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PsychologicalRepresentativeTactics

After-mistake recovery routine (u12)

Teach a short, repeatable routine to reset concentration after conceding — mistake recovery is what separates the young keeper who collapses from the one who carries on, and it was untrained.

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Load

minutes
12
dives/set
4
Sets and reps
3 × 5
Intensity
Medium

dives per set, per goalkeeper

Microcycle days it fits

MD-3, MD-2

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

Setup

Goalkeepers
1
server
1
outfield player
0

Space: 12 × 10 m

Equipment: Balls, Mini goals

The coach serves and manages the breaks.

1 steps

A sequence of shots in which one is deliberately unsaveable. The focus is not the save: it is what the goalkeeper does in the three seconds after conceding, with a fixed, simple routine.

Exercise sequence

Coaching points

  • The routine is always the same: a physical gesture (touch the posts, deep breath) and a reset keyword.
  • After conceding, the eyes go straight to the next ball — not to the ground or to teammates.
  • The mistake is discussed after the drill, never in the moment; now only the next action matters.
  • Explicitly praise the fast recovery, to link it to something positive rather than to hiding the error.

Progressions

  1. Chain shots with no pause after conceding.
  2. Add an audience (teammates watching).

Regressions

  1. Give more time between shots.
  2. Reduce the demand of the following shots.

Sources · 2

  1. BookVaggelis Lappas, «Goalkeeper Training Methodology»
  2. CurriculumTechnical Coaching Points: Goalkeeping, Minnesota Youth Soccer Association