The “WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE, and WHY” of coaching

I just got back from instructing at the US Soccer National Coaching School ‘A’ License in Tampa Florida. It is one of my favorite “soccer things” to do as I find the week challenging and stimulating. When a group of good soccer people get together and share ideas about the game, and work on the craft of coaching, it has a way of refining your beliefs about the game.

Over the years, it has been a privilege to observe the transformation in the coaching schools. More and more, US Soccer is recognizing that there are more than one way to go about impacting players. There remain certain core beliefs about what works, such as putting players in realistic playing environments and letting the game do a majority of the teaching. However, even with this belief, the coach is there to assist in the process, to be a resource if you will for the players.

Of course, this often involves giving information to the players. The BEST coaches are able to do this in a concise, precise way that adds to the player’s learning, and does not get “in the way”. Often, you will hear a coach barking out instructions to the players as the game goes along. “Get wide!”… “Tuck in!”… “step!”… “drop!”… shoot!”… “pass!”. It is no wonder players are often confused!
I remember my son saying once on the ride home from a game, “I am a little confused, coach tells me one time to “pull the trigger”, the next time he is telling me, “pass it”!? I could feel his frustration, and knew exactly what he was talking about. I watched the game that he had just played, and happened to agree with the coach’s interpretation of the moment. My son had not taken a shot when there was an opportunity, and the next time, he tried to force a shot through a defender and cover. What the coach failed to do was to point out the “CUE” that my son did not recognize. Instead of just saying, “pass it”, he could have had a discussion with him that went something like this: “next time, try to look and see if you have a defender behind the one that is marking you. If there is, there is usually someone else open that may have a better chance on goal”.
This conversation would have been more productive as it would have given the player more helpful information to process for the next time he found himself in that situation. Then he would be equipped to attempt the right thing. He has learned a principle that can be applied to varied situations, not just the immediate one that he was confronted with. In short, it is the old “teach a man to fish, and he can feed himself” principle. It is the wise coach who not only addresses the “what” (shoot, pass, dribble….), but also addresses the “when”, “where”, and “why”.
This type of teaching is difficult to do at first, and often seems awkward if you are not used to it. But, it is highly effective. Effective coaches often start their coaching with, “when you see that….”. They focus the visual cue for the player, so that it can be identified in the times ahead. Coaching points like, “Tim, when you see Kirk being closed down way on the other side of the field, you need to tuck back inside in case he loses the ball, and we are countered”. Now, the player not only knows “what” the game is asking him to do, but also the “when” (when the ball is on the other side of the field and being pressured), and the “where” (tuck back inside instead of staying out wide).
When we say that a team is “organized”, we usually are making a statement that it seems that all eleven players not only SEE the same things at the same time, but also actually ACT the same way. The complicated game has been organized for them in such a way that they recognize the correct thing to do at the right time. It is a beautiful thing to observe this complex coordination!
So, work on it! See if this type of coaching is effective. Be careful of not taking the joy of discovery away from the players though. Use the method “just enough”, to keep things interesting and to assist the players along. Too much, and YOU are playing instead of THEM. Look at yourself as a resource, not a dictator!
Good luck!