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Build-upGameCompetition

Possession game with the goalkeeper as a support player

Put the goalkeeper into circulation as another player, with a volume of touches a position-specific drill never provides.

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Load

minutes
16
Intensity
Medium
Sets and reps
3 × 1

Microcycle days it fits

MD-4, MD-3, MD-2

Each bar’s height is that day’s dive ceiling.

Setup

Goalkeepers
1
server
0
outfield player
8

Space: 36 × 30 m

Equipment: Balls, Bibs, Cones, Mini goals

The coach serves and manages the breaks.

2 steps

4v4 possession game in a small space with two mini goals. The goalkeeper plays as a fixed support option in a deep zone, serving whichever team has the ball. No goal to defend: this is build-up only.

Exercise sequence

Coaching points

  • Always be available in a passing line, not behind an opponent — position matters more than technique here.
  • Receive oriented towards the free side, decided before the ball arrives.
  • Switching play is the goalkeeper’s most valuable action in build-up: look for it.
  • With two touches, the first must be good — there is no third to fix it.
  • Talk before receiving: ask for the ball and say where the pressure is.

Progressions

  1. Limit to one touch, forcing earlier decisions.
  2. Support only the team in possession, which requires reading who has the ball.
  3. Play as a full member of one team, with defensive responsibility.

Regressions

  1. Unlimited touches.
  2. Increase the space, giving more decision time.
  3. Reduce to 3v3.

Sources · 3

  1. StudyAdvice from “pracademics” of how to apply ecological dynamics theory to practice design (2023)
  2. Book«Scientific Approaches to Goalkeeping in Football», Bennion Kearny
  3. CurriculumRegulamento do Curso UEFA de Treinadores de Guarda-Redes «B», Federação Portuguesa de Futebol