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Home/Training Drills/Possession Drills/Switch of Play
PossessionIntermediate

Switch of Play

Move the ball from one flank to the other faster than the defence can slide across. Build a strong side to draw them over, use the pivot as the anchor, and switch with an accurate driven diagonal to the free player in space.

Create your own drill
Live animationPOS
Duration
11 min
Total drill time
Players
3
Recommended
Pitch
50 × 32 m
Setup space
Level
Intermediate
Skill required
Intensity
Medium
Physical demand
Age band
U11-U12
Any format

Setup & instructions

Set a wide grid with a player on each flank and a pivot deep in the middle. Build on one side, play into the pivot, and switch with a long driven ball to the far flank. The receiver takes a positive touch infield before recycling and switching back. Insist on width to open the lane and accuracy on the switch. Add defenders to make the strong-side overload real.

Setup time: 2 min

Tactical breakdown

Judge a switch by what the receiver does with it. Coaches watch the pass, because the pass is the impressive part and its quality is obvious from the touchline, but a forty-yard diagonal struck perfectly to a player who controls it facing his own goal has achieved nothing at all. The defence has had the two seconds the ball spent travelling plus however long the receiver takes to turn, which is more than enough to arrive.

So the coaching sits at the receiving end. Open the body before the ball arrives, take the first touch across into the space you are going to attack, and be facing forward the moment you have it. A receiver who has to turn after controlling has converted a switch into an ordinary sideways pass with extra distance.

Building the strong side first is what makes the far side worth reaching. Drawing the defence over is deliberate work rather than an accident of where the ball happened to be, and a switch played before the block has actually shifted is simply a long pass to a marked player.

The pivot is the anchor and his body position determines whether the switch is possible. Hips already turned to the far side means he can play it first time. Square, and the ball has to stop, which gives the defence the moment it needed.

Get genuinely wide. The lane for a switch only exists if the far player is on the touchline, and players drift infield without noticing, closing the very lane the whole exercise depends on.

How to run this drill

  1. Get as wide as the pitch allows. The switching lane exists only if the far player is on the touchline. Drifting infield closes the lane the exercise depends on.
  2. Build a strong side first. Drawing the defence over is deliberate work. A switch played before the block has shifted is a long pass to a marked player.
  3. Pivot opens the hips to the far side. Turned early he can play it first time. Square, the ball has to stop, and stopping gives the defence the moment it needed.
  4. Strike it driven and accurate. The ball has to beat the slide. A lofted or underhit diagonal arrives at the same time as the defender who was covering that side.
  5. Receiver opens up before it arrives. Not as it lands. Turning after control converts a switch into an ordinary sideways pass that happened to travel a long way.
  6. First touch across into the space. The receiver should be facing forward with the ball moving the way he intends to go, which is the only outcome that justifies the pass.

Coaching focus

FROM SESSION PLAN

Coaching points

  • Get as wide as possible to open the switching lane
  • Build a strong side to draw the defence over before you switch
  • Pivot opens the body before receiving, hips to the far side
  • Accuracy first on the switch: a driven ball the receiver can control
  • Receive on the back foot in space and take a positive touch forward
  • Switch as soon as it is on, but do not force it

Common mistakes

  • Standing narrow, so there is no lane to switch into
  • A slow, under-hit switch the defence slides across to cover
  • Pivot receiving with a closed body and having to check back
  • Forcing the switch when the short option keeps the ball better

Progressions & regressions

VARIATIONS

Progressions

  • Add defenders so the strong-side overload and weak-side space are real
  • Two touch maximum to speed the ball across
  • Reward a switch that leads to a cross or a shot with a bonus point

Regressions

  • Shrink the grid so the switch is a shorter pass
  • Unlimited touches to control before switching
  • Walk the pattern to groove the timing and the body shape
Equipment
Cones×3
Tactical principles
switch of playchanging the point of attackdriven diagonalbuilding a strong sidereceiving a switchopening the bodyu12 possession drillpivot as anchorswitching lanesattacking width
Audience
U11-U12

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All Possession drillsAll drill collectionsPossession for U11-U12

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