Teaching one skill, tactic or position: one-on-one, defending, pressing, scanning, formations · 17 stories
Stories that name no age are only under all ages. A story for U8 to U12 is in both of those bands.
A U13 boys team is outscored 13-1 in three games after moving to 11v11 and a mandated 4-2-3-1. Most replies say the formation is not the problem: the jump in field size and weak fundamentals are, so keep working passing, receiving and scanning, and consider a simpler shape.
A coach's guide lays out a progressive method for teaching players to scan before receiving the ball, from a U8 to U9 look-before-you-play reflex to U14 and older automating it under pressure. It lists common coach errors: training control without the gaze, waiting to U13 to introduce it, praising the touch but not the look, and drills with no time or opponent.