 18 by 25 yard grid, and a third team of four are neutrals who always play for whoever has the ball: one on each end line and two pivots inside, one in each half. The team in possession is eight against four, so keeping the ball is not the problem. The problem is going forward through the middle.
That is what the rule is for. A goal is moving the ball from one end neutral to the other, but a pass from an end neutral to a wide player and straight on to the other end neutral does not count. The ball has to go through the centre, through a pivot or a player inside, so the team on the ball has to find the pockets between the four defenders rather than going round them.
The second pivot changes the problem. With one pivot, the defenders can screen him and force everything wide. With two, screening one opens the other, and the most dangerous pass in the game is pivot to pivot: the first pivot draws the press, plays the second first time, and the second lays it off to a third man running forward. That player receives facing the far end with the defenders turned, and one more pass reaches the end neutral.
The entry into the first pivot is often a pass that splits two defenders, and scoring it double rewards the courage to play it. Shape makes it possible: if the four in possession hold the width and depth of the grid, the defenders have to spread out and the gaps between them open.
The game also punishes forcing it. A pass into a screened pivot gets cut out, and then the transition is immediate: the team that won it attacks at once and the nearest neutral is theirs, so the best escape from the counter-press is usually a first-time pass into a neutral. The team that lost it has five seconds to win it back before they drop into shape. With three even teams, the coach rotates them one for one every few minutes, so everyone plays inside, as a pivot and on the end line.
How to run this drill
- Mark an 18 x 25 yd grid. A disc on each corner and at halfway. FIFA's version uses 20 x 20 m; go bigger for younger players.
- Three teams of four. Two teams play 4v4 inside. The third team are neutrals: one on each end line and two pivots inside, one in each half. The neutrals always play for the team with the ball.
- Go end to end through the middle. Moving the ball from one end neutral to the other is a goal, but it must go through a pivot or a player inside. End neutral, wide player, end neutral does not count.
- Split, pivot to pivot, third man. Hold the width and depth, split two defenders into a pivot, combine pivot to pivot and lay it off to a team mate running forward. A split pass on the way counts double.
- Transition at once. When the defending four win it they attack straight away and escape through the nearest neutral. The team that lost it has five seconds to win it back.
- Rotate the teams. Play three to four minute rounds and rotate the three teams one for one, so everyone plays inside, as a pivot and on the end line.
Coaching focus
FROM SESSION PLANCoaching points
- Width and depth: occupy every part of the grid so the four cannot cover every lane
- Play through the middle, not around it: look for a pivot first
- Split the pair: a pass between two defenders takes both out of the game
- Pivot to pivot: the second pivot is free when the first one draws the press
- Third man: run forward off the pivot and receive facing the far end
- Don't force it: if the pivot is screened, circulate and go again
- Win it and escape through the nearest neutral; lose it and hunt it for five seconds
Common mistakes
- Going round the outside every time: wide player to end neutral does not score
- Both pivots standing on the same line, so one defender screens them both
- Forcing the ball into a screened pivot instead of circulating
- The third man arriving square or late, so he can only play back
- Stopping to complain after losing it instead of pressing for five seconds
- Winning it and dribbling into the counter-press instead of using a neutral
Progressions & regressions
VARIATIONSProgressions
- Neutrals limited to one touch
- The ball must go through both pivots before it can reach the far end neutral
- Only a split pass into a pivot counts as a way through
- Shrink the grid to 20 x 20 m (FIFA) or 16 x 22 m
- Take one pivot away: the 4v4+3
Regressions
- Grow the grid to 30 x 25 yd
- Free touches for everyone
- Allow the wide route (end neutral, wide player, end neutral) so the team on the ball has an easier way through
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