Compare the line of the shoulders that stay above the ball. Body balance (centre of gravity if we want to speak quantum physics) is still in the trajectory of the ball. And the right hand clearly puts the Stamford Fridge off balance

Intensity is the amount of actions per minute.

Which require physical and mental resilience:

• shorter recovery between explosive actions

• faster feedback loop to go again

What sells the dummy is doing it at the last split second, like Kvara vs Disasi to send the defender for a hot dog

That outside shift (masked) is good ball mastery to get off the drible

Wide striker run

This is exacly what you expect from your winger / wide striker

Read the space

Back track to pose a question to the fullbacks

Diagonal run for straight pass.

Good covering by Zambia’s 14

Box movement

Bogere is at the top of the centre circle. Ball is won back

That’s excellent “against the grain” movement from Bogere

To dart at the far post, after going around the penalty spot; to attack the defender’s blind side

Also, it’s easier to simply put the laces through the ball like most strikers would do

Bogere actually hits to create a rebound, to possibly nutmeg the goalkeeper

Keeping counters alive

Rule #1 : go opposite side to make a diagonal run that ends to goal

Rule #2 : if #1 somehow doesn’t apply (like here: transitional state), then make the decoy channel. But do it. Don’t clog the counter by staying in the middle of traffic to wait for service

Good job by Bogere

Who then created the space to get a positive first touch

Ending up with a left foot cross that actually connects

Something covered in the Grover / Deivid Washington article

You won’t Build Castledine The Sky if your starting position for runs is 2-3 times out of 5 central (ideally you’re 4/5 times opposite side of the centre circle to the ball), and you also refuse to make the decoy runs.

Bit of the same story here.

Zambia switch

Ball recovered from the far side

It’s a semi fast attack, there’s space but bodies behind the ball

That diagonal run all the way (9) pulls the defence whilst the carrier can take on diagonally

Bogere spins. This is satisfactory to see strikers willing to make good runs by precisely making the one run that will set up the next one.

Touchline: you can either receive feet, or in behind if the fullback is drawn to you

Which he does, cutting inside with a nutmeg,

then creative prloblem solving – fast wide strikers rarely are.

Execution let him down, but the intention was quite interesting to dink the ball over the CB. James Rodriguez or Özil stuff

Semi-blocked first touch

Losely translated from French “semi blocage” which is one of the author’s favourite skills in football

Some shoulder drop and spinning so that the defender adopts the “Cucurella stance”, flat footed

Knock past, roasted.

Can’t develop “technical” players without the most important part of the environment: affordances created by opponent’s behavior.

Nkukwasiza ekirabo

that is one good assist

Always hit the ball when it’s on its way down

Box movement at the far side

On unrelated note:

[…] ~85% of the actions performed at maximum velocity in a professional soccer league are curvilinear sprints […]

Fílter A, Olivares J, Santalla A, Nakamura FY, Loturco I, Requena B.

New curve sprint test for soccer players: Reliability and relationship with linear sprint. J Sports Sci.

2020 Jun-Jun;38(11-12):1320-1325. doi: 10.1080/02640414.2019.1677391.

Epub 2019 Oct 13. PMID: 31607228.

Good players will make “curvilinear runs” because that’s what the game demands

Same thing a few moments later

Fast strikers usually don’t have good box movement, until their latter stages when they work on their craft ; because their favoured situation has the passer behind them and not on their side.
Bogere’s movement from the blind side, to appear in front of the defender

Another “curvilinear run at maximal velocity”.

“Unreal locomotion” would say the most prominent yappers on Football Twitter.

Curry with Gary Linekar

1, Curvilinear run outside, then sprint

2, Curvilinear run outside, then sprint

3, Curvilinear run inside then sprint

Do it with a bar held behind the neck

Do it with a bar held vertically with both arms, opposite side to the direction of the run

Swap sides; 2 runs per workshop

TECHNICAL POINTS:

Lead with the head

Jermain Defoe and air-shots

One of the key thing Jermain Defoe did over the years was to ‘air shot” crosses whatsoever, to not react when the ball reaches him

Closer look at Bogere’s mechanics; left foot doesn’t point toward goal, so hip can only turn so much and it requires bending the knee to find a connection, difficult to execute with the laces

If the left foot points toward goal, hip rotates more naturally and the knee doesn’t bend before kicking besides to accompany the shot

The Madueke second touch

Covered in the Madueke newsletter.

