Developing an Effective Team Attack

with Jay Entlich,
Columbus State University Women's Head Coach;
2024 Peach Belt Conference Coach of the Year (9x total);
2024 Peach Belt Conference Regular Season Champions (15x total);
2024 Peach Belt Conference Tournament Champions (10x total);
2022 Final Four appearance;
2018 USCA Southeast Region Staff of the Year;
2015 NCAA Division II National Runner-Up;2x USCA Southeast Region Coach of the Year (2005, 2008);
Carolina Courage (Women's United Soccer Association) Head Coach in 2003;
University of Tampa Head Coach from 2000 to 2002;
2001 Sunshine State Conference Coach of the Year;
played college soccer for Virginia Tech;
United States Soccer Federation "A" license

Attacking soccer means successful soccer in today's game. Teams that attack effectively and as a unit present a constant problem for their opponents. Teaching players to attack as a team is a priority for every coach.

In a high-octane training session, Jay Entlich demonstrates how to develop the skills necessary to get your players to attack as a team. He uses four phases to build his players' repertoire of offensive attacking strategies. In a progression from small group to full field, Coach Entlich's attacking phases promote opportunities to advance the ball utilizing counterattacks, overlapping, combination play, and number advantages.

Coach Entlich makes it easy to follow his training session by thoroughly explaining each activity before taking it onto the field with his players.

Phase 1: 3-2-1 Small-Sided Game

Coach Entlich uses limited space and numbers to instill the basic principles needed to effectively move through the three zones commonly used in team organization. He introduces a fast-paced 6v3 possession game where offensive players move from one zone to another to creative number advantages and use overlapping runs and combination play to maintain possession. Possession maintained from one end to the other restarts the drill seamlessly, and with ways for both the offense and defense to score points, the game creates the kind of competition in practice that players and coaches love.

Phase 2: Half Field Exercises

In Phase 2, the training progress to activities in the final third, emphasizing player decision making and organization to stretch and break down an opponent's defensive organization. Coach Entlich designs the drill to mimic a 4-3-3 formation attacking a 3-5-2 formation, but you could easily adapt the drill to put your players in the formation that best suits your team. With seamless transitions and minimal downtime, this drill will test your players mentally and physically.

Phase 3: 11v9 Full-Field Play

Phase 3 moves Coach Entlich's team to the full field, where any turnover results in an 11v9 counterattacking opportunity. This activity sharpens play in and throughout the midfield. Coach Entlich teaches proper supporting runs, driving at a defense, finding the open player and having defenders become part of the attack. Whether it's by overlapping or combination play, your team will learn to create number advantages moving toward the goal

Phase 4: Full-Field Scrimmage

Coach Entlich returns the game to the players in 11v11 play, illustrating the effectiveness of concepts taught in the training session.

Each of Coach Entlich's phases require his players to think on their feet. During each phase, he finds moments in the drills to instruct his players on everything from the proper run to which foot to make a pass with.

The concepts and activities presented in this training session will teach your players the principles of an attacking mindset to generate scoring opportunities and cause constant problems for your opponents.

"I have a number of attack oriented training videos and this is a very tightly organized and logical training progression that emphasizes the essential principles of prioritizing player decision making, movement off the ball and finding or creating situations where I have a numerical advantage to attack my opponent. It is a good, solid team tactical training video." - Customer Review

52 minutes. 2016.