‘When a player with talent couldn’t defend, I put him in defence so he could learn, but that could cost a point. But I didn’t care, I was busy developing the player’ – Johan Cruyff
‘I’m a striker, coach’
‘My kid scores all our goals, that’s what he does best. He’s wasted back there’
‘If we keep Josh up top all game, I reckon we can win this’
We’ve all been there. Seen it, heard it, said it and got the rain sodden t-shirt. It’s a dilemma and conversation that happens on soccer fields across the globe on a weekly basis.
The concept of position rotation in youth soccer certainly isn’t a new one. Most club philosophies and development plans (where they exist) will likely talk about the importance of players ‘experiencing different/multiple positions on game days and throughout the season’. But is it really happening consistently, frequently and in a way that best supports player development?
This could have been a really short post simply reiterating what we often hear – ‘multiple positions are better for young players’ development over early positional specialization so that’s what we should all make happen in our environments’.
But I don’t believe that’s the most constructive or useful way to approach the subject – neither for those of you who buy into the philosophy but are struggling to make it a reality in your environment nor those who aren’t convinced but are interested in hearing more.
Before we move on, let’s be clear - I haven’t, and, perhaps on occasions, inadvertently still don’t, always practise what I preach. But I try my best. From my experience as a volunteer and professional coach in grassroots and academy environments, I fully appreciate the challenges and pressures facing a coach in rotating players through all positions on a regular basis. So no lectures or condemnations here – just some unpacking of the dilemma and ideas on how we might overcome it.
Before we take a look at the challenges and barriers and ideas of how to potentially overcome them, let’s first touch on why, for me, consistent positional rotation for young players is always worth the potential difficulties and dilemmas accompanying it.
What do I see as the advantage of giving young players experience in multi-positions?
Firstly, I should probably be a little more specific. How am I defining ‘young’ players in this particular context? While different club academies across the world have different approaches, for me, I like to keep players regularly experiencing and experimenting with all positions up to and including U12. At U13 +, my preferred approach is for a very gradual pathway towards more position specific specialization that moves from a few potential position areas to primary and secondary positions in the mid to later teenage years to really hone in on the abilities and experience required to be successful in that position in line with their aspirations. Underpinning all of that is flexibility - prioritizing what is required to best meet the developmental needs of the individual at any given point over what is best for the team to be successful.
Is that the best approach? It’s very difficult to say with absolute certainty. It is however a similar approach to that of some of the academies across the world who are renowned for their successful development pathways – so I take some comfort in that!
So the first question I ask myself when addressing this topic is, ‘what technical, basic tactical and psychological building blocks am I wanting to lay a solid foundation for by U12?’ The in-depth detail for this is for another conversation and certainly one that I’d be happy to discuss with you and your club further.
But what gets me out of bed in the morning is to support the development of young players who;
- Love the game
- Can manipulate and master the ball under pressure in dynamic environments that represent the game
- Want the ball at their feet at every opportunity and are comfortable, confident and capable to protect it and escape from pressure
- Enthusiastic about both attacking and defending and demonstrate the desire to quickly transition between the two
- Understand and are competent in the basic technical and tactical challenges that are posed by 1v1, 2v2, 3v3 and 4v4 attacking and defending scenarios (as well as basic under and over-loads)
- Are comfortable being uncomfortable, are exploratory risk takers and aren’t restricted or inhibited by the fear of making mistakes
- Have the self-belief that their ability is limitless with the right approach
- Have been exposed to and begin to display age appropriate command of the 5C’s – commitment, communication, concentration, control and confidence.
When I look at these developmental aspects of the game, I’m left asking myself whether exposing a young player to a variety of different positions both in practice and in games helps or hinders building competence and confidence in these areas? For me, it most definitely helps.
I think of the potential future goalkeeper who has advanced technical ability with his feet, even under immense pressure, that was shaped, at least in some part by his time spent playing center midfield. The future striker who, to play at the level at which she aspires to, can successfully make the transition to play as a center back due to her early exposure to the position and subsequent competence to defend 1v1 and read the game through a defensive lens. The young person who can find a way to pass exams in a school subject in which they struggle because they’ve developed resilience, a growth mindset and a constructive response to failing that has been built, or at least reinforced, by their frequent exposure to environments and playing positions on the field where they’ve struggled and had to overcome adversity. The list is endless.
And then there’s the darker flip side – the players who don’t achieve what they want to or fall out of love with the game because they’ve not had the opportunity to develop the foundational core competencies that exposure to multiple positions consistently at a young age would have afforded them.
Coaches often ask me, ‘can’t any gaps in the fundamental basics be made up for later on?’ For me, they can, but it only gets more difficult. As players progress to the 11v11 format of the game, the focus begins to shift towards more tactical and game understanding with often increasingly less dedicated time to revisiting the basics. Positions also start to become increasingly more focused so there are frequently less opportunities to harness the developmental benefits of playing all positions to work on any areas of deficiency.
Environments also often begin to become more selective with increasing pressures to maintain a spot in a particular team or continue to progress to a higher level of the game. Naturally, this often leads to less opportunities and desire for players to experience new positions for the first time.
