Refining attacking play: combinations, switches and finishing

25 min

Two players beat one

A defender can mark one attacker well. The moment a second attacker joins in, the defender must choose whom to stop, and a good pair will always punish the wrong choice. In Senior 2 you learned the principles of attack: width, depth and quick passing. In this lesson you refine the combinations that turn those principles into chances, and the finishing that turns chances into goals, through exercises that look like real match situations.

Definition

One-two (wall pass): a player passes to a teammate and runs past a defender to receive the ball straight back, using the teammate like a wall.

Overlap: a teammate runs from behind, around the outside of the player with the ball, to receive a pass in space. An underlap is the same run on the inside.

Third-man run: A passes to B, and B passes first time to C, who was already running into space.

Switch of play: moving the ball quickly from one side of the pitch to the other, where there are fewer defenders.

The combinations, step by step

Figure: two combinations in the attacking half, drawn to scale. In the one-two, A's run starts the moment the pass leaves his foot. In the overlap, W holds the ball and draws defender Y in before releasing F.

One-two. Dribble straight at the defender to make him commit. Pass firmly along the ground to the "wall", who returns it first time into the space behind the defender. Accelerate past the defender on the side away from the wall.
Overlap. The player on the ball dribbles infield, which draws the defender inside. The overlapping player calls "Overlap!" and sprints around the outside. Time the pass so the runner meets it at full speed, then cross early, low and hard across the goal.
Switch of play. When one side is crowded, play the ball back to a midfielder or centre-back, who switches it with a long pass or two quick passes to the wide player on the far side.
Finishing. Inside the penalty area, accuracy beats power: pass the ball into the corner with the inside of the foot, or strike it low across the goalkeeper towards the far post, where a rebound may fall to a teammate.

Refining the techniques

Technique	Refinement at S3
First touch	Receive "on the half-turn": open your body towards the goal and take the first touch away from pressure, into space.
Passing	Weight the pass so it arrives at a teammate's stronger foot, in front of a moving player rather than at his feet.
Shooting	Head over the ball, standing foot beside it, strike through the middle with the laces for a low, driven shot.
Crossing	Look up before crossing; aim for the space between the goalkeeper and the defenders.

Game-like exercises

Rondo 4 v 2: four attackers in a 10 m square keep the ball from two defenders, on two touches. A defender who wins it swaps with the player who lost it.
2 v 1 to goal: two attackers, one defender and a goalkeeper; the attackers must score using a one-two or an overlap.
Conditioned small-sided game, 5 v 5: a goal counts double if it comes from an overlap or a switch of play.

Video: "Overlap Passing Drill", Onside - Training. Watch when the overlapping player sets off and how the pass is played into his path, not to his feet.

Worked example

Worked example: measuring a team's passing. In a 20-minute game the coach counts Team Imbuto's passes: 64 attempted, 48 reached a teammate.

\text{pass completion} = \frac{48}{64} \times 100\% = 75\%

In the second half, after practising one-twos, they attempt 70 and complete 56: $\frac{56}{70} \times 100\% = 80\%$ . The combinations helped them keep the ball.

Tip

Pass and move. The most common reason a one-two fails is that the passer stops to watch the pass. Your run starts the instant the ball leaves your foot.

Warning

Common mistakes. Overlapping when the player on the ball is facing his own goal (he cannot see the run); passing too softly to the wall, so a defender intercepts; and shooting with power from close range when a placed side-foot shot would score. In finishing drills, the goalkeeper wears gloves and shots are taken from behind a marked line.

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Practice

Define an overlap and an underlap, and explain how they differ.
Describe the three steps of a one-two.
Why should the passer in a one-two dribble towards the defender first?
A team completes 39 of its 52 passes. Calculate the pass completion percentage.
A winger keeps receiving the ball with two defenders around her, while the opposite wing is empty. What should the team do?
When should a player finish with the inside of the foot rather than the laces?
A striker's shot goes high over the bar from 12 m. Name two likely technical faults.
Design a 15-minute exercise for 12 pupils that practises the third-man run.

Show answersHide answers

Both are runs from behind past the player on the ball to receive a pass in space; the overlap goes round the outside, the underlap on the inside.
Pass firmly to the wall; run past the defender at once; receive the first-time return pass behind him.
To make the defender commit to the ball, which leaves space behind him for the run.
39 ÷ 52 × 100% = 75%.
Switch the play: move the ball back and across, by one long pass or two quick ones, to the free player on the other wing.
When accuracy matters more than power, for example close to goal, placing the ball into a corner.
Leaning back, and the standing foot too far behind the ball (also striking under the ball rather than through its middle).
Example: three groups of four in a 20 m by 30 m area; A passes to B, B lays it off first time to C, who has already started running into a channel; rotate roles every 3 minutes; add a defender after 8 minutes.

Remember

One-two: pass, run, receive. Overlap: run round the outside; underlap: inside.
Switch play when one side is crowded.
Finish with accuracy: side-foot into the corner, or low across the goalkeeper.
Pass and move: the run starts as the ball is played.

Sources and credits

Passing (association football), Wikipedia contributors, Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Adapted by Ganzaa.
Glossary of association football terms, Wikipedia contributors, Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Adapted by Ganzaa.
Photo: University of Rwanda student playing Football, Stevenndori289, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Video: "Overlap Passing Drill", Onside - Training, embedded from YouTube.
Pitch diagram, exercises, worked example and practice: written by Ganzaa.

This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.

1Two players beat one

2The combinations, step by step

3Refining the techniques

4Game-like exercises

Two players beat one

The combinations, step by step

Refining the techniques

Game-like exercises