Tactical training for campus football players

In football, we have a deep understanding of how to improve the physical ability and technical skills of athletes in Campus football, but the best tactical training methods for athletes and how to form a strong lineup are not very clear. Through the learning process of tactical training, a team can improve its skills and form a strong lineup.

　　1. Tactical Learning Process in Campus football

　　The purpose of tactical training is to improve the players’ ability to respond to different situations during the game. To complete tactical tasks, you need to have a foundation of tactical knowledge, tactical skills and tactical ability. In order to improve the players’ tactical skills , they must have a deep understanding of these three aspects.

　　Tactical knowledge includes the system of playing the game, the basic principles of tactical play and the rules of the game. Tactical skills are perfected through practice, and a player can automatically implement them after observing a certain signal (stimulus). When this programmed response is insufficient in a certain situation, the player’s tactical ability will come into play, and the action to be taken will be inferred based on tactical ability.

　　2. Analyze Information

　　The cognitive process in the game is based on the team’s information collection and information analysis . This process has four aspects: perception (including attention to rules), anticipation (evaluation), action selection and feedback.

　　Good football players have very good acumen and can quickly understand and analyze game situations. This ability is developed through the accumulation of countless game experiences. Memory and experience are important prerequisites for mastering good anticipation. Experience accumulated over time is the basis for a player to understand the game. However, experience does not require many years of game background and can be built through relatively concentrated training under specific tactical conditions for a period of time. Coaches must keep this in mind when improving tactical actions or forming new tactical systems.

Players will master decision-making in games more quickly if coaches evaluate training in real game situations and focus on developing certain tactical factors in the short term. In order to strengthen the choice of correct actions, coaches must give feedback to players on the results of their actions. Individual players can evaluate their own appropriate actions and add them to their memory bank. When players practice a new or different tactical form, coaches must give players feedback to improve and enrich their experience.

　　3. Build Tactical Knowledge and Insight in Campus football

　　In certain matches, tactical ability is completely dependent on the players’ choice of actions. All tactical training must take into account the players’ decisiveness in the match. Therefore, it is necessary to develop the players’ foresight and the evaluation and selection of actions. This learning process can be accomplished in a number of ways.

　　The coach uses theory and practical training to build tactical awareness and insight into tactical opportunities for the players. In-depth theoretical research and discussion of specific tactical techniques or principles will help the players understand the content of the team’s tactics. The coach uses the blackboard or videotape to point out the key words in the tactics, and the team actively discusses the ideal action methods that the players should take.

　　However, in actual training, the team focuses on the use of tactics. Training should include actual exercises and games, and gradually increase the requirements for the players’ anticipatory skills. When practicing tactical components, it is best to start with basic games and exercises, and then gradually transition to more advanced exercises. Practice is best close to actual game situations, so that players have more options. In the meantime, appropriate actions will be generated. When introducing a new tactical system, or when practicing tactical play with new players, coaches can start with 11 to 4 exercises on a regular court. AC Milan uses this method when training new players to adapt to the team’s tactical play.

　　In the long term, the coach should prioritize making a pre-decision or set of tactical themes, which will give him the opportunity to build up match experience and a feedback system . The appropriate course of action for a match situation, established through learning or training, will only work if it becomes part of this system or overall learning process.

Different teaching methods in Campus football 　

There are different teaching methods that coaches can use to enhance the learning process. This article will describe these methods. One commonality in all teaching methods is the communication between the coach and the players. There are many different opinions on the role of the coach in training instruction from different players. For tactical training, the coach’s guiding principles are crucial. Games and practices must have a practical goal that the coach must explain and the players must understand during the learning process in order to have long-term results.

　　Discussing tactical issues and solutions with the players is a worthwhile endeavor. The most important thing is to find solutions to the problems that take into account each player, with the goal of creating a sense of shared responsibility. This type of discussion can naturally take place in a team meeting.

　　4. Watch the videotape

　　Coaches can incorporate videotapes of their own or other teams’ games into tactical drills. Watching their own game actions and pointing out specific tactical situations to their players will improve and influence their players’ tactical understanding. In the video footage, coaches generally observe their own team’s tactical situations. To ensure that the players pay full attention and produce the best results, coaches must be fully prepared for the videotape they watch and plan their time carefully.

　　For motivational reasons, videotape viewing must be limited. German researchers have shown that elite soccer players are not interested in watching videos for long periods of time. They believe that 90% of the content of the videos they watch is not directly relevant to them. From the perspective of coaches, when they are showing videos to their players, they must quickly switch the videotape to the content that the players are interested in, otherwise the players will lose patience and motivation.