Of course clubs and players will continue to identify and support players to develop their areas for improvement at U13 and beyond but given the additional challenges, why not give our players the most well rounded, broad experience of the game as possible in the younger age groups to set them up for success?
‘But what if myself and the club are convinced that this player is a natural…. (enter position here as appropriate)?’ This is another common question that coaches ask. For me, we can often see traits in young players that are likely to allow them to have greater success in particular positions and roles down the line. I’m certainly not advocating never playing a child as a striker who is great at finding space in the penalty area and who displays a range of finishing techniques. Nor am I advocating not continuing to work on their finishing in practice. I’m also not saying that we should give them equal game time as a center back and as a striker. But I do believe that they need a significant amount of time and exposure in both practice and in games to positions and situations which allows them to build core fundamentals of the whole game.
If I take a look at my current U13 team who joined us around 18 months ago from a variety of local grassroots clubs – a good number are playing in primary and secondary positions that they wouldn’t have imagined when they joined us. As the game format changes, our players grow and develop (mentally and physically) and players are exposed to the challenges of increased tiering and streaming by current ability and perceived potential, a lot can change.
Players can grow to either be better suited to different positions than those which they may have originally envisioned or may choose to/need to redefine themselves if they wish to play at a particular level.
From my experience, those who can successfully and enjoyably transition are those who have developed the fundamentals of the whole game at a young age and have been exposed to the learning and experience afforded by playing multiple positions.
If we want to look for an example at the top level of the game, a current one that springs to mind is the expanded role of 2018 World Cup winner N’golo Kante under new Chelsea manager, Maurizio Sarri. Arguably one of the world’s best defensive midfielders and a pivotal piece of the Leicester City puzzle during their odds-defying 2015/16 Premier League winning season, very few saw Kante playing in the role that he currently does at Chelsea. Kante has already this season equalled his Premier League scoring record for one season and is occupying much more attacking positions, both centrally as well as wider channels. His ability to adapt and be successful in quite different roles this season wasn’t purely developed in a short pre-season period following the World Cup – it likely comes from his foundational abilities developed through a breadth of experiences in youth football.
A less high profile, but more extreme example, is current Bolton Wanderers and Northern Ireland senior international Josh Magennis. A goalkeeper throughout his youth career, he switched to play as a striker at 18 and hasn’t looked back. Exposure to playing in outfield positions both formally and informally at a young age is likely what has allowed Magennis to have a successful professional career as a striker.
So what are some of these pressures that might steer coaches away from player rotation?
The Pressure to Win:
The pressure to win across all ages in both grassroots and academy football unfortunately can be, and often is, significant and can come from every angle;
- Parents – many parents buy into the philosophy that enjoyment and development should take precedence over winning at all costs. Many don’t. When your 7 year old ‘top striker’ plays left back and you’re 2-0 down, do you feel the heat from the sideline?
- Players – players want to win. Whether that’s from nature, nurture or likely a combination of both, winning is important to them. As a coach wanting our young players to enjoy the game, we often ask ourselves, ‘how enjoyable can it be for them losing every week?’ This adds another pressure – the coach wanting to win for the players to keep their enjoyment and interest in the game alive. Does that stand in the way of us giving our 9 year old ‘center back’ 20 minutes at right midfield to work on their 1v1 attacking when you’re 1-0 up?
- Clubs – how strong is the clubs philosophy on development over winning? Is that lived day-in day-out through actions and behaviours? Is it communicated clearly to parents? Intentionally or otherwise, clubs can place a real or perceived sense of pressure on coaches to win games. The weekly question of ‘what was the score?’ as either the first or only request for feedback when reporting back to your technical department and the subsequent look of disappointment or approval can place significant pressure on a coach. Does this result in our 10 year old ‘GK’ losing valuable outfield game time that would significantly help her ball mastery and ability to play with her feet under pressure (essential traits for a modern keeper)?
- Internal – Our own philosophy on the importance of winning naturally effects the amount and nature of the kind of pressure we put ourselves under to win games. Is the pressure we place on ourselves to win (for whatever reason) holding us back from letting our 11 year old ‘right back’ play significant game time in central midfield to get game practice at receiving the ball under pressure and playing in crowded areas?
And the pressures don’t stop there. Winning and results aside, we then have to factor in where the players (and often subsequently parents) are most happy playing based on their enjoyment as well as perceived competencies.
We’ve all seen that look. Terror. Fear. Bewilderment. The sudden onset stomach ache or sore ankle. The response we’re met with when we discuss with a player the option of playing in a different position than that in which they’re comfortable or believe they are most competent in. Does that desire to protect their love of the game, their happiness and the potential impending parental outburst prevent us from doing what is in the best interest of their long term development?
What about our ego around our perceived competence? What will the club, parents and other coaches think of our knowledge of the game if our ‘striker’ is in goal and our ‘center back’ is up top? Will I look like an idiot?
So there are pressures. A hat full of them. Maybe you can relate to just one or two or maybe you experience the full house. Every. Single. Game.
But the aim of this post wasn’t to provide reinforcement or justification as to why rotating player positions should stay in our club’s philosophy and venture nowhere near the field on match day.
In part 2 (available here), we take a look at a range of practical solutions and approaches to overcome these challenges and barriers to give our players the best possible foundation for success...
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