Day 2 of the 2023 United Soccer Coaches Convention was kicked off with an on-field training session, put on by Eintracht Frankfurt coaches Armin Kraaz and Nicolai Adam. The session topic was on Pressing & Counter Pressing. The main take away from the session was how the coaches allowed the players to have input and empowerment within the session. For example, instead of telling players what position they should play when looking to add a player within the activity, the coaches asked players what position they would like to play. Another takeaway from this session was the emphasis on the 5 “W’s” (Who, What, When, Where, Why).
The day’s 2nd on-field session came with the Football Association of Ireland. James Scott’s session topic was Reality Based Training. Immediately we recognized the training activity (passing & receiving), as this was the same exact session from our Fremont Youth Soccer Club’s training curriculum. Focus during the session was on spacial awareness, and close control of the ball.
The 3rd on-field session was presented by Schellas Hyndman, formally with MLS side FC Dallas for 6 years and 31 years as a Division 1 college coach. The session was on Modern Attacking Trends and took a dive into some of the technical requirements for the modern player. The session also had a focus on awareness and scanning, which are two key elements of the modern game. “See far, look short.” – Schellas Hyndman.
The amount of detail the coaches had in all 3 sessions was immense. The Coaches, made sure to really emphasis the “Why”, and “Where” for each scenario that was taking place in, by referring to the 11v11 game.