How to give players freedom within a tactical framework

Game | Style | Mark Sampson | 28.01.21

Coaches should devise tactical plans that help ‘elevate’ individual talent rather than creating a ‘box they’re stuck within’. Getty images/DeFodi images

Learning: 

-          Encouraging individual talent within a tactical framework

-          Providing reference points for players who are searching for ‘answers’

-          ‘Co-creating’ game plans to help empower players

Coaches should devise tactical plans that help ‘elevate’ individual talent rather than creating a ‘box they’re stuck within,’ says former England women’s head coach, Mark Sampson.

“What I'm seeing in some of the modern elite clubs at the moment is a real sense of player empowerment on the field,” says Sampson, who was England women’s head coach between 2013-2017 and, more recently, Stevenage men’s first-team coach.

“So, the team has got a really clear sets of principles - which is the biggest compliment you can pay a top coach - but within that, there's also a lot of room for the players to make decisions in the moment.”