Saka, Vinicius, Olise, Neymar etc.. have a brilliant first touch and the second touch is done against momentum in a way that unsettle the defender.

Bogere’s second touch is “nice” and allows the defender to set his footwork, the step ahead will be to have a meaner second touch in the intended direction

FIrst touch is irrelevant when it comes to surface. Some like the outside of the boot, the sole, the back foot. As long as it’s diagonal and allow a proper second touch, it’s fine really.

This is the second touch Bogere takes away from the direct route to goal ; as opposed to take on the defender.

Commit the defender to then shift to open space, final third isn’t about avoiding the direct route (that’s what the defender wants) to end up with 50/50% bad options

When he cuts inside, the double team is set

First touch and arms to protect the space and balance

That left arm has to be stiff to keep the opponent at distance: biggest area for improvement for young strikers is to multitask

Drawing fouls

Strong right step to push in the other direction, from the blind side.

Get clamped, scream, free kick.

Very clever attacking play, essential for fast attackers to do it in the box.

Here’s to you Aristide who won my team so many penalties in 2020-21

Mentioned at the end of the Shim newsletter

Dart at the near post

Some more outstanding box movement

To appear from the defender’s blind side at the last moment

That step (left) is a bit too large, would have benefited from skipping “hopping” dynamically on his left to land the toes towards goal

Benchmarking with one of the best

Steps are large

Short steps to compute the required amount…

… to land the left next to the ball pointing towards goal

From the blind side vs Liverpool in 2004-05

Perfecty in line with the near post, left foot pointing towards direction of the shot

On more acrobatic finishes.

See how Defoe is already sliding and connects with the cross, doesn’t “shoot”

Bogere “goes to ground” to volley when it’s about to reach him

Jermain Defoe is already flying towards the ball

Moments after for his 4 or 5 goal game vs Wigan.

Sorting his feet accurately, left foot pointing towards goal, shoulders over the ball

Drive diagonally on fastbreaks

Half turn reception,

The only way to be able to change direction whilst stil going towards goal, is to move in diagonal lines especially on fastbreaks

To attack the defender’s back foot

Touch with the laces, knee bent, hashtag baller (Olise, Chukwuemeka)

Bogere as a lone 9

Bogere started the opening game – gainst the home nation Morocco, being 2-0 down inside 8’

Upfront. Where he showed good fundamentals stemming (it’s not very important) either from organic understanding of how to “survive” on the pitch, and / or good coaching / footballing education

Left arm on chest, strong left stance to leave little surface to be kicked to get hold

To put the CB off balance

Locking the defender’s arm

That’s good channel running, from someone doing Nico Jackson / Ekitike things of being able to play centrally, wide ; and not only get hold but actually run and drive which is a defenders’ nightmare

Hide intent when connecting towards the box

Drive one way (horizontally), squaring the defenders

and splitting them with a nice masked pass between the two, against the flow. Saka is very good at these, delaying a split second then releasing it.

The kind of pass “with intent” that strikers who want to make things happen play.

Not just a cute layoff with no rythm

Cut the pitch in half

2025, no need for a PhD thesis.

Split the pitch in two, cut off the easy pass between CBs to set a pressing trap ; and actively making sure someone jumps on the deepest midfielder.

Actively hunting down the CB from the edge of his field of vision, from where he sees a moving shape (that will force him to get rid, or turn the head and cock up the subsequent pass forward)

Nsobola okulaba tikiti yo?

Some bits from the game vs Gambia where Bogere scored the brace to send his country to their first ever World Cup at any age group.

Finishing off a volley

Sprinting before the winger receives to be on time whithin the goalposts

The volley is already prepared, hit on the way down sligthly above the top

To aim for the area between arm and leg

Turning a channel ball into a 1v1

There’s a fine balance between giving the ball away, and making something positive out of a channel reception (usually meant to dig out a CB from the box, to put a cross in the – vacated – box)

Wheels of fortune

You’ve got to recognize a player who’s on fire, with a Zidane turn, and a drag back-pass to find a runner. Fair enough.

That’s the Nemar-y version mentioned at the top

Multitasking when running the channel

Reading the game : defender is in nowhere land, let’s attack the channel (and not chase the channel punt)

Good use of the “stiff arm”

But as it’s often the case with young forwards – as mentioned at the top, multitasking is a challenge and JB fails to roll the ball around the defender which would draw a foul

On the following instance, he drags the ball but unable to prevent the CB to pull his shirt

1 Set the footwork and pivot foot,

2 Use the stiff arm and roll the ball simultaneously to “hide it”

Spinning 180°

Can you move in all directions?

