Using Numerical Advantage in 7v7 Soccer

How can our team keep the ball more? Anytime we are in a part of the field where we have more players than the other team is called a numbers up situation. When we are numbers up, that means there will be one or more of our team members open to receive a pass. If this open player is ahead of us and we have the ball, we will want to quickly pass it to them to take advantage.

Do you know what a numbers down situation would be? Of course. It means we have less players in a part of the field than the other team. We are outnumbered and in danger of losing the ball. It also means that somewhere else on the field is a place where we outnumber the other team. We need to find that space and move the ball to that space quickly in order to keep possession.

So where is this space and how do we find it? There are up to three options depending on where you are. If our team is working hard keeping passing options open in other triangles that we are a part of, we may be able to find them with a long pass, but there may be two easier options.

Option one is to quickly turn and pass the ball backwards to one of our defenders. This is a great way for us to keep the ball. It gives us a new passing option because it moves the ball to a different triangle of players where there will be an open teammate. We can use this next triangle to switch which side of the field that we are attacking in just two or three passes. The faster that we make this set of passes and attack the space on the other side of the field, the more likely we'll be on our way to a shot on goal.

But what if both defenders are covered by the other team? In this case, we need to go to option two, pass it to our goalkeeper. What? Did I just say that? Yes, I did. You can and should learn as a team to make a safe pass to the goalkeeper to help our team keep the ball.

But why would it be a good idea to pass it backwards toward the goal to the last person defending it? Because this teammate is the only player without a player from the other team matched up to them. All defenders, midfielders, or forwards usually have someone nearby from the other team defending them. Our goalkeeper's match is the other team's goalkeeper who is all the way on the other side of the field. That means our goalkeeper will nearly always be open for a pass.

But there are some important rules to think about when we pass to the goalkeeper.

Rule 1. If we make a pass with our feet to the goalkeeper, they cannot pick it up with their hands. If they do, it will be a dangerous indirect kick for the other team inside our goal box.

Rule 2. We will make a good pass on the ground and preferably angled away from the goal. This helps us reduce the risk of accidentally scoring on our goal. We can further reduce risk if the goalkeeper moves to a position on the field where the ball could not go into the goal if it was bobbled.

Rule 3. We will call out their name before making the pass so that there is no doubt who we want to pass to.

Rule 4. As soon as the pass is made, both defenders must move to a wide position near the edge of the goal box where they can receive the next pass. Our goalkeeper may need to quickly pass it, so this helps them by giving them two options. If a defender is passing the ball to the goalkeeper, they must quickly move to this wider position immediately after they make the pass.

Playing the ball back to our goalkeeper is going to feel uncomfortable at first. We will definitely make mistakes that will result in easy goals for the other team in a few games this season. But any players attempting this pass at our age should be celebrated for trying, even if it results in a goal for the other team. If we take the time now to get comfortable with this play, it will help us win more games as a team in the years to come.

Why? Because we will learn to use all of our players on the field to work together to get out of difficult situations. There are going to be times when the other team has all of their players defending behind the ball. When this happens, we can play it backwards to our goalkeeper to stretch their team out across the whole field and make it easier to move the ball forward.

Quiz question. If we can now pass the ball to our goalkeeper and they pass to another teammate using their feet, does that make them a part of our team's web? Absolutely. Involving your goalkeeper in your web of potential passes adds a few more triangles to our game.

Today we learned about the advantage a team can have when they have more players than we do in a space on the field. We can use other triangles, including a few new ones behind us involving our goalkeeper, to find a numbers up situation to keep possession of the ball and continue our attack.