2v2+1 With a Target Attacker
The keeper punts to two attackers who link with a target player for a 3v2 on goal — while the defending pair fights to win it and clear past the top of the grid.
One situational game teaches both sides of the numbers — attackers learn to use a player-up advantage, and the defending pair learns to pressure and cover a player down.
20 min tonight · 2 attackers + a target vs 2 defenders, plus a keeper
- Ages 9+
- 2 attackers + a target vs 2 defenders, plus a keeper
- 20 min as the drill is written
- Cones, pinnies, balls, full-size goal
Grab Cones, pinnies in two colors, plenty of balls, and your full-size goal.
Build Build a grid approximately 30 by 40 yards with the goal on one end.
Place A keeper in the goal; the target player in red; four defenders in yellow — two in the middle about 18 yards from goal, two resting outside on the sidelines — and everyone else in two lines at the top of the grid.
- 1
Organize the players
Assign a goalkeeper, a target player in red, and four defenders in yellow — two starting in the middle of the grid about 18 yards from goal, two resting on the outside of the grid on both sidelines. The remaining players form two lines at the top of the grid, opposite the goal.
“Target, you're in red — you join whoever's attacking. Yellows, two in the middle, two resting wide. Everyone else — two lines up top.”
- 2
Show the jobs
Walk one round — the keeper punts a ball to the top two attackers, who join with the target player to form a 3v2. The attackers attempt to score; the two defenders work together to stop the attack. If the defenders win the ball, they clear it past the line where the waiting attackers stand — a successful clear and the attackers (minus the target) do ten pushups; a clear that doesn't reach the line, and the attack continues.
“Punt comes out — two of you attack with the target, three on two. Defenders, win it and clear it past that top line. Make it, and they owe you ten pushups.”
- 3
Play
Coach both sides. Attacking — play to the target player quickly without forcing the ball, make good supporting runs off it, combine passes to build the attack, and get into spots to get a shot off quickly. Defending — mark the target, have the closest player pressure the ball, keep good defensive positioning with pressure and cover, never stuck side-by-side or attacked in a straight line, and work together as a group of two with good posture on the ball.
“Find the target — don't force it! Defenders, closest one pressures, partner covers — never side by side!”
Look for Pressure and cover — the closest defender pressuring the ball with the partner covering, never stuck side-by-side or beaten in a straight line.
- 4
Switch and repeat
Every time the ball goes out of play or you call it dead, the keeper punts a new ball to the next pair of attackers and two new defenders step in.
“Dead ball — next two, here it comes! Fresh defenders in!”
If the attack keeps dying before a shot, widen the grid while they play — more room for the three to combine — then bring it back in.
Go deeper · 2 notes
Why it works
The plus-one makes every round a numbers-up attack and a numbers-down defense at once — attackers get real work playing to a target and building up quickly, while the defending pair learns to pressure, cover, and move as a group of two.
What they learn
Numbers-up attacking — playing to the target quickly, supporting runs, combining passes, and getting shots off quickly — and numbers-down defending as a pair, with the target marked, the ball pressured, pressure-and-cover positioning, and good defensive posture.
Where does this come from?
SoccerXpert — their published drill library.
A published drill library. Useful and widely used, but not a governing body — so it fills gaps rather than leading.