JB is dynamic on toes

His “cone” (whose width is the distance betwen his feet) is narrow enough to be able to spin

Land the left foot effectively

Rotate effectively

With calf in the same diagonal as the chest

Best of the bunch

First touch to keep the ball alive

Selling the dummy to send the defender

One of the most fool-proof ways to scale up finishing skill and strikers:

the time between:

• the last touch

And the shot, whilst the defender’s centre of gravity is outside the “cone” (shoulders feet)

Straight leg when kicking

Yo, that’s Marcus Rashford OBE

Hacene, Neymar and platforming wide strikers

In 2017 I signed Hacene , returning to “*his* club. Whoever runs a club doesn’t own it.

The backstory / storytelling belongs to him.

I took charge of the club’s U19s as I was also getting my UEFA A license that season.

There’s no genius in noticing a player who was chesting over defenders’ head or scoring Van Basten volleys off both feet in the “trial” kickabout 7v7 on half a pitch in June was a player. Just like James Bogere. A player is a player.

That goal was chalked off for offside, but damn.

The discussion in the office was fairly straightforward behind our respective smirks:

I’ll platform your ability and help you improve the best to my ability, I’ll also get my coaching badges and will need some mutual understanding of what we’re both trying to achieve.

“I want to become a professional footballer”

These runs in behind and finishing skills were outrageous.

Curved run to get around the defender (blind side) then creative problem solving.

Most of the things I was told about the player(s) I signed proved untrue over time.

Create pathways, play the strongest team.

Shut off the noise, judge from what you see, not based on the gossip

Agendas are strong, carried by cluelessness, stupidity bordering on bigotry and libel at times. All tools in the process to undermine to the benefit of vested interests.

A word on different types of leadership. Quiet leader, by example. Few words, but impactful.

And not only one of the best forwards I’ve coached, an exemplary mentality on the pitch. Workrate? Yes. Channel punt? wewillbedere. Striker specific training under pissing rain? There. U19 training when the B team isn’t training? There. Football bag? Ready. Boots? Clean.

Three passes goals? Say no more

Down the line, the ball doesn’t lie and having now seen enough players blossoming from that seed nobody cared about by the side of the highway (at Grassroots level) transplanting themselves to professional / international level ;

I’ve got a significant enough sample size of condiditions / factors or parameters conductive to success.

In other words; not everyone who did all these things did succeed (it’s an unfair, crowded, “who you know, not what you do” industry).

But everyone who made it ticked all these boxes.

Make of that what you wish.

I decided the day before the final friendly game to name him captain, because it actually made the most sense.

I was initially unsold on 4-diamond-2 that I thought was too open down the sides.

I’ve always been (lots of *I*) rather keen on getting a sample size of 7v7 / 11v11 then platforming the best players in the most impactful areas

Hacene is ahead of the curve, makes channels runs in behind. Why should I bother with wingers, considering he can also score the goals

“put the right players in the right areas”, a team is a byproduct of the synergy between individuals. You can’t plaster a framework nor shoehorn players into “roles”, it’s not a casting, you don’t have the scipt ; players are writing it.

Hacene – absolute fan of Neymar, had his sights on #11 so despite giving him the #9 initially, I gave him what he wanted (because realistically who cares – yes these are the EURO 2016 bibs I kept as a souvenir).

Who are your key players:

• Quick Brazilian idiosyncratic CB (could Cruyff Turn a striker in the box and win a race against anyone)

• A DM from Djibouti (think Busquets’s technical security, with box to box shifts and chops)

• A towering creative Pastore-like DM (nicknamed “Flaco” by his team mates)

• A hybrid LW / striker with long runs, phonebooth problem solving and finishing

Your players = your system. Fit them all.

Key ideas in possession:

Have as many vertical layers, without screening a more advanced option…

… whilst not being overly open.

UEFA A guideline: your team shape should fit a handball court on a football pitch

And the tutor is an assistant U20 World Cup winning coach.

“stop having your teams wide open with both fullbacks on touchlines”

Arguing (based on skills analysis)

Against the “CM rolling out and high fullbacks” but more in favour of CM / 10 and wingers roaming from centre to wide areas because they are the ones you want in attacking positions. (not your fullbacks like a Polar Bear in Arlington, TX)

---

Some excellent “sunflower” movement from Hacene, to always stand at technical distance with the ball, then creep in the box to score a goal :

Hacene is already flying to connect (and nutmeg the GK)

James Bogere is starting his motion when the ball is one yard away or so, that’s too late

In the air to dominate the ball ; it’s a goal vs Gambia

Find the most advanced player beyond, or into feet.

