Basic Actions

Previously, we have written about the two main perspectives in football: the action perspective and the movement perspective. The starting point in football is always the action perspective. Gradually, coaches can “zoom-in” and say something about the building blocks of football actions. These are the basic actions, movements, muscle interactions, and muscle actions. These building blocks are necessary components of football actions.

Describing motion in football has many layers

Basic Actions

A football action is a description of how a player is interacting with the football context. A player making a football action needs to communicate with his teammates, making a decision, and execute that decision. In order to execute his decision, the player will need to make one, or multiple, basic actions. Basic actions are part of the execution of a football action.

Executing basic actions are necessary to execute football actions. In order to press, you will have to sprint, or at least run. However, the basic actions are only a part of the execution. They are not the same thing as the execution.

Basic actions are part of every football action. A player that is creating a passing option might have to push off his defender, change direction, and sprint. In other words, the execution of a football action can include the execution of several basic actions.

Universal Basic Actions

In the football principles post, the universal football actions were described. All across the world, players that are attacking must protect the ball, pass without interception, create passing options, and reduce cover. These are what players are doing. Players all across the world share this same what. On the other hand, how a player executes these actions is dependent on the individual player, level of play, and the football situation. 

An under 19 player and Lionel Messi will both need to protect the ball and pass without interception during a football match. What they are doing is the same. How they execute these actions will be different. The what’ is concerned with those characteristics of football that are the same for everybody regardless of the level, age, gender, or country. We can consider these characteristics universal. They are shared by everyone that plays the game regardless of how tall they are, or how old they are. These latter characteristics are external factors and are only relevant in determining to what degree someone can do something.

Old or Young, Male or Female, Champions League or Sunday League, what players are doing is the same. How players do something is always different.

In this post, we will attempt to identify the universal basic actions. In other words, what are those basic actions that every football player across the globe must be able to do in order to play football. Which basic actions are preconditions.

By watching football, certain basic actions become obvious. We know that players need to jump, sprint, land, change direction, push their opponent, stop, kick, and throw. Even actions like backpedaling, side-shuffling, walking, and standing seem to play a role. However, this is a rather incoherent list. It is hard to make sense of these different basic actions without some sort of structure. Without a certain structure language becomes meaningless. As a result, we need a way of organizing the variety of basic actions pertinent to football.


In actions versus movements, we identified football as a game of motion. In the world of Physics, motion is created by overcoming something called inertia. In 1687, a man named Isaac Newton had quite a bit to say about inertia (and motion more generally). Most people know his very famous ‘1st Law’ of motion which has been termed the Law of Inertia. The Law of Inertia states that an object in motion tends to stay in motion, and an object at rest tends to stay at rest, unless acted upon by an unbalanced force. 

When a player makes an action to “lose his mark”, he usually needs to fake a deep run, change direction, and sprint back towards his teammate. This action perfectly illustrates Newton’s 1st Law.

Initially, the player must go from a standing action to a sprinting action. In other words, the player needs to start motion. While making a standing action, the player is effectively ‘at rest’. Therefore, the player needs to overcome this resting position. Per Newton’s Law, this is done by generating and applying a force. For the player, this force is generated by his body and applied towards the ground. As a result, motion is created.

The starting action that a player makes is referred to as acceleration. Newton’s 1st Law states that this player will continue to accelerate until acted upon by an unbalanced force. In order for the player to successfully change direction, he needs to overcome his inertia once again and slow down. This process of slowing down is what Physicists call negative acceleration and what coaches know as deceleration. In order to decelerate, the player performs a stopping action.

The two speed components of a basic action: speeding up (acceleration) and slowing down (deceleration)

In football, most actions require a change in inertia. This change is best observed by the change in speed of the actions. A player that is speeding up is accelerating and a player that is slowing down is decelerating. Therefore, we can refer to acceleration and deceleration as the speed components of basic actions. These two components give us a starting point for creating a meaningful structure for our rather incoherent list of basic actions.


Overcoming inertia requires the body to produce force. In physics language, force has an amount and a direction. In football, players also act in specific directions. Player’s can act in multiple directions, but there are two primary directions in which players act. First, players will act over the pitch. Second, players will act above the pitch.

Players will make actions parallel to the ground. Actions that are parallel to the ground are made horizontally.

Acting over the pitch involves motion made parallel to the ground, or horizontally. Active above the pitch involves motion made perpendicular to the ground, or vertically. These directions give us two additional basic action characteristics: horizontal and vertical. 

Players primarily act parallel to the pitch (Horizontally) and perpendicular to the pitch (Vertically)

Basic actions have two speed components: acceleration and deceleration. And two directional components: horizontal and vertical. These four components are the starting point for describing basic actions in football language. 

Actions have two speed components and two directional components.

When we combine the two speed components and the two directional components, we get four categories.

