Start a pressing drill with one reward for winning the ball back high. Add a second rule only when video shows a problem. Look for late cover, open gaps in the middle, or slow runs back. Moving together does not prove the press is safe.

Thirty-two U-20 players moved forward and back together more often when given one pressing rule. Two rules or free play did not help as much, according to Abreu and colleagues. A full-match study by Low and colleagues found that pressing high made the gaps between the lines bigger. It also let more passes cut through. ^{1 2}

Players need to spot the right moment to press and step up together. They must cover behind the first challenger and recover if the other team gets past them. One reward for winning the ball high can get the press started. Watch video of the other three actions to decide if the next round needs another rule.

What one rule changed

Abreu studied 32 top-level male U-20 players. They played small-sided games on a 42-by-29-metre pitch. Each game had four outfield players and a goalkeeper on each side. The games used offside rules. GPS units tracked player movement ten times per second.

The “explicit” group got two bonus points for winning the ball back in the attacking half. The “implicit” group got two bonus points for shooting from the attacking half. The “combined” group used both rewards. The “free play” group had no extra reward.

The “win ball high” rule also made the team spread out more. They covered more length and width than in free play. Players moved farther from their usual spots than in all three other groups. That means they used more of the pitch.

Both single-rule groups moved forward and back together more than the combined and free-play groups. When one player stepped up or dropped back, teammates were more likely to move the same way. The data does not show that one single rule worked clearly better than the other for this.

The combined group had two rewards to think about at once. This did not help them move together better than one rule alone. But the study cannot tell us if having two things to focus on caused that result. The number of rules and the scoring both changed at the same time.

Each session had three four-minute games of the same type, with four minutes of rest. Coaches could not talk to the players during the games. So the gaps came from what players were told before they played. Coaching during the game was not a factor.

The GPS units tracked how the team spread out and how players moved together. They did not track how often teams won the ball back high. They also did not track whether cover players stayed close or what happened after the other team got past the press. We do not know from this data if the middle of the pitch or the space behind the press stayed safe.

Pressing high can open gaps in the team

Low studied 69 youth players in 72 full-match trials. Teams took turns attacking and defending. Teams that pressed high got closer to the other team. But their own shape got longer. The gaps between defenders, midfielders, and forwards grew.

The other team had less time on the ball against the high press. That suggests the pressure rushed their attacks. But their midfielders and forwards also had more room. They made more passes that cut through the defence. So defenders could close down the ball. But they ended up far from the teammates who should have been covering behind them.

FIFA’s guide to the high press spells out the actions that fix this trade-off. The first presser needs support close by. The lines need the right gaps. The back line must push up. The goalkeeper needs to start high enough to deal with long passes over the top. ³

Even if the team jumps up together, the next pass target can still be free. If the forwards and midfield push up but the defenders hold back, the team has a problem. They moved together in one way but opened the exact pass that beats them. Pressing teams opened gaps between their own lines. So coaches should track the gap between the lines in every round. Count high ball wins too.

What to check before adding a rule

Record every press from the moment it starts. Keep tracking until the pressing team wins the ball, drops back into shape, or gives up a pass that breaks a line. Note the first presser’s trigger and whether nearby players stepped up. Also note the closest cover player, the defenders far from the ball, and what happened after pressure was beaten.

If the same mistake happens twice in one round, change the rule for the next round. This is a coaching tool, not a proven ideal number. One mistake may come from a bad touch, a slip, or a strange pass. It does not always mean a team rule is missing.

Pause the video at two moments. First, when the first presser steps up. Check if nearby players have stepped and the nearest defender has cover. Make sure the far side has tucked in before the other team plays the ball.

Second, right after the other team plays through or around the first press. Check if the closest players keep chasing and if midfielders protect the middle. Check if the back line drops or squeezes in time to stay tight.

FIFA’s compact-defending drill breaks these actions apart. Players step with cover when a trigger appears. They shift across when the ball moves sideways. They close inside space from the far side. They drop together when the other team breaks the pressing lines. ⁴

Winning the ball high is just one thing to count. Also count passes that break a line. Count times someone gets the ball behind the first presser in the middle. Count tackles without cover. Count times the team gets back into shape before the other team acts again.

A step-by-step practice

Round one starts with the reward Abreu used. Give the pressing team points for winning the ball in the attacking half. Explain the scoring before play starts. Do not give extra coaching during the round.

Round two keeps the same reward. Add one new cue only if the first round shows the same mistake at least twice. Late cover means add a “step up to support” cue. Open gaps in the middle means add a “tuck inside from the far side” cue. Chasing after a line break means add a “drop together” cue.

Round three tests if the mistake happens less. If passes through the middle drop while high ball wins and forward movement stay the same, keep the added rule. If a second rule makes the press weaker or opens another gap, go back to one reward. Change the drill setup instead of adding more rules.

Abreu did not test this three-round plan. It uses the single-rule finding, Low’s gap findings, and FIFA’s press actions. It gives coaches a clear way to decide what to add. But it is not a proven long-term learning plan.

A wider pitch, fewer pressing players, or an opponent told to spread out can test whether the team has learned the press actions. More rules are not needed when the other team can create the right problem through their spots and passes.

We do not know if this transfers to matches

A 2026 review looked at studies on coaching rules in football. It searched 1,149 records and kept six studies with 187 players. Five used youth players. Only one used adult semi-pros. The tasks ranged from small games to full-sized matches. ⁵

The six studies differed in when coaches spoke and how they measured what players did. Three used GPS tracking data. Three used people watching and noting actions by hand. Two of those relied on coaches judging the play. This proof supports trying one rule before a round. But it cannot tell us the best number of rules or prove that players keep the lesson over time.

Olthof and colleagues also warn that what works in training may not carry over to real matches. Across five real youth matches and 15 training games, players ran more, sprinted more, and made more passing errors in matches. Team width, direction, and some movement patterns also changed. ⁶

A five-week test in Argentina offers early signs that adding layers later may help. Quick pressure after losing the ball rose from 57.87 percent to 78.12 percent across U-21 and U-23 players combined. But coaches mixed tactical, focus, emotional, and scoring demands together. There was no group that trained normally to compare against. ⁷

The Argentine data do not show which rule improved quick pressure. They do show that coaches can add demands over several weeks. Players must first understand the core action. And match play must be recorded, not guessed from how tidy training looks.

Pause the next pressing clip when the first defender jumps. If the cover midfielder steps, the far side tucks in, and the back line protects the next pass, keep one rule. Add another rule only when one of those actions keeps failing.