Bring people into play, feed runners, fill the box.

Something developped during the season with a variety of narrow but deep small positional “end to end” games like 3v3+3

Deep fullback on the ball, 7 (CM) wide and opposition fullback caught in between.

Striker able to drift wide.

We actually scored with a diagonal long ball for the second striker taking the space between the CBs

Clustering goal situations based on what happens “organically” (where do clever players find space).

Then “modelising” (that’s the Federation’s terminology) these sequences into training situations.

You could daydream and say “I wish my team scored that goal” that you brainstormed during your mornin poo (or more like: the other way around).

That’s why we see soo many teams fucking about at the back, coaches want the perfect sequence or “recycle”

Our coaches are ecologists at heart. Heart warming (just like the climate).

Speaking of climate and wave of cold, scoring two goals in 45 seconds at the rival to win 0-2 was a good one.

Just do football in training, see what happens organically, then set up the most frequent protagonists in the same areas so that it is likely to happen again during a game. This is elementary logic.

Do 8 minutes of 6v6 (plus keeper) on 2/3 of a pitch.

If shit don’t happen then (which you know reviewing the footage), such as no chemistry between the two forwards or midfielders / attackers ; it is beyond deluded to expect “play der play der” pattern play to fix it, or worse, expecting shit to work out during games because you show your players your tactical software

Hacene and Youssouf like to play together. Let’s play the latter 10 behind the former.

Another one: striker drifting wide, so 10 can attack the space between the pinnned fullback and CB.

That St Pantaleon side was sitting deep and hitting teams on the counter, but was a bit of a surprise package, promoted team, 4th in December.

We sat deep, so they filled the remaining space (leaving half a pitch to attack).

3-0 inside half an hour, 5-1 final score. Go home (longest away trip of the season)

220 km, or 130 miles.

We also won the return leg 3-0 in January 2018.

Playing 11v11 ; no subs either side.

Areas to hit on transition

• A: 10 space

• B: unprotected channel between CB / FB.

Half spaces aren’t a thing. Space doesn’t produce actions, players do.

If you disagree, then you’re – quite litterally – a Nazi (who thought the “Lebensraum” was producing superior humans. Nein. Late 1800s geography / eugenics was full of “good climate produce more intelligent races”).

No wonder football which is often an intellectual cesspit when it comes to pseudo science, thinks “half spaces” produce actions.

Nope. Players do. Players game.

More football please.

How to platform wide strikers

Speaking of

FFF – but just like every other federation with different words because it’s scientifically based – uses a

1. Game

2. Situation

3. Exercise

Framework to maximise learning opportunities

• Game : two teams have a goal, one is incentivised to create a problem for the other team (not restricted) to solve

• Situation: once the “problem” is identified, work on a cluster of similar (not identica) opposed solutions to work on the decision making tree.

• Exercise : unopposed pattern play to refine (not develop – opposed does) technique, and manage workload.

Stretch teams horizontally to use space to play through

Game format

Defending team (red) in the central area, defenders can only get out once the ball moves outside the box

Attacking team (blue) can use the whole width.

Looking at it closely, this is a placebo referential pitch design.

You have to defend properly anyway.

Also (pitch availability permitting), set the game with two actual penalty boxes and depth to attack. Nothing worse than CBs trampling the 6yx box because the game starts from the byline. Social distancing please.

But it generates the situations you’re looking for, players think it’s all of a sudden super intersting to find separation back to the touchline.

Who can then make runs in “intervals” between players.

Situation

This is a 3 defenders (CB, RB, CM)

against

CM-10 and two strikers

So 3v4 with a magic man ; which makes it a 5v3 or 4v4 (to have a player to find on transition, who can or can’t score – to force the red to provide support and shoot).

The “goal / instruction” (but/consignes) box ; “modelises” the desired situation, depending on the defenders’ behaviour

1. fullback tracks the striker drifting wide and CB covers : Up-back with striker to find the 10 making a channel run

2. fullback tracks striker drifting wide and CB doesn’t cover: Up-back with the CF and 10 to launch the second striker

3. fullback doesn’t track the striker drifting wide: receive diagonally and take on diagonally (one of the suggested idea was to play the 10 who feeds the left CM overlapping).