  • Horizontal Acceleration
  • Horizontal Deceleration
  • Vertical Acceleration
  • Vertical Deceleration

Football is a very unpredictable context. The position of the ball and the flow of play is constantly changing. This means that players will constantly need to change speeds and change directions. In fact, it is very rare for a player to be standing totally still prior to an action. Players are usually acting in a certain direction already, even if that is by walking, running, or side shuffling. And, when the context changes, they need to either change speed, change direction, or both.

Therefore, we can add two additional characteristics to include the constant changing of direction. There are horizontal changes of direction and vertical changes of direction. Together, we get the following basic action categories.

Horizontal Acceleration

The primary way that players act over the pitch is by using different variations of running. Standing, walking, running, and sprinting. As coaches; however, we aren’t very interested in improving walking. Football is a speed of action sport. This means that players at the highest levels have less time and less space to make actions. As a result, the speed of the actions becomes a performance defining characteristic. Players that can act sooner and act faster will have a better chance of playing at a higher level.

As a result, we are interested in those basic actions that are under time pressure and, thus, explosive. Primarily, players act across the pitch using two basic actions: Starting and Sprinting.

In order to initiate an action from a static position, players will need to make a starting action. This is more commonly referred to as acceleration. However, because acceleration is not specific – could easily refer to a vertical acceleration – I prefer the action word starting. During a starting action, players need to make a high change in speed by going from a minimal speed (walking or standing) to a maximal speed (sprinting) in as little time as possible.

It is actually rare for players to reach top speed on a frequent basis during a match. Because the football context is constantly changing, there are very few opportunities for players to reach their top sprinting speed. Usually, the situation changes before the players reach top speed which forces them to slow down.

Contrary to popular belief, starting actions are not made at a players maximal speed. The players intention might ‘feel’ maximal, but it is impossible to reach top speed while the player is still accelerating. It takes a few seconds and considerable distance for a player to reach top speed. Gradually, the player must transition from a starting action to a sprinting action in order to maximize his speed. Sprinting is one of the most crucial and performance defining basic actions in football.

Although maximal sprinting actions are few and far between in football, they are often performance defining actions. If a player is able to reach his top speed, then there is a good chance the football situation is critical. Nevertheless, players must be able to make starting actions and sprinting actions as a precondition for football actions.

Horizontal Deceleration

The unpredictable football context places a high demand on a players ability to change speed. At the highest level, players don’t just need to accelerate at a higher speed, but also decelerate at a higher speed. The primary action that players make to slow themselves down is stopping.

Horizontal Change of Direction

Stop & Go

Football is a multi-directional sport. Although the game is played with a clear vertical direction, play often circulates in 360 degrees. As a result, players need to change direction quite often. Changing direction is an umbrella term for a variety of different actions. For example, some changes of direction are extreme and players need to be able to make a complete 180 degree turn. Other changes of direction are less extreme. During these slight changes of direction, players need to learn to maintain as much of their speed as possible while making a slight change in their direction of action.

The most extreme change of direction is what Biomechanist Frans Bosch refers to as a “stop & go”. During this basic action, players need to come to a complete stop before quickly starting again in the opposite direction.

This change of direction action is the most synonymous with “agility” training. Most exercises dedicated to ‘changing direction’ are variations of the “stop & go”.


Sometimes players need to change direction while maintaining as much of their speed as possible. Think of a NFL running back making a cutting action to fake out an opponent. He needs to slightly change direction, but without losing any speed. If he were to lose speed, he would surely be caught from behind by the recovering players. This action is what we can call a “side-step”.

Many football players make this action while they are dribbling. A side-step is part of a football action that includes feinting and getting past an opponent.


Football is not played in straight lines. Players often need to sprint or start while bending their run. In fact, many coaches will correct a players action to get in behind by instructing him to “bend his run”. By bending their run, players can avoid being caught off-side. However, sprinting while curving or bending is not an easy skill. In future posts we will discuss the compensations that players make when sprinting in this way. I refer to this action as a swerve. An easy way to refer to sprinting on a curve.

Sideways Actions

Sometimes players need to change direction by acting sideways. For example, when defending near the top of the box, defenders will often perform a very rapid side-shuffling action in order to stay close to the attacker. In these situations, they will avoid big steps that can make it more difficult to adjust to rapid changes in direction or speed by the attacking players. Being able to act laterally, or sideways, is a precondition for many football actions.

Vertical Acceleration

Players don’t only act over the pitch, but also above the pitch. For example, in order for a midfield player to challenge for a header, he will need to make a jumping action. A goalkeeper that tries to collect a cross will also need to jump. As a result, the universal basic action for accelerating vertically is jumping.

Vertical Deceleration

What goes up, must come down. Players that perform jumping actions also need to make landing actions.

Vertical Change of Direction

It is extremely rare for players to vertically accelerate without doing so from a change in direction. For example, how many times does a player have to jump from a standing position? Usually, a player jumps by changing directions from horizontal to vertical. Players primarily do this in two ways.


First, players need to go from a running action into a jumping action. A good example of this basic action was demonstrated by Cristiano Ronaldo during his header goal for Juventus last year.


