Cross Passing with 2 Middle Players
Passing Soccer Warm Up
A quick and easy warm up to employ to improve the accuracy of short passing and the movement of players after they have completed the pass.
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| x 4 per 6 players | Not Essential | Not Essential | None |
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X = 15 Yards Y = 15 Yards |
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None |
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Loading Flash Animation... 
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Player's form a diamond, each of the players on the outside have a ball. 2 players then begin in the middle. |
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The players in the middle must perform a wall pass (or 1-2) with one of the outside players, once this pass is completed they spin and perform another one with a different player. They continue this until the coach tells the players in the middle to change with 2 from the outside.
The 2 players in the middle must be aware of each other at all times to ensure that they do not collide with each other and to also ensure that they do not both go to the same player to receive a pass. To ensure the latter does not happen they should communicate early with the person they intend to get the pass from.
When showing for the pass the players should create an angle and do not just stand straight in front of the passer. In the animation above, one of the middle players creates an angle while the other one does not. When creating this angle encourage the players to adopt a 'half turned' body shape so that they can see as much of the area as possible. By encouraging this now ensures that the players are picking up good habits that they can transfer into a competitive situation when required.
Once the angle is created the quality of the pass is crucial. This exercise should allow the middle players to pass the ball first time. Therefore the ball from the outside must be accurate, correctly weighted and along the floor. The same quality of pass should then occur with the pass back out to the outside before the player spins for their next pass. If the pass is not accurate or requires controlling the exercise may become slow as the middle players have to wait to receive a pass. Ideally all passes should be played with the inside of the feet but the coach can determine what surface is used.
A progression could be to get the ball off the floor, either passing it or throwing it. Players must then volley it back to the players on the outside.