But wide striker can very well do what he wants. Can do up with the other striker, back to the 10 to find him again running diagonally.

Exercise

Platformed by science, coaching curriculums (don’t look for holier than thou – Germany France England etc… all do the same).

Start from the game, dress it down through “situations” and kick about “pattern play” to finish it.

Inverting the outdated process to copy the alphabet 100x times to learn a new language.

Look what Duolingo does. Games then problem solving.

Imagine if Duolingo was asking you to type words in a text box. Right.

Side midfielder overlapping the strikers

Game format:

This was the cycle where we worked (from 4-diamond-2) to get the far side CM overlapping to crash the box.

---

U17 international Paul ; usually on the bench for the first team, can’t get a game for the B team because the local Guardiola finds every reason under the sun to play one of his mates instead – kind of bullshit I had to deal with.

Not unhappy to start him at U19 level, but come the fuck on.

Based on a goal we scored:

CM Cheick-Ousmane finds Striker 1 (Hacene), finds Striker 2 (Paul) who finds Cheick-Ousmane again overlapping the two strikers.

We scored 8 goals out of 12 shots on target, from 18 attempts.

I don’t know.

Maybe finishing skill isn’t just a “proper football man’s‘“ fever dream, and has to do with Paul (U17 U19 international for New Caledonia) and Hacene (Algeria qualified for the next senior AFCON. Watch this space) knowing where the back of the net is.

Another feature of that 2017-18 season et U19 level, is how often we’d score on our first shot of the game, and back to back goals (often against “momentum”)

For anyone disagreeing with my definition of “control” which is;

accessing the opposition’s box, whilst preventing access to yours.

Anyway, that’s the training process:

Blue 2-1-2 / Red 4-2 and the thing I liked doing to maximise the number of players.

Use floaters who are fullbacks in attack, and wingers in transition.

The idea was to find the connection between CM and CF (drifting wide or receiving on the half turn) then up-back to find runners

Play the game, BUT

• Red: goal counts twice if scored on the side of the recovery (therefore: create player density ball side )

• Blue: goal counts twice if scored opposide side of the build up

These are the game realistic incentives.

If you’re dumb, you’ll score whatever goals you can. If you’re smart, you’ll think about maximising scoring.

Wave practice

• Blue in 2-1-2

• Red in 2-2 with two CBs nominally outside the box, 2 CMs nominally inside the set area.

• Start GK to CM, who finds the attacker open somewhere.

That would be the one CF1-CF2 linking up, maybe dump on the 10 to find a third man runner on the far side.

Cut inside, do what you do

Hacene has scored 6 goals in Ligue 2 for Red Star in 2024-25

That’s his professional heatmap. Likes Neymar and (therefore?) drifting wide.

Who am I to change that? I’m happy to have platformed it, which he now continues doing at professional.

Carlo Ancelotti said ‘There are two types of managers: those who do nothing and those who do a lot of damage’

Hacene’s goalscoring chances in 2017-18. 4-diamond-2 ; naturally drifting wide to cut inside and shoot. Reactive to attack space in behind on second balls

Alright, let’s find a training slot and give you a bag of footballs at disposal

The goalkeeper in the photos and video below, is another local boy from grassroots I signed that 2017/18 season ; now International for Comoros – who also qualified for the next AFCON

Best goalkeeper of the COSAFA Cup 2024 Group Stage

My James Bogere take

I’d be surprised if he doesn’t end up on the Red Bull fishing net.

Fairly relentless when it comes to intensity (amount of actions) and confidence to perform two consecutive plays.

If anything, he’s playing across “clusters”, being creative in terms of ways to problem solve that isn’t just knocking past people – for someone so fast.

Some feline finishing skill, both in speed and execution.

Intelligent use of the space across the front line, realising early where there’s gaps to exploit ; selflessly, for himself or dropping off the front.

Box movement varied, near post, cutbacks and not afraid to connect headers

Surprisingly good vision to pick out runners after carries.

A good foundation in terms of gamemanship (for a quick striker) when it comes to shoulders and shoulders ; next stages being multitasking and making sure he doesn’t get kicked from pillar to post

Decent activity off the ball, and doesn’t seem to be overly exhausted

Some will say Nicolas Jackson or Salomon Kalou, there’s vibes of Neymar or Rashford

Good attitude attackers who can impact games in a variety of ways all across the front line.

Question is whether he’ll move before or after the World Cup next winter; and if he finds a pathway that gives him opportunities to play – hopefully not in a talent farm PE owned club with no perspective.

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