On other occasions, players will need to slow themselves down in order to be in the right position to head the ball. As a result, the players need to stop before they jump. Once again, Ronaldo provides a perfect contrast between a sprint-jump and a stop-jump.

Players don’t only need to change direction prior to a vertical acceleration, but also following a vertical deceleration. Primarily, players do this using two basic actions.

Land & Go

Because the football context is always changing, players can rarely afford to relax following an action. As a result, they must be prepared for a next action following a landing. For example, let’s say that a player jumps for a header, but the goalkeeper makes a save. There is now a new situation on the pitch that the player must react to upon landing. As a result, this player immediately needs to make a starting action upon landing. We can refer to this as a land & go. As soon as the player lands, he must make a starting action as soon as possible and with as much speed as possible.


On very rare occasions, players will need to make a second jumping action immediately after their first jumping action. For example, imagine a goalkeeper coming out to punch a cross. He punches the cross, but at an angle that causes the ball to go straight up in the air. The goalkeeper now needs to land and immediately make another jumping action, maybe with a few steps in between, before making another action to collect, or punch, the ball.

Basic Actions with the Ball

The six categories above refer to basic actions that create motion of the body. However, football also requires actions that create motion of the ball. For example, in order to make a deep pass, or shoot the ball, players need to perform the basic action kicking. However, this is not the only means of passing the ball in football. Players, especially goalkeepers, also need to use their arms to pass the ball. Field players need to throw the ball in dozens of times every match. Many people in the football world are starting to realize the importance of these throwing actions.

Goalkeepers also need to throw the ball. Usually, goalkeepers throw the ball using one-arm while field players must use two-arms. Nevertheless, players all across the world must be able to throw as a precondition for certain football actions.

Basic Actions with an Opponent

Finally, players also need to occasionally create motion of their opponent. Football is a contact sport and as long as these actions don’t cross the line, players must be able to make actions that can change the position of their opponent. For example, think of a deep punt from the goalkeeper. As the central defender and striker wait for the ball to drop, they both duel for position. Whoever can win this duel often has a higher chance of winning the header. In order to make a dueling action, players need to perform pushing and pulling actions against their opponent. These basic actions are a precondition for successful dueling actions.


Basic actions are a key part of every football action. The success of a football action is determined primarily by a players communication with his teammates, his game insight, and his football technique. In other words, his ability to deal with the football situation. However, basic actions are key components that can influence the quality of a players execution.

We know that football players need to jump, stop, sprint, accelerate, change direction, and kick the ball. However, without a structure, it is hard to organize all of the relevant football actions.

Football is a speed of action sport. At the highest level, there is limited space and time for players to make actions. As a result, the speed at which players act needs to go up. Because of this, we are interested in those basic actions that can make the difference at the highest level. This means that we are interested in the more explosive basic actions.

Football is a very unpredictable context. The football situation is always changing and football situations never repeat themselves in exactly the same way. As a result, players are constantly speeding up, slowing down, and doing so over the ground and above the ground. When combined, these four characteristics give us six basic action categories.

Players accelerate horizontally by making starting and sprinting actions. Players decelerate horizontally by making stopping actions. Players change directions horizontally by making a variety of actions including: stop & go, side-step, swerve, and sideways actions.

Players accelerate vertically by making jumping actions. They decelerate vertically by making landing actions. However, players often act vertically by changing direction first. For example, players will jump after a run up or jump after a stop. Players must also sprint after a land, called a “land & go” and players must occasionally jump after a land.

Football is not only about creating motion of yourself, but also the ball and the opponent. In order to create motion of the ball, players need to kick and throw. In order to create motion of their opponent, players must push and pull.

Together, these basic actions form a key set of building blocks that support football actions. Basic actions are a necessary precondition for football actions. However, improving these basic actions should not take on a life of its own. A player that learns to sprint faster cannot automatically play football better. For example, he might only sprint offside even faster. Nevertheless, basic actions are an integral part of football actions and an important building block to address in the football training process.

The Universal Basic Actions

Football Ability

All across the world, the same game is played. Regardless of age, sex, or ability, the characteristics of football are the same for everybody. Both teams begin a football match with the same goal: to score one more goal than the opponent. Both teams must achieve that goal in the same way: by attacking, defending, and transitioning. In other words, WHAT we play is the same for everybody. HOW we play can be totally different. For example, some teams attack using many passes, but other teams attack using very few passes. This doesn’t change the fact that they both need to attack for football to be played. WHAT we play is the same. HOW we play can be different.

The characteristics of football are the same for everybody. As a result, one would expect that the football world would share a fairly precise definition of what it takes to play football better. However, if you ask one-hundred people what it takes to get better at football, you will get one-hundred different answers. Some people think that getting better at football is all about technique. Other people think that it is about getting faster. Others think that fitness and strength play a role.

Currently, the football performance has one-hundred different definitions. These definitions are based on different interpretations. The fitness coach believes that football performance is all about aerobic and anaerobic capacity. The strength coach believes that football performance is all about getting ‘stronger’. The psychologist believes that football performance is all about ‘resilience’. Without a clear definition of the football performance, players will continue to train based on interpretations of football rather than football principles.

