While your weekly training sessions are one of the most important aspects of soccer coaching, you should have a good plan for game days as well. In this article I will provide some top tips for managing a team on match day.

1) Choose the starting team.

Many coaches decide based on last week’s performance. This is a mistake. You have to choose a team based on your performance in training. Factor other variables into the equation too. Attendance, punctuality, effort and work ethic must all play a role. The quality of the warm-up can also tell you who is focused and ready to play. I’ve made a lot of changes to my starting team based on the warm-up mood. It is important to remember that inconsistencies are common among young players; So last week’s star could very well be the villain of the week. We also want players to believe that there is a clean slate every week. This motivates players to be at their best at all times and doesn’t allow anyone to enter a comfort zone that is stagnant during training. The opposition changes every week, so you may need to make adjustments to exploit weaknesses in your opponent and, at the same time, take advantage of your own players’ strengths.

2) Make adjustments.

Some coaches make adjustments at half time. It’s fine to make adjustments during the first half if you’ve seen match issues with one of your players and an opponent. Other teams may be very athletic or technical, so you may have to adjust your collective defensive scheme (confrontation line). There may also be weaknesses in your opponent that you want to exploit before other coaches notice he is in trouble.

3) Coaching from the sidelines.

You have to do your training for a week at workouts. The game is a tool to determine if what you have been doing during the week has had an impact on their football behavior. Continuous screaming instructions and commenting on the game for the players was not training. Your interjection must be reserved for issues that require immediate attention. It also lets your players know that when they hear your voice it’s a pressing issue. Stay away from the ref. They have a different perspective of the game and are correct most of the time. It also teaches your players to respect officials and the game. The referee rarely determines the game.

4) Part time conversation.

The shrewd coach will take notes during the game (mental or written), so he has specific points to deal with. Your list may be filled with issues of concern, but you can only talk about three at most. Again and the message is gone. Avoid generic terms like “we don’t defend well.” Be specific about the aspect of maintaining that is the problem. Make sure that we speak to the players individually if they are part of the problem. It’s also important to find an aspect of their performance that you like so that we don’t destroy the confidence of the players. The team is probably doing really well too, so maybe there’s not much to criticize. If so, stress what the team must continue to do to be successful.

5) After the game talks.

At the end of the game allow the player some time for themselves. I usually give them about three minutes to drink and calm down. The conversation should be brief and should cover what was said at part time. Are there improvements, or consistency in performance (individual and collective)? The coach should now think about next week’s training session. Does the issue need to be revisited by Science Articles, or can we continue? Being able to evaluate your team is an important part of coaching football.