TeloframeTeloframe
Features
For CoachesFor ClubsPricingLibraryDrills
Sign inStart free
Teloframe

The Coach OS for football. Plan, run, observe, reflect, develop, one loop, one tool.

Product
Tactics boardDrill editorSession plannerMatch dayPlayer developmentClub workspaceAI assistantExport and sharingAll features
Explore
Tactics librarySession plansDrill libraryFormationsGuidesVideo tutorials
Use cases
Coaches and academiesContent creatorsSession planner softwareTactics board software
Company
PricingFAQContactOpen Teloframe
© 2026 Teloframe. Built for serious staff.PrivacyTermsSafeguardingSecurityDPASubprocessorsCookies All systems normal
TeloframeTeloframe
Features
For CoachesFor ClubsPricingLibraryDrills
Sign inStart free
/
/
/
Teloframe

The Coach OS for football. Plan, run, observe, reflect, develop, one loop, one tool.

Product
Tactics boardDrill editorSession plannerMatch dayPlayer developmentClub workspaceAI assistantExport and sharingAll features
Explore
Tactics librarySession plansDrill libraryFormationsGuidesVideo tutorials
Use cases
Coaches and academiesContent creatorsSession planner softwareTactics board software
Company
PricingFAQContactOpen Teloframe
© 2026 Teloframe. Built for serious staff.PrivacyTermsSafeguardingSecurityDPASubprocessorsCookies All systems normal
TeloframeTeloframe
Features
For CoachesFor ClubsPricingLibraryDrills
Sign inStart free
Home/Training Drills/Passing Drills/Zig-Zag Passing Channel
PassingBeginner

Zig-Zag Passing Channel

Pass and receive accurately on the diagonal. Open the body to receive, take a clean first touch across the body, and weight the diagonal pass to the far line down the channel.

Create your own drill
Live animationPAS
Duration
10 min
Total drill time
Players
5
Recommended
Pitch
32 × 36 m
Setup space
Level
Beginner
Skill required
Intensity
Medium
Physical demand
Age band
U6-U8
Any format

Setup & instructions

Set two staggered lines down a channel. The ball weaves diagonally from one line to the other and down the channel, each player receiving on the move and passing across to the next. Play it down and back. Emphasise an open body, a clean first touch, and weighting the diagonal pass. Add pass-and-follow to the line you passed to as a progression.

Setup time: 1 min

Tactical breakdown

Diagonal passes are harder than square ones for a reason worth naming: the ball crosses the receiver's body rather than arriving down its line, so the choice of controlling foot has to be made in advance. Get it wrong and the touch goes backwards, which in a channel this narrow means straight into the space a defender would occupy.

What separates this from the fixed-shape patterns is that the ball goes somewhere. In a diamond or a star the ball circulates and returns to where it began, and players receive standing on a mark. Here it advances down a channel, so every receive happens while travelling forwards, which is how receiving actually works in a match and almost never how it is practised.

That combination, a diagonal pass taken while moving forwards, is the specific thing being grooved. It is the receive a full-back makes when a centre-back switches into him, and the one a midfielder makes when the ball comes in from the opposite side.

The body position has to be set before the ball is played, not as it arrives. Opened towards the far line, a player can see the pass coming, the next receiver, and the space in front of him. Square to the passer, he sees the ball and the touchline.

Weight is the recurring failure. A diagonal travels further than it looks, and a pass that is comfortable across a static shape arrives short and behind when both players are moving.

How to run this drill

  1. Set two staggered lines forming a channel. Players alternate down each side so every pass is a diagonal. The channel should be narrow enough that a poor angle is immediately obvious.
  2. Open the body towards the far line. Set the shape before the ball is played. Opened up, a player sees the pass, the next receiver and the space ahead. Square, he sees the ball and the touchline.
  3. Choose the controlling foot in advance. A diagonal crosses the body, so the decision has to be made before it arrives. The wrong foot sends the touch backwards into the space a defender would fill.
  4. Take the first touch across and forwards. Into the direction of travel, not back down the line of the incoming pass. The touch should already be moving the ball down the channel.
  5. Weight it for two moving players. A diagonal travels further than it looks, and both players are advancing. A pass that works in a static shape arrives short and behind here.
  6. Work back the other way. Run the channel in both directions so the diagonal arrives on each side and both feet get used as the controlling foot.

Coaching focus

FROM SESSION PLAN

Coaching points

  • Open the body before you receive
  • First touch across the body, into the next pass
  • Weight the diagonal firmly to the far line
  • Receive on the move, keep the rhythm going
  • Scan for the next receiver before the ball arrives

Common mistakes

  • Square body, unable to see the next receiver
  • Heavy first touch that breaks the rhythm
  • Underhit diagonal that is easy to intercept
  • Standing still instead of receiving on the move

Progressions & regressions

VARIATIONS

Progressions

  • Pass and follow to the line you passed to
  • One touch once the pattern is smooth
  • Add a second ball going the other way

Regressions

  • Two touch and a slower tempo
  • Shorten the channel to reduce the passing distance
  • Static receivers before adding movement
Equipment
Cones×5
Tactical principles
zig zag passingdiagonal passing drillpassing channelpassing on the moveopen body receivingpassing and receiving drilltechnical passing drillprogressive passingyouth passing drillu8 passing drill
Audience
U6-U8

Make it yours

Save this drill to your private library, then tweak the animation, swap equipment, or drop it into a session.

Explore more drills

LIBRARY
All Passing drillsAll drill collectionsPassing for U6-U8

Ready to run this drill?

Save it to your private drills, then change the animation, adjust positions, swap equipment, or drop it into a session block. Or start from a blank pitch and build your own.

Library Create your own drill
Teloframe

The Coach OS for football. Plan, run, observe, reflect, develop, one loop, one tool.

Product
Tactics boardDrill editorSession plannerMatch dayPlayer developmentClub workspaceAI assistantExport and sharingAll features
Explore
Tactics librarySession plansDrill libraryFormationsGuidesVideo tutorials
Use cases
Coaches and academiesContent creatorsSession planner softwareTactics board software
Company
PricingFAQContactOpen Teloframe
© 2026 Teloframe. Built for serious staff.PrivacyTermsSafeguardingSecurityDPASubprocessorsCookies All systems normal