If you are skeptical that we can define the football performance with precision, consider the following. The purpose of football is to score one more goal than the opponent. Based on this; surely, we can already theorize that getting better at football will have something to do with improving a players contribution towards this purpose? Or, am I mistaken in the fact that football teams around the world try to sign players that will help them score one more goal than the opponent? Knowing that this is the case, then it should be possible to define the football performance precisely. We can do this by taking the game characteristics – the football principles – as our starting point.

Unfortunately, most people define the football performance based on extrinsic characteristics. Rather than taking the intrinsic characteristics of the game as a starting point, they take their culture, personality, and prior experiences as a starting point. So, instead of improving a players contribution during the build up, the club dedicates training time to improving agility. In other words, the person “in charge” determines the club methodology rather than the characteristics of football. Good luck!

Alternatively, we can form a definition of football performance using the principles of football. This leaves us with an intrinsic definition of performance, rather than a definition based on a particular persons attitude, preferences, or opinion. As a result, the quality of the club methodology will no longer hinge on the quality of an interpretation of football, which can be ‘hit or miss’, but on the coaching staff’s ability to analyze the football performance itself.

Football Performance

What is the difference between a lower level and a higher level of football? When a player moves from the Under 19’s to the 1st team, do they suddenly play with two balls? Is the offside rule eliminated? Does the team no longer defend?Is the pitch now in the shape of a circle? Are their 4 goals instead of 2? Of course not.

Regardless of the level of play, the characteristics of the game are the same. All across the world, the same game is played. As a result, the difference between a lower level and a higher level lies in how the game is played, not what is played. An under 19 player needs to pass, press, and transition. When he signs with the first team, he still needs to pass, press, and transition. The difference is not WHAT he needs to do, it’s HOW he needs to do it. Based on this, we can formulate the first football performance characteristic. At a higher level of play, players need to make the same actions as in their previous level – only better. In other words, the quality of their football actions needs to go up. They need a better action.

Better Action

At a higher level of play, there is less space and less time for players to make football actions. The playing area is significantly reduced. There are higher demands placed on the execution of football actions. In order for players to execute football actions at a higher level, the quality of the football action needs to go up.

A central defender that moves from the Under 19’s to the 1st team needs to improve the quality of his football actions. But, what does it mean to improve the quality of an action? How do we do that?

Improving the quality of an action (the x) from 100% (under 19’s) to 101% (1st Team)

To answer this question, we need to revisit what a football action is? A football action has three components: communication, decision making, executing decisions. We have referred to this as the CDE cycle. At a higher level of play, the quality of this CDE cycle needs to go up.

So, when the central defender moves from the Under 19’s to the 1st team, he needs to perform his CDE cycle at a higher level. In other words, he needs to communicate with his teammates and perceive (game insight) his surroundings better. He needs to make better decisions. And, he needs to execute his decisions with a better technique.

Better Communication

Based on the definition of a football action, we can see that the quality of a football action starts at team level.

Consider our young central defender mentioned earlier. During his first session with the 1st team, he begins dribbling up the pitch. He see’s the striker create a passing option by acting towards him. The central defender thinks that the striker wants the ball to his feet. As a result, he passes the ball deep to the feet of his striker. Just prior to the pass; however, the striker makes an action in behind as he wasn’t asking for the ball to feet, but luring his defender out of position in order to ask for the ball deep.

Interestingly, the quality of his passing action from a decision making (D) and execution (E) standpoint were top quality. There was nothing wrong with his decision to pass to the striker. And, the pass itself was perfectly weighted -with good speed, over the ground (no bounces) – beautiful.

The reason the ball was intercepted was due to a miscommunication between the central defender and the striker. As a result, improving the quality of this players football action starts by improving his communication with his teammates. Better communication contributes towards better passing.

Better communication between players will result in a better action

The quality of a football action begins at team level. As a result, the starting point for analyzing a football acton must begin at team level. The first question we should ask during analysis is, “was there a miscommunication between players?

If the answer is yes, then better communication will result in a better football action. If the answer is no, then we can say something about an individual players decision making and executing.

Decision Making & Execution

For a football action to improve, not only must the quality of communication go up, but also the quality of decision making and execution. Let’s revisit our central defender. Later on in the training session, the defender makes a passing action to his strikers feet. This time, the striker actually did ask for the ball to feet. However, the pass is still intercepted. Clearly, the quality of the passing action needs to go up. But, what went wrong?

There isn’t a miscommunication ‘in the way’ this time. The central defender and the striker are on the same page. So, was it a decision making problem? Or, an execution problem?

To answer this question, we need to introduce a coaching/analysis tool called ‘PMDS’. PMDS is an acronym representing the four space-time characteristics in football. Every football action takes place from a certain position, at a certain moment, in a certain direction, and at a certain speed. These four space-time characteristics have a decision making component and an execution component. 


