Dutch Soccer Drills Volume 4 Book Review
Dutch Soccer Drills ($14) could not have a more accurate title. This book is contains nothing but drills, but there are a lot of them. The book covers the major topics and includes small sided drills in most combinations.
Edited by Bryan R. Beaver, this book presents a remarkable number of drills across the core topics. The subjects include dribbling, passing, shooting, combination play, and small sided games. The 180 different exercises are presented in the standard fashion. Each provides the objective, organization, instructions and a diagram.
Dutch Soccer Drills Volume 4 is intended for the experienced coach, training an experienced team. Many of the drills and games are very complex. Some have a dozen steps and there would be no time to teach a recreational team the process.
There is no question that the drills and games have value. The variety of exercises alone may justify the price of the book. The most valuable portion of the book is the small sided games. There are over 100 games that cover equal sides from 1v1 to 10v10. There are also a variety of unequal sides ranging from 4v2 to 10v9.
Unfortunately, the book contains nothing but drills. No explanations, no teaching points, no progression, no situational awareness, not even a legend for the diagrams. If you are unfamiliar with the notation, it can take a few minutes to understand the diagram. The drills range from simple to very complex. The most difficult may take a few practices to get right.
One of my favorite games is a 5v5 small sided game. The 4 field players work in a narrow channel in the middle of the pitch forcing distant shots. By limiting the number or touches before a shot, it keeps the pace up and involves the keepers. This is definitely a book I will use in my team training and for small groups.





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