Each practice should have one main idea you want players to improve.

This does NOT mean you are only teaching one thing.

It means:

• You choose one main focus

• Everything you do in practice connects to that idea

What This Looks Like

Let’s say your focus is: Spreading out when your team has the ball

During that practice, players will also:

• pass and receive

• move to get open

• make decisions about where to go

You are not teaching all of those separately...you are helping players improve one main idea, and everything else supports it

Why This Matters

If you try to focus on too many things:

• players get confused

• learning doesn’t stick

• practice feels chaotic

When you keep it to one clear idea:

• players understand it

• they get more repetition

• they improve faster

Simple, focused practices lead to better learning

The Big Idea

That one focus connects to many parts of the game — how players move, what decisions they make, and the situations they are in.

You don’t need to plan all of that separately: Pick one idea, and let everything else connect to it

Everything you would ever need to teach a player about soccer fits into four main areas:

1. Phases of the Game

2. Team Concepts

3. Game Situations

4. Individual Skills

These are not separate things you need to teach one at a time.

They are tools to help you understand and build your one focus.

How This Connects to Your Practice

When you choose one focus for practice, it naturally connects to these areas:

• when it happens in the game

• what players need to understand

• the types of situations they face

• the skills they use

You don’t need to plan all of this separately. They all get worked in when your focus is clear

1. Phase of the Game: When it happens

This tells you when your focus shows up in a game:

• Attacking → your team has the ball

• Defending → the other team has the ball

• Transition → the moment you win or lose the ball

Example:  If your focus is spreading out, it mostly happens when your team has the ball (attacking)

2. Team Concepts: How the game works

These are the ideas that help players understand:

• where to be

• how to help teammates

• what decisions to make

Examples:

• spreading out and creating space

• supporting the ball

• getting goal side

• protecting the middle

Example:  “Spreading out” itself is a team concept

3. Game Situations: Common moments in the game

These are situations that happen over and over during games:

• restarts (throw-ins, goal kicks, corners)

• 1v1 situations

• attacking near goal

• defending near goal

• winning or losing the ball

Example: Spreading out might show up during a throw-in or when your team wins the ball

4. Individual Skills: How players execute

These are the basic techniques players use.

• passing

• receiving

• dribbling

• shooting

Example: Players use passing and receiving to spread out and keep the ball

Bring It All Together

Let’s go back to our example:

Focus: Spreading out

• When it happens: Attacking

• What players need to understand (concepts): create space, support the ball, building out of the back

• Situations: throw-ins, goal kicks, ball is in defensive third

• Skills used: passing and receiving

That’s one connected practice — not four separate lessons

Now that you understand:

• choosing one focus

• and how the different parts of the game connect

The next step is simple: choose your focus, identify what supports it, and build it into PPP.

Step 1: Choose Your Main Focus

Your main focus should come from the game.

It can be:

• a game situation (goal kicks, throw-ins, corner kicks)

• a team concept (spacing, support, defending)

• a phase of the game (attacking, defending, transition)

Avoid choosing isolated skills as your main focus

The easiest way to choose: “What did we struggle with in our last game?”

Step 2: Identify Supporting Ideas

Once you choose your main focus, everything else comes from the other areas of the game.

You are NOT choosing multiple focuses. You are choosing one focus, and the other areas support it

How This Works

• If your focus is a game situation → support it with:

  • • team concepts

    • skills

    • phase of the game

• If your focus is a team concept → support it with:

  • • phase of the game

    • game situations

    • skills

• If your focus is a phase of the game → support it with:

  • • team concepts

    • game situations

    • skills

Everything connects — you don’t need to plan each piece separately

Example 1 (Game Situation as Focus)

Main focus: Goal kicks (game situation)

Supporting ideas:

• Concepts: creating space, supporting the ball, building out of the back

• Phase: attacking (your team has the ball)

• Skills: passing, receiving

One focus — everything else supports it

Example 2 (Concept as Focus)

Main focus: Creating space (team concept)

Supporting ideas:

• Phase: attacking

• Situations: throw-ins, building out of the back

• Skills: passing, receiving

Still one focus — fully connected

Example 3 (Phase as Focus)

Main focus: Transition to defending (phase)

Supporting ideas:

• Concepts: press & cover, get goal side

• Situations: losing the ball, 1v1 defending

• Skills: tackling, movement

Again — one focus, supported by everything else

Step 3: Build It Into PPP

Now take your focus and supporting ideas and run them through Play–Practice–Play. The key is to use games to teach everything.

Let's say these are your practice topics:

Main focus: Goal kicks (game situation)

Supporting ideas:

• Concepts: creating space, supporting the ball, building out of the back

• Phase: attacking (your team has the ball)

• Skills: passing, receiving

Play 1 Phase (Start with a Game)

Set up a small-sided game and let players play regular soccer as they arrive to practice. Your job is to observe and create awareness.

Once or twice...pause a game to ask simple questions connected to your focus:

Example: 

• “What are our options when we start near our goal?”

• “Where can we go to help the ball?”

• “Are we looking before we pass?”

Help players notice — don’t fix everything yet

Practice Phase (Game with a Purpose)

Keep it game-like — but adjust it to create repetition for within the focus.

You do NOT need drills — just modify the game

Example: 

Play a small-sided game...and add one rule: every restart becomes a goal kick.

• Ball goes out from sideline → goal kick

• Ball goes out from endline → goal kick

• Goal is scored → goal kick

Reset often from the goalkeeper...this creates repeated opportunities to practice your focus

How You Coach It

• “Where can we go to create space?”

• “Can we find a better option?”

• “Did you look before you passed?”

Guide players to understand what to do and WHY.

Play 2 Phase (Let Them Play for Real)

Finish with a larger game using normal rules. This could be a full team scrimmage.

Let players apply what they learned.

Give simple reminders:

• “Find space”

• “Support the ball”

• “Look before you pass”

This is where learning sticks.

The Big Idea

You do NOT need:

• separate drills for each concept

• long explanations

• complicated setups

You just need to:

• choose one focus

• recognize what supports it

• build it into games

Simple Example (Start to Finish)

• Main focus: Creating space (concept)

• Supporting:

  • phase → attacking

  • situations → throw-ins

  • skills → passing, receiving

• Play 1 → small sided game, ask about spacing and what helps us move up the field

• Practice → small sided game where every restart is a throw in from midfield

• Play 2 → game, reinforce

That’s a complete practice