Michael Skubala - Futsal: Skills, Strategies and Session Plans: Technical Drills for Competitive Training

First published in 2022 by

The Crowood Press Ltd

Ramsbury, Marlborough

Wiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2022

Michael Skubala & Seth Burkett 2022

All rights reserved. This e-book is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the authors and publishers rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 0 7198 4128 6

Cover design by Sergey Tsvetkov

C ontributors

With thanks to key contributors: Marc Carmona; Graeme Dell; Andrew Reading; Jose Pazos Pulpis; Miguel Rodrigo; Mico Martic; Paul McGuinness; Peter Sturgess; Tiago Polido

Illustrations: Juan Tapia Owens

D edication

For the rock in my life, Samantha, my beautiful girls Gracie Rose, Amelie Betsy and Imogen Elsie, and the rest of my loving family: thank you for all your love and support particularly over the last few years. Michael Skubala

For all those coaches who worked so hard to make me better at what I do. Seth Burkett

FOREWORD

F utsal demands much from coaches. Preparation, method, rigour, discipline, organisation and creativity are essential requirements. Then theres the knowledge that comes from practice, studies, investigations and publications. Someone who has always possessed the profile to deal with these demands is Michael Skubala.

I met Michael many years ago at the University World Cup. This was a fundamental competition for the growth and affirmation of many young players, an excellent launch pad for many of them, as well as the coaches who were present. This connection to universities informs Michaels vision of the way forward and the steps needed to be taken towards the highest levels.

In addition to his remarkable knowledge of the game and his leadership on the field, Michael stands out for his human quality and his incessant search for knowledge. His leadership skills and competitive spirit are notorious and, in my view, he meets all the conditions to assume himself as the main face of futsal development in the English FA. He was capped dozens of times by the national team and then led the team in many occasions. This background brought him a know-how that makes a difference at the highest level.

Singing the national anthem before an international fixture.

I praise the organisation of the following pages of this book. This work contemplates and brings together moments and experiences of those who know and understand futsal from the inside. Skubalas ideas, which I know well and many of which I share are well structured in a clear way that Im sure will enlighten lovers and scholars of the sport. In this sense, I consider this book to be a must-read. Anyone who wants to understand the dynamics of the sport has here a valuable record, where the main guidelines of training methodologies are outlined in a simple and objective way. Skubala decodes, in these pages, the magic of futsal, what we are passionate about and constantly challenges us to be better and to discover new ways to innovate and surprise. The charm of the sport is here: finding new strategies to cheat the opponent and reap rewards from it.

There is no doubt that this is another very valid contribution that will help toward the growth of knowledge in futsal: a book that perfectly combines the beauty of practice with the richness of theory.

Jorge Braz, Portugal 2022
Two-time UEFA European Championship winner,
World Cup winner and voted Best coach in the
world four times in a row by Futsal Planet

PREFACE

I ve been involved in futsal since 2003, following my release from the football academy system. After a playing career where I gained over sixty caps for England and thirty caps for Great Britain Universities, I focused solely on coaching. Soon, an opportunity came to coach the England side, and then manage them. Together, we achieved Englands highest world ranking to date. I have now been involved in over 200 international games across football and futsal, which has not only been a great honour and learning experience, but also given me a unique insight into coach education and development.

More recently, Ive been working with the England youth football teams. As a futsal coach now focused in a football environment, I bring the concepts and principles that Ive learned from a futsal culture and apply them to the 11v11 game. Having the ability to look at the football game in a tactical way, as well as being able to coach the games within the game, is a powerful weapon to have when developing talent and performance tactical levels. This is where futsal coaches can bring real performance value to the football ecosystem.

I believe that with all the modern mediums and tactical analysis, coaches are rushing to 11v11 and missing crucial detail around smaller numbers. Football is obsessed with 1v1 individual technical actions that then jump straight up to 11v11. Actually, the biggest benefits to teams could come from smaller numbers, such as 4v4. This is where my twin tracking journey is unique for an English-born coach.

To give you a question as we go through this book: is it easier to create overloads in 11v11 or in futsal?

Now consider that question alongside another: how hard would it be to score in a football game that was 37v37 where the goals were smaller?

Throughout my coaching journey Ive been fortunate enough to learn from the worlds best futsal and football coaches. Finland national team manager Mico Martic, Benfica manager Jose Pazos (Pulpis), FC Barcelona coach Marc Carmona, FA National Youth Developer and former Manchester United youth coach under Sir Alex Ferguson, Paul McGuinness, and former England managers Graeme Dell and Pete Sturgess have all contributed session plans for this book and shared their knowledge along the way.

In addition to reading this book, I recommend for any coach to watch as much futsal as possible, including that of the highest level even if you only plan to use futsal for the development of football players. The FA Coaching badges are another essential resource to build your knowledge of a game.

To start, think of futsal as a totally different sport to football while realising that the two are closely aligned. Be comfortable in the knowledge that there is plenty to learn much of which will cross over to football. Futsal is not just another recreational format of football like five-a-side. It is so much more than that. Futsal for me is the best small-sided game for football development there is. And were about to find out why