Match analysis　　

Match analysis is a key part of a coach’s job. Based on the initial guidance, combined with the team’s strengths and weaknesses in the game, the analysis is done in the mind or recorded, and the content of the next training session is proposed. This means that the coach will easily identify the parts to explain to the players and use them in the training session.

　　In the case of set pieces, the players are arranged uniformly (running, distance, passing angle, etc.), and the performance of each player is analyzed and placed in the most appropriate position under the premise of full consideration of tactical play . The goalkeeper’s defense is filmed behind the goal. By recording sound and images, the goalkeeper can recreate the game scene or passage of another player in the area. The goalkeeper and the coach may have completely different views on tactical arrangements, and these records can serve as a good basis. Players can take the videotape home and watch their performance in person.

　　The technical limitations of the video equipment and the location of the equipment require the coach to consider in advance the areas or aspects that need to be focused on. The video technician should have knowledge of the technology and understand what the coach wants.

　　Praise as a means of motivation can be expressed through video footage. When a tactic discussed in advance or actually practiced is successful, it can be edited and some footage can be selected. This is a reward for the athletes’ systematic training and careful planning of the game.

　　V. Types of Training and Organization of Training Courses

　　There is a saying that applies to all learning processes: theory is one thing, practice is another. When playing games, players can learn some technical things. But from the perspective of the whole team, if the coach wants the team to develop and improve in the long term, it must be practiced systematically. At different stages of the team’s development, some types of training are more effective than others. The following introduces several different types of training and the organization of training sessions that coaches can implement in their training sessions. Some training is complementary.

　　． Type 1: Example Exercises

　　Method: Implement clear movement patterns and actions.

　　Goal: To have players remember how to position and move relative to each other in certain situations.

　　Use: Multiple repetitions are essential in developing a specific reaction form . This type of drill can be used for both technical and tactical training. It is usually practiced without opposition. It is an opportunity to focus on the details and timing of the drill, especially tactical training. This type of drill is very effective in developing coordination between 2-3 players. The coach can use examples to train, repeat or move into more complex drills.

　　Key points of teaching method: When an exercise is repeated many times, there will be a tendency for the exercise rhythm to slow down. Avoid this phenomenon, as it will hinder the effect of the exercise.

　　． The second type: conditional practice in Campus football

　　Method: Set specific conditions for completing a practice or competition.

　　Goal: Change the rules of the game so that the team members’ choices focus on a certain move. This drill can be repeated many times.

　　Use: In the initial and consolidation phases, especially in the formation of specialized tactical skills, the coach can strengthen the players’ observation of the training theme by implementing conditional exercises and games. According to the training goals, the exercise conditions can be changed accordingly, such as changing the size of the field or limiting the number of touches in the exercise. One of the best tools that can be used in this process is the “exercise roulette”.

　　New coaches often find it difficult to design a very appropriate conditioned exercise. However, if they become proficient in the exercise method and understand that new conditions can lead to new exercises, coaches will find that using this exercise method can achieve better results and more targeted training sessions than simply copying other coaches’ training sessions.

　　Key points of teaching method: A new conditional exercise needs a certain amount of time to work. Team members must have sufficient time to adapt before they can fully master the exercise content. During the exercise, try not to make too many subtle adjustments, otherwise it will easily confuse the team members.

　　Description: A team is only allowed to hit the ball into other areas if all players from that team are in the area where the ball will go.

　　． The third type: tight training in Campus football

　　Method: Define tactical goals and conduct short-term, high-intensity exercises.

　　Objective: To familiarize players with practice conditions and reaction times for tactical actions.

　　Use: When a situation arises during practice, there is not much time to think about how to solve it. By organizing practice and games, and through repeated practice, the reaction time of players to make tactical decisions is shortened. Coaches can have players practice selected tactical reaction types to prepare for the game. In shooting practice in the penalty area , close-pressing drills are often used . Players participating in close-pressing drills need to react quickly. For example, in a 45-second drill, players take turns passing the ball to a player in the center of the circle, and the player’s task is to actively meet the ball and use his position to practice wall-kick return passes . Place a cone in front of the center player and have him run through the cone when returning the ball to increase the difficulty of the exercise.

　　Key points of teaching method: Practice in a tight situation, which places high demands on the players’ physical strength. This exercise cannot be continued for too long.

　　Description: Each team has 3 players, who take turns to practice for 1 minute. During the practice, players can touch the ball twice at most. After the team gets the ball, they must shoot within 5 passes.

　　． The fourth type: imaginary opponent practice in Campus football

　　Method: effective combination, solid play, limited or no opponents when breaking through.

　　Goal: To teach players general offensive movement patterns or specific tactical techniques.