Every football action starts from a certain position. The player will be in a certain position on the pitch. The player will also have a certain body position, or orientation. When analyzing an individual football action, the first question we ask is if the action began from the best position. For example, did our central defender begin his passing action from too far away? Perhaps, he should have dribbled closer to the opponents defensive block? This would decrease the length of the pass and make the pass easier. By improving his starting position by having him act closer next time, the quality of the action will go up.

However, we still don’t know if the problem is due to a lack of game insight or poor football technique. Therefore, an additional question needs to be asked. To assess the players game insight, we can check his awareness of the fact that he was passing from 30 meters away. Perhaps the player doesn’t know that this is a problem. In this case, it is the players understanding that is the “weak link”. As a result, we should focus on the game insight and decision making of the player.

Conversely, if the player knows that he is passing from too far away, then we have an execution problem. Maybe he knows he should pass from closer, but doesn’t trust his dribbling technique. Perhaps we need to improve the players ability to dribble the ball with more control, so that he can pass from closer to the opponents block. In this case, the “weak link” is the players ability to execute on his game insight.


Every football action will also occur at a certain moment. At a certain moment, the player will decide to act. The player will also execute this action at a certain moment. Ideally, these occur at the same time. But, anyone that still plays football at an older age knows that the body doesn’t always listen to the brain. You might recognize the moment to act, but the moment your muscles and body parts respond to that recognition doesn’t always occur as quickly it once did.

In other words, the moment of decision is not always the moment of execution. As a result, if a player acts “too late” it is not necessarily because of their decision making. Some players recognize the right moment to act, but their body lets them down. For example, the signal from their spinal cord to the muscle could be slow. Or, maybe the player has mostly slow motor units. I am sure that if Pep Guardiola hopped into training at Manchester City, he would have no problem making decisions at the correct moment. However, the time between making his decision and executing his decision will be much slower than Kevin De Bruyne, or Sergio Aguero.

In practice, this means that coaches need to consult with the player first in order to determine if the player has a decision making problem or an execution problem. Are they deciding too late? Or, are they executing too late? In the case of the former, players need to develop their game insight in regards to the correct moment. “Should I deliver the cross early, or is it better to wait for the defenders to drop closer to their goal?“Should I press the central defender as soon as the goalkeeper passes him the ball, or should I wait for him to turn his body and commit to one side of the pitch?” By improving a players understanding of the right moments, he will make better decisions. As a result, there is an increased chance that the quality of his action goes up.

Ideally, the moment a player decides to act corresponds with the moment of execution. However, as was just explained, this isn’t always the case. Since I stopped playing professionally, the moment between my decision to act and my actual action is getting larger and larger. I can still recognize when I should get open for my teammates, but this recognition takes a bit longer to act upon. Due to this fact, coaches should always take the time to find out why a player acted too late. Are they unaware of when they should act? Or, can they not execute their action soon enough? If the latter, then we have an execution problem.


Every football action will have a direction. The moment that I execute a pass, it has a certain direction. For example, it will either travel towards the left foot of my teammate or towards the right foot of my teammate. Once again, coaches need to play detective in determining if there is a decision making problem or an execution problem. Is the player unaware of which direction he should pass towards, or is he unable to pass accurately?

Once again, ideally, decision making and execution should correspond. However, this is not always the case. I can’t tell you how many times during my career that I made the decision to pass TO a teammate, only to execute that pass TO an opponent. My decision and my execution were different.


Finally, every football action will have a certain speed. When I press the opponent towards his left foot, I will do so at a certain speed. In football, maximizing this speed is not always ideal. For example, pressing with the highest speed possible makes it very easy for the defender to dribble past me. Passing with the highest speed possible makes it more difficult for my teammate to control the ball.

Speed of decision making and speed of execution are also different. Today, my game insight is just as good, if not better, than my playing days. However, my ability to execute on that game insight has changed. When I hop in to training with my players, I often know which speed of action is required. The problem is that I cannot execute my actions with the required speed. In other words, I can make the decision to get in behind as fast as possible, but I can’t actually get in behind as fast as possible. My execution is the problem. My decision making is perfectly fine.

Once we diagnose the space-time component, we can diagnose the football action component.

Every football action has a position, moment, direction, and speed. A player that lacks game understanding will have many decision making problems. The coaching of this players game insight should be emphasized so that he can better interpret football situations. A player that cannot act on his game understanding has an execution problem. The coaching of this players football technique should be emphasized.

Football Ability

The quality of a football action is determined by the entire CDE cycle. Top players perform this CDE cycle better than other players. Top players have strong communication with their teammates, good game insight that contributes to good decisions, and an ability to execute on those decisions.

All across the world, players need to perform the CDE cycle. The quality of their CDE cycle determines their playing level. The difference between a Real Madrid player and a U19 player is how well they can perform these cycles. However, what these players are doing is the same. They both perform the CDE cycle.

