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When Creative Attacking Players Switch Positions

In Futsal and Soccer attacking players who play in static assigned positions make it easy for their opponents who must only defend the same players in the same positions for an entire game. In a static 3-1 in Futsal each player plays the same position (attacker, center defender, left defender or right defender) for an entire game. See top far left square below.

When 2, 3 and 4 players change positions their opponents must defend up to 24 different attacking combinations in a single game. In a game when a team changes to a Futsal 3-2 system and the goalkeeper also joins the attack exchanging positions with teammates the opponents must defend up to 120 different attacking combinations in a single game.

Exchanging positions forces your defending opponents to make decisions they do not have to make when playing a team playing a static Futsal 3-1 system with no player exchanges or rotations. The more decisions your opponents must make the more likely they will make an error creating attacking space for your team and better chances to score goals.

Movements of players between two or more positions includes rotations, overlapping runs, takeovers, blindside runs, checking runs and dogleg runs that force opponents to make decisions often create attacking spaces and the opportunity to score. A mental error by just one defender enables the attacking team to create space and opportunities to score.

The 4-6 System of Play in Professional Soccer
In the 4-6 System in 11-a-side soccer there are 4 defenders and a total of 6 midfielders and strikers who freely exchange positions with each other when attacking. So instead of defending against the same attacking players in the same positions for an entire game an 11-a-side soccer team's opponents must defend against up to 120 different attacking combinations in a single game if no more than 5 of the attacking players randomly exchange positions. If all 6 of the attacking players randomly exchange positions the number of possible combinations increases to 720 possible attacking combinations.

Learning Creative Player Exchanges in Soccer

Players as young as 7 and 8 can start to learn to exchange positions and play creativity in both Soccer and Futsal. The following modules help players learn creative play:

• Fragments are 2, 3 and 4 player movements that can be creatively linked together in Soccer and Futsal. See Fragments under Understanding
• Watching "stop and go" SSG (small sided game) videos helps players learn to pieced together fragments in games. See Stop and Go SSG Videos under Understanding.
• Reading body language enables players to anticipate what teammates and opponents will do. See Reading Body Language
• Reading patterns in play enables players to understand what can happen next and to work with teammates. See Reading Patterns
• Improved anticipation and decision making enables players to quickly link fragments together in games. See Mental Quickness

Futsal 3-1 - 24 Player Exchanges
Futsal 3-1 Instructor Web Pages
Futsal 3-1 Training Web Pages
Futsal 1-2-1 Instructor Web Pages
Futsal 1-2-1 Training Web Pages

Instructor Web Pages for coaches, teachers and group leaders are at SoccerGameSense.com

Training Web Pages for coaches, teachers, group leaders and players of all ages and levels are at
SoccerDevelopmentCenter.com

Each training page is a single visual lesson without ads or links. The leader assigns pages to be viewed by posting the links on a website or in emails. Training pages are either:

• Online exercises to improve vision, breathing, decision making speed, game understanding, etc.
• Not with team or class exercises to improve vision, decisions, speed, skills, physical conditioning, etc.
• Practice Improvement Visuals ​- Studies show players who view a visual of what they will do in a practice learn faster and remember longer.​

* Visual tracking when moving and
of individuals and objects in motion.