Soccer iQ Presents... POSSESSION: Teaching Your Team to Keep the Darn Ball Paperback – April 10, 2015

Excellent book! Dan Blank does an awesome job of simply and logically breaking down the fundamental approach to a possession-based style of play. It's all fine to WANT to play this way...but how does a coach and a team actually go about EXECUTING it? That's what this book is about. Dan details the philosophy of possession-based play and stresses the importance of coach communication to players with respect to that philosophy - getting the "buy in" and commitment from your players. In a logical sequence Dan breaks down important principles like speed of play, support presence, passing angles, etc. and details how they can be taught to your players. He stresses the little things that make a big difference: playing with fewer touches, knowing "what's next", facing the right way and then playing the way you face, passing to the correct foot, receiving across the standing leg, etc. Dan provides an excellent group of "core" training exercises that expose players to technical and tactical repetition of possession principles. Not only does he provide great training exercises but more importantly provides coaching point emphasis for each exercise. What does a coach expect to see in these exercises and what are the coaching points to hone in on? I have coached a possession style for a number of years and I picked up many pearls from Dan's book, especially his use of "simple" terminology to communicate concepts to players. For example, I have always coached players to "know what you want to do with the ball before you receive it". That's a mouthful! Dan simplifies this by asking players the simple question, "What's next?" Good stuff! I really appreciated this book as it has helped me think more logically about how to coach possession soccer and it has helped me communicate important points to my players more effectively.

This book will help any soccer player from junior high through college to understand why they do things on the field.

Very good introduction to the "why and how" of possession, with nice, simple tips for coaches in what to communicate to players. Recommended.

I've read about a dozen drill books and books on coaching already. I'm in my second year of coaching girls HS soccer and just sort of fell into it. I've read bits and pieces elsewhere that I enjoyed, but this series of books has been the best I've read. So far I've been through this one, Shutout Pizza, and I have started his one about coaching girls soccer. So this review is more or less for the whole series. I have found the material to be easy to digest the first time through, but something I have also gone back to several times over already to review different ideas or drills. This series has been ideal for the level I have been coaching.This specific book is on how to maintain a possession style, passing offense. This isn't exactly the style that I use, but I've been able to take what I need to fit within my team philosophy. The book explains the author's offensive philosophy, explains the reasons behind his philosophies in a clear, concise manner. Then he does have drills, pictures and diagrams to demonstrate his points. All this in under 200 pages, so it never gets too bogged down.

I've never been one to pick up a book about coaching soccer. Most of the ones I've ever taken a glance at are, "This is what you do. This is how you do it.". Dan takes it to another level; adding in personal stories and experiences, explaining how and why certain techniques work, and most of all, he doesn't bore you out by just throwing drills at you. I came to realize by the end of the book that his style of writing is similar to his style of coaching/training, progressive. He starts simple, giving you some background, giving you tools for the job, and easing you into some of the most basic yet beneficial drills. I'm truly impressed with this book. It didn't just teach and entertain me, it spoke to me.

A very well written easy to read book. It's as if Dan Blank is giving a clinic and you have a front row seat. His instruction and exercises are spot on. Also I read 2 of Mr. Blanks other books Soccer IQ Vol 1 and 2. As a coach of a girls high school team I'm always searching for a better way to teach my team the game Coach Blank provides that with all 3 of these books . I find myself rereading all 3 books and using them as a reference and a teaching tool. I liked the Soccer IQ vol 1 so much that it is required reading this summer for my team and shortly to be followed by volume 2 and possession . Thanks Dan Blank keep writing and my team and I will keep reading!!

Dan Blank’s books are the best you can buy. After coaching for 10 years I picked up alot from this book? I have all his books and continually read them to keep good coaching ideas and good advice. Shut Out Pizza will teach you how much you DON’T know about defending. I coach 12-15 year old girls and will lend to the ones that really want to excell and they love them. They are not practice session books but great ideas on what to plan to make the best session to suit your needs. Thanks for these books Dan.

This is the 4th great title I highly recommend by Dan Blank. (IQ volumes 1&2, and Shutout Pizza are the others) If you are a coach or if you are getting this for a skilled tween/teen soccer player, this book will really help them reach another level (or more than another level) of play. The drills are well laid out and explained and the reasoning for every activity tells you why this is what you want to do. Many of the things he states in his books, I sort of knew, but his books not only explain it in a way that everybody can understand, they cover the finer points of what is needed too.