The level at which a player can perform the CDE cycle is his football ability. The Real Madrid player has a higher football ability than the U19 player.

Every player performs the CDE cycle at their relative 100%. Obviously, the 100% of Lionel Messi is better than the 100% of a U19 player. However, Lionel Messi and the U19 player both perform CDE to the best of their ability – their relative 100%.

Football training is primarily about improving this football ability. Improving a players football ability is synonymous with helping them to make better actions.


What does it mean to play football better? Many people have interpretations and opinions with which they use to answer this question, but the answer should be based on the characteristics of football itself.

All across the world, the same game is played. Teams, and the players within them, must attack, defend, and transition. They must build up, score, disturb the build up, prevent scoring, act before & after an interception. Players contribute to these team tasks by making football actions.

The quality of a players football actions is determined by the quality of their CDE cycle. We can refer to this as their football ability. Football ability is the level at which a player can communicate, decide, and execute inside the football context. The question: what does it take to play football better? can now be answered.

Playing football at a higher level means raising a players football ability. As a result, the football training process should primarily be concerned with improving the football ability of their players. This requires paying attention to the level of (mis)communication between players, and the particular position, moment, direction, and speed of the individual football actions. After identifying the “weak link” in the football action, training time and coaching emphasis can be more precisely allocated towards developing the C, D, or E in the CDE cycle. This is what it means to learn to play football better. An under 19 player only becomes a 1st team player by improving his ability to play football – his Football Ability.

What Is A Football Action?

Previously, we have written about the two main perspectives in football: the action perspective and the movement perspective. The starting point in football is always the action perspective. Football players are primarily dealing with the football situation. When you sit down to read the newspaper; are you primarily sitting? Or, are you primarily reading the paper?

Football players are primarily making actions inside of the football context. They are pressing, dribbling, and getting open. Of course, just like when you are reading the paper, you are also sitting, football players make other actions and movements too. These other actions and movements are preconditions for football actions. They are not sufficient for playing football really well, but they are necessary.

Thus, football actions are taken as the starting point. Gradually, coaches can “zoom-in” and say something about the preconditions. These are the basic actions, movements, muscle interactions, and muscle actions.

Describing motion in football has many layers

But, what are football actions? We have countless examples: pressing, shooting, heading, controlling, dribbling, etc. But, what are the ingredients of a football action? What factors influence why somebody decides to press instead of cover? Why do they press in the way that they do, and not some other way?

Football Actions

Football actions are actions inside of the football context. They are dependent on the football context. A player cannot press the opponent in a parking lot, or create a passing option while shopping. The relationship between the football context and football actions is integral. 

In football, players are primarily dealing with the football situation. They are protecting the ball, passing, getting open, preventing the opponent from covering, tackling the ball, intercepting passes, marking an opponent, covering their teammates, and transitioning. These are all actions that create motion. A team cannot score one more goal than the opponent without creating motion of the ball, themselves, and even the opponent. However, these aren’t the ONLY actions made in football.

Players also make a variety of supporting actions. These include the preconditions mentioned earlier – basic actions, movements, etc. These are actions which support the motion of football actions. But, players also make non-motion actions in football. These actions also contribute to the execution of football actions. For example, players will communicate, think, perceive, interpret, anticipate, and gesture. 

Some of these supporting actions are particularly important for the execution of football actions. Communicating, perceiving, and anticipating are supporting actions that players make while playing football. Scoring one more goal than the opponent is not possible without motion-actions. But, motion-actions in football never occur exclusively. They are accompanied by certain supporting-actions.

In order to be a successful NASCAR driver, you need to be elite in creating motion of your vehicle. NASCAR drivers are primarily concerned with driving their car and passing as many opponents as possible. This feat is impossible without motion. However, in order to execute these motion-actions well enough to win the race, the driver must also speak to his pit crew, listen to their instructions, interpret those instructions, and perceive gaps in traffic. In other words, driving the car and passing as many opponents as possible requires certain supporting actions.  

Being a NASCAR driver is apparently about more than driving a car

Similarly, footballers cannot execute football actions without these non-motion supporting actions. Just like our NASCAR driver, these non-motion actions have a direct influence on the quality of the football action. A pit crew that tells their driver to make a pass at the wrong moment will directly influence the execution of that passing action. The resulting crash would not be the result of a bad motion-action from the driver, but a bad supporting action by the crew. This particular supporting action would be an example of a miscommunication.

In football, there are two sets of non-motion actions that are particularly important for football. We can identify these as game insight and communication. 

Game Insight

Game insight is an umbrella term for a series of actions. When a football player makes a passing action, he is executing his action. However, his game insight actions contribute directly to the quality of that passing action. For example, how does the player decide which action to make, at which moment, in which direction, and at which speed? How does the player interpret the football situation? Roughly speaking, these decisions are the product of game insight.

A former teammate of mine was often described as a ‘master over the ball.’ He could manipulate the ball in a variety of ways that no one else on my team could. He could even juggle a tennis ball 1000 times with both feet. While this player would often thrive in unopposed warm up situations, his impact on our matches was less inspiring. His playing career never materialized into much in spite of the hype around his ball manipulation ability. 

