1 team of 11, or 11 teams of 1?

I recently heard a coach talk about how he felt the notion of “there’s no I in team” is incorrect in the context of developmental football, and that in fact “there is 11 l’s in team”. This got me thinking, and I must admit I have to agree! As coaches working in youth football we should 100% adopt this notion of having 11 individual teams as apposed to 1 team. But what do I mean by this, and what impact does this have to how we should operate on a match day?

First and foremost, we should think about shifting our mindset away from the performance of the team as a whole and focus more on the performances of each individual independently. It is quite possible for the overall outcome of a game or team performance to mislead us with regards the individuals, i.e the team may play well and win the game, however some of those within that team may have relatively poor performances or struggle with specific aspects of their game. Conversely, the team may lose a game yet some of the players within your team may have actually made huge strides in their efforts to accomplish a new challenge they have been set.

If we therefore switch to a more individualistic approach on a match day, and redefine what success looks like for each player, we are less likely to attribute progress or development to the overall scoreline. Here are a few ideas on how to adopt a more individualistic approach with your players:

Scrap your team talk:

Let’s be honest, how much of your team talk do you think your players actually listen to, let alone remember by the time you’ve finished? It is difficult for humans to retain large amounts of information, therefore why do we fill their heads with loads before kick off, much of which probably doesn’t specifically relate to them! Try a different approach…

Have “team of 1 talks”:

Use the time before kick off to have team talks with individuals - “team of 1 talk”. This may be during the warm-up, whilst walking to the pitch or when waiting for others to arrive. These conversations should be used to tee up “what success looks like” for this specific player on this particular day. Introduce their personal objective for the game, and initiate a brief conversation around how they may try to achieve this, who could help with it and how you will both know if they have been successful.

Use personal objectives:

Set each player a specific challenge or area of focus for the game - this is their “team of 1 objective”. This should be bespoke to that player and their current needs. Make sure these goals are attainable, but not too easy. Give consideration to the wording and structure of the challenge, so it is understandable and more importantly memorable for the player in question. Use visuals - write them on a white board, print them out, stick them above their peg in the dressing room. For even greater benefit, involve the player in the process of setting them, getting their ideas and feedback around area they would like to focus on (strengths and areas for development).

Search for intention over outcome:

Probably the most important aspect (in my opinion) during the game is to look out for players TRYING to accomplish their personal objective. For example, a player is challenged with “recognising when to receive on the back foot to face forwards” and ticks off several steps to achieving this (checking shoulder, correct body shape, attempt to receive off instep of back foot) however the touch in itself is loose and runs away from the player. The outcome is a loss of possession, however all of the other steps - the recognition to do so and the attempt of performing were correct, therefore we must praise this and encourage the player to continue working at that specific aspect.

Stick to the plan:

You’ve given each of the players an individual focus, now give yourself one, or 11 more precisely. As a coach, it is our duty to look at each player in relation specifically to their objective. We must look for intention as well as successful examples, and encourage players who are reluctant to attempt such challenges. With such focuses we can channel our own attention and avoid being emotionally hijacked or becoming embroiled in the scoreline or coming “off-topic”.

Give this a go, and watch your players flourish.