There’s no absolute optimal position. There’s no inherent value in position. It always depends on the context (reference to the ball, opponents, teammates, goals). Therefore, instead of having a pre-established structure, build it on principles, so that your players can adapt to

The goal isn’t to do things differently. Otherwise, “different” quickly becomes the goal itself. Instead, just be courageous enough to do things your way. Do it because you believe in it and build it on good explanations. “Build it your way” a strong enough differentiator. When

The team is NOT a burden for the development of your players. It’s not something that stands in the way of their growth. Every action starts with the context. This doesn’t mean the focus is on “team tactics.” But thinking the team is something bad that distracts from player

I want to give you an example to explain what I mean: People see a Musiala (or whoever) and think, “He’s great in 1v1s. So, let’s do 1v1s.” Understandable. And nothing wrong with that. Tool games like that certainly help. But it won’t be enough to “play like Musiala.” You need

Later today in the vertical possession Newsletter: my coaching journey. might help you see where you are — and what to focus on next. Link: verticalpossession.substack.com

Help them play better football so they can become better players. Not: become a better player to play better football (that’s the exception to the rule.)

Our body can access far more information than our "rational part of the brain" has access to. But somehow we think we should plan and control football solutions top-down, rather than helping players develop their intuition. And no, this is not "let them play" either. But ignoring

Your players don’t need 10,000 repetitions. They need 10,000 iterations.

Reminder: Quality before fitness. Don't "scale" bad football actions. Full article in my newsletter. Link in the bio.

Make Training Exciting At first, I liked training. Then… not so much anymore. Now, I sometimes enjoy it more than the matches. What changed? 1/ I fell out of love with the training process, because … training felt kind of unnecessary sometimes. It felt more than a duty,

Team intention creates structure. Players find a position to support the team idea. For example: The goal is to outplay the press, positions are the tool. However, if we prioritize structure, we often stifle players and prevent creative solutions.

136. I just found an old coaching document. It is my collection of exercises. It has 136 pages. And each page has 1-2 exercises. I didn't open it for years. I remember one day, I opened that list to add a new "cool" exercise I saw. But at that moment I realized: I didn't

The goal of training is not to eliminate uncertainty. But to prepare your players to deal with it. Just like in school: The goal shouldn't be to memorize facts that may or may not matter later. It should be to prepare students to handle the uncertainty of life.

Analytical vs. Systems Analytical Thinking: The player is the sum of their parts (technique, coordination, cognition, fitness, strengths, etc.). Conclusions: - Isolate the elements. Improve them. Then put them back together. - More repetition = better (linear system) -