Includes 10 Pages on Developing Play from the Back with Right Center Back!

We show simple patterns of play that you can do as a “shadow play” against mannequins or flags or cones as opponents to begin with.
These movements are primarily best to do when the opponents defend HIGH up the field and the space is behind them.
These create very good DIAGONAL passing opportunities.
These are set patterns almost like set plays within open play where within our attacking team shape and based on where the ball is we already know what our teammates will be doing in terms of movement and positioning.
To make it work it will also depend on the positioning of opponents but the beauty of this is we KNOW what our moves will be “in advance”; the opponents don’t.
And this gives us an advantage.
Inverted runs of wide players, (2), (3), (7) and (11) are brilliant runs to open these patterns of play up.
Build the session up depending on your numbers from 11 v 0 (against mannequins) and a total shadow play to 11 v 5 for example to 11 v 11 if you have 2 teams practicing together.
Where (9) runs depends on which center back he or she is up against at that moment and how big the space is between the center back and full back.

Watch famous clubs and players to see these movements in action. Pep Guardiola and Bayern Munich are good examples of some of these ideas. The inverted outside to inside runs by Philip Lamm the captain and right fullback for Bayern Munich are a great example of this (whose position I now call right midfield because it shapes up more as a midfield player than a fullback). So initially as a starting point pick 2 or 3 moves to practice consistently until they become instinctive to both passer and receiver.

Wide player cuts inside when a central or back player has the ball.
Striker runs away from the ball and off the shoulder of the center back
Wide player delivers the Diagonal ball in behind the center back almost without looking with as few touches as possible preferably One touch for speed of play.
(9) MUST be careful with the timing of the run to be ONSIDE.
The passer MUST time the pass and weight it correctly so it lands in the path of the striker.
As above but (9) makes the run towards the side the ball so now it is a straight channel pass down the line.
(9) can run either side of the defender (5) depending on which is the best option at any one time.
Into (9) feet to bring others into play. This is when there is little space in behind to play into.
So three movements there we can focus on and practice and make it “instinctive” in the actual game situation.