Juggling the ball while playing the piano is impressive, but does it mean you are also good at football?

The reason why my former teammate never accomplished much as a player is because a football player needs to know more than just how to pass, dribble, shoot, and get open. They also need game insight. Is it better to pass the ball forward or to the side? In which situations should a dribble be made instead of a pass? When should I show for the ball or stay in my position? In other words, players need to be able to perceive and interpret the football context, so that the pass is executed from the right position, at the right moment, to the correct teammate, and with the right speed.

Throughout a football match, players will have to make actions both with and without the ball. In order to choose the right actions, at the right moment, players also need supporting actions like perceiving, recognizing, interpreting, judging, etc. These necessary perception actions, interpretation actions, etc. are what we call game insight. Game insight is a crucial ingredient for successful football actions. 

Apparently the opponents and my teammates are not beside the point

The execution of passing cannot be understood without the game insight actions which support it. Otherwise, there would be no difference between passing and passing to the opponent. Or, between running and running offside.

In technique, we explained that the execution of an action cannot be understood independently from the situation. A player that develops his execution ability (technique) independently from his reading of the football situation will develop a technique that is meaningless when applied in the football context. Consider this example. Imagine I had to prepare you for the Olympic Swimming 100 meter Freestyle. Let’ say that during our 6 week preparation, I focused on your ability to execute swimming movements. We practiced over and over again how to flex and extend your arms and hips. However, we didn’t go into the water. Instead, we practiced your “technique” independently from the situation.

Practicing “Technique”

What do you think? Would you be ready for the 100 meter freestyle? My guess is that upon entering the water, you would suddenly realize that swimming isn’t about arm movements, but about dealing with the water. It’s about dealing with the situation. Football is no different. Technique in football is about executing an action based on a very specific situation. A “good” pass is not ‘biomechanically’ perfect, but solves the football situation adequately. In this way, game insight and technique are connected. It is not game insight or technique, but game insight and technique.

Of course, this works the other way too. A player that develops his reading of the football situation independently from his execution ability will not be very good either. In fact, many tactical analysts fit this description. Most of them are former players that developed a strong understanding of football independently from their ability to act on that understanding. Once again, a “good” pass is not determined by how well you understood the situation, but whether or not you can do something about it. Did your pass reach your teammate?

Game insight and technique are two sides of the same coin. They should be viewed dependently on one another. In practice, of course, we might develop training sessions that emphasize one aspect over the other. And sometimes, the situation might require training technique or game insight independently from one another. For example, video review sessions can improve game insight in the absence of technique. Conversely, certain passing exercises without opponents can improve technique in the absence of game insight. No one would disagree that these methods can play a role in football development. What matters is that we understand that eventually these two need to be developed together. On match day, it is game insight-technique. Together, they form two crucial components of a football action. However, these two components are still insufficient to fully explain a football action.


Game insight-technique are the primary components that make up an individual football action. However, football is a team sport. Only as a team can we score one more goal than the opponent. This is accomplished by the entire team attacking, defending, and transitioning. A team of eleven individuals that have strong game insight-technique actions can still be a rather poor team.

The Galactico’s Era of Real Madrid in the early 2000’s is a perfect demonstration of this point. The “Galactico’s” approach was to recruit and sign all of the best players in the world in each playing position. The assumption made by President Florentino Perez was that the ‘best parts also make the best whole.’ Ultimately, this approach was a failure. The team failed to secure a trophy during the mid 2000’s while their rivals, FC Barcelona, won consecutive La Liga titles and the UEFA Champions League in 2006 using an approach more dedicated to team development 

A more specific example can also be provided. Let’s say that a center back is carrying the ball forward. The striker he is playing with recognizes that the opponent’s center back is giving up the space in behind. As a result, the striker makes a run in behind expecting the ball to be played into his path. To his dismay, the ball doesn’t arrive. Instead, the center back made a pass to the other center back. 

In this example, both players made actions based on their individual game insight. The striker made a run in behind and the center back switched the play. They perceived two different situations. As a result, these two players didn’t recognize the same situation. When players fail to recognize, or perceive, the same situation, we can say that they are on two different pages. Their game insights are not “in-sync”. In football, this is what we call a miscommunication. 

If only my Argentina teammates understood me like my FC Barcelona teammates

In the football language post, language was identified as a barrier in football. As a result, many miscommunications occur across different departments. Clearly then, it is possible for a group of people to have a lot of knowledge and a lot of experience as individuals, but still perform poorly as a team. Football players are no exception. It is possible for a team to have eleven players with good game insight and technique, but still struggle to attack, defend, and transition effectively. In football, it is the coaching staff’s job to get their players on the same page. The main tool that coach’s use to get their players on the same page is football tactics. Football tactics are used to develop the communication between players. As a result, we can say that an additional supporting action in football is communication. 

