Preseason period in football

Training microcycles during the preseason period

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The preseason period is the period that runs from the first day of training of the new season until the first day of a competitive fixture (league match).

For us, it is essential that we ensure that our players have followed the recommendations set out during the transitional period.

For us, it is essential that we ensure that our players have followed the recommendations set out during the transitional period. The preparatory period is exceptional, because in it, there is no competition as such (points are not counted). This is part of the training, which allows us to train without taking into account how we conditionally arrive at friendly matches. Also, in many cases, those matches are part of the training load.

The big difference is that during the matches, we can adjust the minutes of our players with the block of the period in which we find ourselves. That is why during the training of the preseason period, the Volume (total training time) is bigger than during the training of the competitive period.

We believe that the ideal preseason period is the one that takes place in 5-6 weeks. Each of them formed by different microcycles. We like to divide the preparatory period into 3 periods of 2 microcycles each.

Block 1

Composed of two microcycles. We must pay attention to these aspects

They are generally load microcycles or general and directed transformation.
Keep an eye with this first microcycle and the tasks delivered such as passing structures, passing drills, patterns. We have to remember that the players come from a period of inactivity without hitting the ball. If we do this type of tasks, we have to do it with a lot of pause between contacts with the ball (for example many players on the task) and little repetition time for each player.
Be careful with the finishing tasks, these are the ones with maximum tension in the contact with the ball and the player is not yet adapted.
Be careful as well with maximum speed exercises. The players are not prepared yet.

Recommended tasks:

General tasks:circuits that include core work and stability exercises. All kinds of individual optimizing exercises aimed at improving hitting, movement, fighting or jumping. All kinds of coordination work.

Global atsks: rondos (6v2, 6v3, 6v3+1, etc) where defenders are more than 2 players.
Possession games, positional games, pressing games, conquering games, or small sided games, where the tasks have more than 6 defenders and the playing time goes over 6 minutes (recommendation is in between 6-10 minutes) of work. We always recommend that these tasks are minimum of 6v6 players.

Formation situations: progression games and Attack-Defence where defenders are always more than 6 players, same as the global tasks, so we recommend a minimum number of 6v6 and more than 6 minutes of work load.
In the matches modified according to the shape, we will follow the same idea of 6v6 and more than 6 minutes.

Friendly fixures

In this first block, an 11v11 match is recommended, facing each other. If so, 3 parts of 20 minutes are recommended, swapping players. If it is against another team, we have to try to make the players to play only 45 minutes. A HALF MAXIMUM.

The second week of the first block, players could start playing in 60-30 minutes. Players who play the most are recommended 60 minutes. But all players have to go through this phase, they all have to complete 60 minutes, so ideally 2 games can be played in this week.

Block 2

This block is composed by two microcycles. These are its characteristics:

Generally, are a load microcycles or special transformation.
We are now orienting the work towards the specific tasks of football. We already have two weeks of work and with the adaptation we can now do more speed-oriented tasks.

Recommended tasks:

Execution tasks:as we have mentioned before, we can use any type of tasks.

Conditional tasks: we can work on any of this type of task. For example, force/speed tasks, such as this speed with completion.

Global tasks: rondos, we can deliver any type of rondo, including with a pressing principles.
Possession games, we can deliver any type of this tasks as well. If we have to create reduced tasks from 3v3 to 1v1, always better in the second microcycle of this block.
Small sided games, same as the possession games, the games with a 3v3, 2v2 and/or 1v1 situations, always better in the second microcycle of this block.

Formation situations: We can deliver progression tasks and Attack-Defence games without worrying too much about the number of players in the game or the duration of the same. During the matches modified according to the shape we follow the same pattern as we have in the global. We recommend to take advantage of these games to play 7v7 or introducing more players on it, wo we can work on our game model.

Friendly fixures

In the first microcycle during the second block, we recommend that the first week we make sure all our players have completed 60 minutes of game time.
During the second week of the second block, we can start to play in between 70-20 minutes. The players with more minutes are recommended 70 minutes, but all players must go through this phase completing 70 minutes.

Block 3

Composed by two microcycles These are its characteristics:

Generally, are activation and special transformation microcycles.
We can complete any type of work and players should be able to complete any type of task.

Recommended tasks:

Execution tasks: we can work on all the possible tasks, but we have to plan them well inside our session.

Conditional tasks: we can also work with all the task types for this cathegory.

Global tasks: we can work with any type of task for this group as well. Important to locate them well in our session. Rondos, possession games, pressing games, conquering games, or possession games, we can use them with all their characteristics.
Small sided games, we can use all the types of them.

Formation situations: we can deliver progresing games and Attack-Defence tasks, without having to worry about time and number of players. For the matches modified according to the shape, we follow the same idea as with the global situations. During the matches modified according to the shape we follow the same pattern as we have in the global. We recommend to take advantage of these games to play 7v7 or introducing more players on it, wo we can work on our game model.

Friendly fixures

In this first microcycle of the third block, we recommend that during the first week, each player from the team has played at least 70 minutes of game time on a match. If this is the last phase before the competition begins, in this period, all players must complete 90 minutes. And here there is an important thing: all players.

The second week of the third block we have to ensure that all players have played 90 minutes. Players must arrive to the competition having passed the psycological barrier of a full match.

Once we have completed the preseason period, we are ready for the complexion.

In our app, we have a multimedia database with both collective and individual pre-designed tasks, but, if you prefer, you also can create your own tasks using our tactical boards and our resources.

Once the training sessions have been designed, you can send them directly to the selected players so that they can receive them directly on their mobile phones.

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