11v5 Positional Rondo
Disc Cones/Markers, Scrimmage Vests, Soccer Balls, Pugg Goal
This drill teaches your full team to keep possession while maintaining positions on the field. Players learn where they should be in your formation and how to support teammates from their specific spot. The positional constraint forces players to understand spacing, passing lanes, and how their role fits into the team shape. The five defenders work hard in a numbers down situation, building fitness and pressing coordination. The attacking team of eleven develops patience in possession and learns to move the ball through different lines of the formation. Adding goals for the defenders creates real consequence for losing the ball, making players focus on smart decisions under pressure. This drill bridges the gap between basic possession work and full game situations.
- Set up a 20x25 yard grid using cones
- Place two small goals on one end of the grid for the defending team to attack
- Divide your squad into a team of 11 and a team of 5, each wearing different colored jerseys
- Position the team of 11 in their actual game formation inside the grid
- Place the five defenders anywhere inside the grid to start
- Have plenty of balls ready near the coach to restart play quickly
- Players must understand their position's responsibilities and stay disciplined in their area
- Spacing is critical - players too close together makes defending easier
- The ball should move faster than the defenders can press
- Players need to check their shoulders constantly to know where pressure is coming from
- Support angles should form triangles so the player with the ball always has two passing options
- First touch should be clean and move the ball into space, not back toward pressure
- Defenders must communicate and work as a unit to cut off passing lanes
- When the ball switches sides, players on the far side need to adjust their position
- The team of 11 should stay composed when pressed - no panic passes
- After losing the ball, the nearest players must pressure immediately to slow the counterattack
- Look for players scanning before receiving - this habit needs to become automatic
- The team of 11 starts with possession and works to keep the ball while staying in their assigned positions
- Each player must remain in their positional area throughout the drill
- Players pass and move within their zone to create angles and maintain possession
- The five defenders press and work together to win the ball
- Award the team of 11 one point after they complete a set number of consecutive passes
- If the defending team wins possession, they immediately attack the two small goals
- The team of 11 transitions to defense and tries to stop the counterattack
- After a goal or the ball goes out, restart with the team of 11 in possession
- Rotate defenders every few minutes so different players experience the high intensity defensive work
- Keep the tempo high and competitive throughout
- Shrink the grid to 15x20 yards for advanced teams to increase pressure
- Expand to 25x30 yards for younger or less experienced players
- Limit the team of 11 to two touches to speed up decision making
- Add a sixth or seventh defender to increase difficulty
- Require the ball to go through specific positions before a point counts
- Award bonus points for completing passes through certain zones like the middle third
- Make the team of 11 complete a set passing pattern before earning points
- Allow defenders to score double points on goals to increase their motivation
- Create zones where only certain positions can receive the ball
- Time each possession phase and track how long the team of 11 can keep the ball
- Switch to one-touch passing in certain areas of the grid
Dribbling, Passing, Receiving, Fitness, Possession, Defending, Attacking