Communication is an umbrella term for a series of supporting actions. Examples of these communication actions are speaking, instructing, directing, gesturing, and agreeing. Communication actions are verbal and non-verbal actions that transfer information from a player to a teammate, or from a coach to a player. 

Like game insight and execution, communication cannot be understood independently from the football situation. The purpose of communication is to support game insight and execution in dealing with the football situation. Communication actions should never become an objective in and of itself. Their purpose is to help solve the football situation better. Sometimes, coaches will randomly say to their players, “we need to talk more!” “too quiet!” or “I don’t hear you guys out there! Talk!”  These are examples of making communication an objective in and of itself. Often, a coaching comment like this will create a situation where players begin shouting random things at one another in order to please the coach, rather than using communication as a tool.

Communication always occurs between more than one person. Therefore, communication actions differ from game insight actions. Game insight actions are supporting actions for an individual player. Communication actions are supporting actions between players. In a way, communication actions are game insight actions that occur at team level. Communication actions are the “link” between two players game insight. They help players in recognizing what to do in the same football situation. 

There are a few different ways that communication actions can support the execution of a football action. The coaching staff can introduce a tactical principle, like “look for the deepest pass possible.” By introducing a “principle”, or a general rule, the players will begin to interpret the game in similar ways. This can increase the chances that they act on the same page. Besides the coaching staff, players can also make communication actions to support the execution of a football action. For example, the striker can make a non-verbal gesture, like pointing, or a verbal speech action like shouting “Look deep!” or “In-behind!”. 

Together, communication-game insight-technique are the three ingredients of a football action.

A Football Action: The CDE Cycle

A football action consists of three components. Every football action will include a communication component, a game insight component, and an execution component. First, players will communicate with their teammates. Based on this communication, players use their game insight to interpret the football situation. Based on this interpretation, the players will make a decision. Finally, after they make a decision, players need to execute that decision. They will execute their decision with a certain technique.

A football action is the cycle of communication, decision making, and executing decisions. Dutch coach educator, Raymond Verheijen, has referred to this as the CDE cycle. Players are constantly repeating this CDE cycle in order to impact the game. The level at which players can execute this CDE cycle determines their football ability.

A football action

Tools for Coaching the CDE Cycle

Earlier, I mentioned that football tactics are a tool used by coaches to develop the communication between players. One example of the utility of this coaching tool is the team organization or formation. By putting your team into a particular team organization (4-3-3, 4-2-3-1, etc.) the players have a higher chance of being on the same page. Tactics are about much more than just the team organization, but the team organization is a useful tool for coaches when influencing the communication between players – the C in the CDE cycle.

Game insight is a tool that coaches can use to develop the decision making by an individual player. By improving the perception actions, interpretation actions, and understanding actions of a player, there is a chance that they make better decisions. If a striker has no idea that positioning himself behind the backline of the opponent creates more space for his teammates, then it is unlikely he will execute this action. By coaching the game insight of a player, coaches can develop the D in the CDE cycle.

Football technique is a tool that coaches can use to develop executing decisions. By raising the ability to execute decisions with and without the ball, player’s have a higher chance of making successful actions. This addresses the E in the CDE cycle.

It is interesting to consider that better football technique can also develop better game insight. For example, a central defender that can’t pass the ball over a large distance (technique) is also unable to perceive a switch of play (game insight). As a result, there is a lower chance that he decides to execute this action. His execution ability literally prevents him from seeing this action.

The preconditions also play a role in improving a players execution. For example, a player that has a slow sprinting speed (technique) will also fail to recognize (game insight) opportunities to press and get in behind the opponent. You cannot “see” something that you cannot “do”. For example, imagine that you get into a bar-fight with a WWF wrestler. For you, the barstools are something to sit on. For him, they are something to hit you with.

In other words, improving the preconditions (basic actions, movements, etc.) can also improve a players execution ability. As a result, the player will have a higher chance of developing a better game insight.

Preferably, coaches use football technique exercises to develop a player’s ability to execute decisions inside of a football situation. For example, passing exercises like 3 v 1, or 4v2, can be useful to improve a players passing technique.

Together, coaches can develop a players CDE cycle (football ability) with a variety of coaching tools: tactics, game insight, football technique, and preconditioning are the foundation of football training methodology.


Football actions are the primary way that players deal with the football situation. Examples are passing, pressing, creating space, and transitioning. However, a football action is more than what we see. We see passing, but prior to the passing action a number of things had to occur. The player communicates with his teammates and makes a variety of game insight actions. He perceives, scans, and interprets. Based on the communication and his interpretation, the players makes a decision. He answers the question: which action am I going to make? Finally, the player executes his decision. He uses a particular technique and makes use of his preconditions in order to bring his decision to life. Together, this is referred to as the CDE cycle. The level at which a player can execute this CDE cycle determines his football ability.

As coaches, what can we do about this CDE cycle? We can use a variety of coaching tools to improve the quality of the CDE cycle. These include football tactics, game insight coaching, technique coaching, and preconditioning.