Good exercises are not the same as good training!

You can probably take the body from a Passat, a couple of wheels from resp. a Hummer and a
BMW, the rear wheels of a tractor, forged it all together and throw the gearbox of a Ford Fiesta
in and spice it up with the steering wheel of an F1 racer if you are insistent enough. Is it formally
a car? Perhaps. There are four wheels and a steering wheel. But does it make sense? The short
answer is no!

I'm sorry to say, but it should be obvious: if you put random exercises together, then it will not
be a sensible football training for that reason. Things have to be connected - not just because you
weld them together with enough zeal, but because they make sense together.

I totally agree that the vast majority of coaches are hungry and eager to seek inspiration - that's
why I made this page. And there is nothing wrong with seeking inspiration, on the contrary. It
should be mandatory for every coach to regularly renew and set aside time to learn from other
coaches. Thus, the problem is not that people find cool exercises on youtube, in books and on
coaching courses. The problem is that far too many people think that exercises and games can
just be put together crosswise, regardless of playing style, training theme, focus points and still
make sense. I'm sorry, but it takes more than just sensible practice to do a good football practice.

We play with an example. I have to train today and I lack inspiration, so I go on youtube and I
look in an e-book I once bought with "110 drills for elite soccer". Here I find:

1) A possession game with a few gangs at each end, from my expensive book!

2) A game with 2 goals, which is "back to back" in the middle of the game area, which I found
on youtube

3) A game with a "touchdown zone", which Guardiola used in Bavaria, according to my book at
least…

4) A template that Mourinho reportedly used with his Inter team in 2010 (hey, they won the
treble!)

5) An interval game where all starts are a post from the coach, again found on youtube

Are there nice games and exercises? Of course. Is it better to have a plan than not to have a plan?
Ja sgu. Is it clear what we are training for? Not at all.

What we can transfer from game to game is so limited and so general that we might as well have
played on two goals in an hour and a half. It's cool with new exercises, but the composition of
them we could have done better.
The order is important!

And how do you make a sensible workout that makes sense?

Well it starts with deciding what we should train, quite overall. So, what theme do we have for
today's training. Is it endings, the backhand or something third we are training?

Next, we choose a focus point within the overall theme. It can be tactical, it can be technical or it
can be both. So, if we train backgammon, what exactly are we working on? If we want to work
with specific patterns for when we play the ball at fullback and when we seek out central
midfielders, then we need to define when and how.

Once we have done all the thinking work, we are going to look at games and exercises that can
be used to find what we are looking for. It may well be that what makes sense for Mourinho does
not make sense to you if your team plays differently, but it may well be that it does not make
sense, simply because the Mourinho exercise you have found is intended for a different theme
and focus area than what you are training.

Your checklist for sensible training

1) Choose your training theme, which is related to an overall phase of the game or a main
element of your game model.

2) Choose a focus area within the training theme so that you become aware of what you are
looking for.

3) Find games and exercises that can facilitate theme and focus, or do your own exercises.

4) Plan your instructional steps so that there is common thread from exercise to exercise and
gradually increasing complexity.

5) Write it down! Draw, take notes and take the plan with you so you have it on you if you forget
something.

It is not enough to choose good exercises!

Good training is basically not about the choice of exercise. Unfortunately, this is often a
convenient excuse for not spending enough time planning the team's development over time, but
in the long run it's a bad strategy. For others, it is an expression of not having the time for it or
that the club does not have the resources to support the coaches adequately. Good training is
about the combination of games and exercises that relate to your training theme and focus area
and then your efforts as a coach! Your preparation and your input along the way are the decisive
factors for whether the training will be good! Make an effort, think carefully, and be clear when
explaining to players what we train and how we should find out. Really good training!