1v1 to the Window
One attacker tries to beat one defender and slip the ball to a teammate waiting in a window — lose it, and the jobs flip on the spot.
The defender's craft — close fast, slow up, get low, body on the attacker — only becomes real against a live attacker with somewhere to go.
15 min tonight · Groups of 6 — two teams of 3 (1v1 inside)
- Ages 7+
- Groups of 6 — two teams of 3 (1v1 inside)
- 15 min as the drill is written
- Cones, pinnies, balls
Grab Cones, two colors of pinnies, and a few balls.
Build Build a 15-by-15-yard grid, then use cones to mark a 5-yard window on each of the four sides.
Place Each team takes a pair of opposite windows, with their waiting players lined up in them. One attacker starts inside with the ball; one player from the other team steps in as the defender.
- 1
Organize the players
Make two teams of three in different pinnies. Give each team a pair of opposite windows and line their waiting players up in them, then send in one attacker with the ball and one defender from the other team.
“Your team owns these two windows. One from each team in the middle — attacker has the ball.”
- 2
Show the jobs
Walk both jobs — the attacker beats the defender and passes to the teammate across the grid, who becomes the next attacker against the same defender. A defender who wins it plays to either teammate on their side, and the attacker who lost it defends.
“Beat your defender and hit your window. Lose the ball? You're the defender now.”
- 3
Play
Keep it continuous — every window pass launches a new attacker at the same defender, and every lost ball flips the jobs immediately.
“Fast, slow, get low! Body on them — ball or player, never both.”
Look for The defender's approach — fast to close, slow to arrive, low in the stance, hands on the attacker — instead of a flying lunge.
- 4
Switch and repeat
Let the game rotate itself — window passes pull new attackers in and turnovers make new defenders. Keep the tempo up and the windows ready.
“New attacker — go! Windows, stay ready.”
If the attacker can never get across, send a second attacker in — 2v1 until the ball starts reaching the windows, then back to 1v1.
Go deeper · 3 notes
Why it works
Every player cycles through both jobs without a line or a whistle — the game's own turnovers do the rotating. And because the attacker always has a live target, the defender learns the real version of the job: close fast, arrive slow, stay low, get your hands on the attacker, and choose ball or player — never both.
What they learn
First-defender pressure — the fast-slow-low approach and body position — plus attacking with speed, quick feints before the pass, and winning the ball back the instant it is lost.
What's next
1v1 Defending the Dribble — the pressure craft on its own, against a live dribbler.
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.