　　Use: With 11 vs 11 it is difficult to see the different phases of the team’s tactical movement. To achieve the ideal system of play and the expected movement pattern or tactical requirements, players can play against imaginary opponents. By placing 10 or more cones randomly on the pitch, coaches can add these small obstacles to the pass.

　　． Fifth type: concentrated practice- specialized training in Campus football

　　Method: Specialized tactical function exercises for 1-2 team members.

　　Objective: To improve the tactical action capabilities of team members.

　　Use: When a player is unsure of what tactical action to take in a specific situation, this situation needs to be take out and practiced in a specific training. The coach and the players (some of whom will play opponents) practice the tactics in this situation together on the actual playing field. This specific situation training must gradually transition into normal games.

　　． The sixth type: staged practice in Campus football

　　Method: Use 1/2 or 3/4 of the court for practice, using 1 or 2 phases of the team’s offense or defense.

　　Objective: Analyze the quality of team coordination and complete selected offensive or defensive phase tasks in a simulated match scenario.

　　Use: Phase drills are an important type of tactical training. The most common drills are defense vs. offense drills on half court or 3/4 court (standard goal). This is a way to train players to cooperate with team tactics and evaluate and discuss them according to the actual situation. In addition, in these cases, coaches can also use some other guiding methods, such as subsequent practice instructions or instructions after stopping practice.

　　Teaching Tips: Generally, the offense is the easiest to motivate through practice. For this reason, it is important to set challenging goals for the defense and enable them to achieve them, such as awarding points for interceptions.

　　In this exercise, players will gradually get use to and be confident of their teammates’ positions and maintain communication with them. In addition, this exercise also makes players familiar with the transition phase from defense to offense, or from offense to defense. After scoring or losing the ball, all players will quickly enter the appropriate offensive or defensive play.

　　． Seventh type: Cell training in Campus football

　　Method: Practice in a limited area.

　　Objective: To practice some basic techniques and tactical skills.

　　Use: Cell training uses an area of ​​10 x 10 meters. Cell training is very beneficial. For example, in 4 vs 2 with limited touches or in 1 vs 1 confrontation training, the training effect is very good because the area of ​​the training field is limited. The players learn to get out of the tight situation and also understand the tight situation in the closed area. The tactical requirements in the limited game situation are clear and the coach can fully observe the effect of the training.

　　Teaching points: One possibility is fix cell marking, which helps to organize the exercises in a small area. The exercises can be easily modify or restart by changing the area of ​​the court.

　　6. Types of guided practice for Campus football

　　Below is a description of three different types of instruction in a training session.

　　． Type 8: Stop practicing and start coaching

　　Method: Stop practicing immediately

　　Goal: Freeze the practice situation and discuss it

　　Use: Freezing a drill situation is very helpful in pointing out and explaining a tactical situation. The method must be direct to a relevant training topic; using the pause can both emphasize the correct method and point out problems in handling a particular situation. During the pause in the drill, it is best for the coach to briefly explain the situation and give the players involved in the drill the opportunity to ask questions.

　　Teaching points: Team members must know the time-out signal and obey the command.

　　． Type 9: Follow-up Guidance Principles – Teaching through Practice

　　Method: During practice and games, players receive consultation and guidance from coaches.

　　Objective: To direct a team member’s actions during a match in Campus football

　　Use: When implementing a new tactical system or adjusting an earlier style of play, it is necessary for the coach to provide regular guidance to the players based on the game situation. The coach’s comments can give direct feedback to the players on how to handle the situation. The coach should not give orders to the players directly like a robot, but should act as an analyst. It is also very effective for the coach to direct the practice from a position beside the players.

　　Teaching Tips: Some coaches like to yell when they are on the sidelines. On the surface, the coach seems to be very engage. But if there is no substance in this one-way communication, the players will quickly pass it by and the coach will lose his prestige in their eyes.

　　． Category 10: Directing a match on a standard court in Campus football

　　Method: Command the players in the game (11 vs. 11), plus 1 referee

　　Goal: To enhance players’ understanding of tactical situations throughout the game.

　　Use: In order to transfer the training content to the actual game, it is essential to practice on a standard pitch. When the game is about to start, the players should naturally focus on the main tactical points and predict the starting formation and the appropriate game time. During the game, the coach can issue different instructions or use some different command methods. If this is the last 11-on-11 practice before the game, it is best not to interrupt the practice easily.

　　Key points of teaching: Referees should strictly control the game. Players, especially second-tier players, will easily lose their fighting spirit if they hear the whistle from time to time. Players should be able to regulate themselves and take this as part of their preparation for the upcoming game. The role of referees should be strengthen.