Center Mid Passing Combination 2
Two lines feed two central midfielders — give-and-goes climb the grid until player 1's diagonal ball drops into the space near the cone for player 2's run.
Playing diagonal balls in the direction you are facing is the center mid's craft — lay-offs and first-time passes, then a ball into space timed to the run.
Set up · 3 actions · before the kids arrive
- Grab: Cones for the grid, and a ball to start.
- Build: Set up a grid approximately 20 by 35 yards — the size can be adjusted for the age and skill level of your players.
- Place: Two central mid players inside the grid, and everyone else split into two even lines on one end. Player 1 starts with the ball.
Show me the setup picture
One thing to remember: Center mid play — first-time passes, lay-offs, and diagonal balls played in the direction they are facing, with precise weight and accuracy, correctly timed runs, one-touch play, and rhythm.
How it runs — the whole game in one sentence
The ball climbs the grid through both central mids — pass, run your sideline, lay-off — until player 1's diagonal ball into space near the cone meets the run of player 2.
1Organize the players▾
Coach does
Put your two central mids inside the grid and split the rest into two even lines on one end, with the ball starting at player 1.
Coach says
Two mids inside, two lines down here. First player — start us.
2Show the jobs▾
Coach does
Walk it through — player 1 plays into the first central mid and starts his run down the sideline. CM1 plays a first-time ball into player 2. Player 2 plays into the second central mid and starts his run down the sideline toward the cone. CM2 lays off to player 1, and player 1 plays a diagonal ball into the space near the cone for the run of player 2.
Coach says
Pass, then run your line. Mids — first time, keep it climbing. Last ball goes diagonal, into space, onto the run.
3Play▾
Coach does
Keep the groups flowing and hold the standard the drill is built on — timing. The weight and accuracy of each pass must be precise, the runs timed correctly, everything played in one touch, and the players settled into the rhythm of the game and the passes.
Coach says
One touch! Precise — right weight, right moment, onto the run.
Look for: Timing — precise weight and accuracy, correctly timed runs, and the diagonal ball meeting player 2 in stride.
4Switch and repeat▾
Coach does
Each group jogs around the outside of the grid back to the starting point. For a variation, when players get to the end, the same group with the same ball reverses the pattern and returns to the starting point.
Coach says
Jog it around and go again — or turn it around and play your way back.
If it's not working
If the passes can't survive the distances, pull the grid in while they play — size it to their age and skill — then stretch it back out as the timing sharpens.
Want to go deeper? Optional — not needed to run the game.