For the basic diamond shape 4v4 or 5v5 with keepers, this looks slightly messy  to  a person unfamiliar with it.

I'm going to simplify this diagram.

...............................X


X.........................................................X


...............................X

This is the basic width and depth 4v4 formation the KNVB use, and the Football Aus NC.

All very well if you have 8 players exactly, or 10 if you have a keeper.

One of the national SAP coaches whose tutelage I was under, used  the phrase diamond with a dot. This is to   incoporate 5 v5 onfield players.

........................................X


X.....................................X........................X


........................................X

The only problem is the player in the middle is receiving straight balls ( from the  defender)  and square balls ( from the wide players). In order to avoid straight and square balls, the instruction ( if s/he can't decipher how to avoid receiving square and straight balls) for this  central player, is to be a bit behind or in front of  the wide players, when opening angled/diagonal passing lanes to support them.

Or with the defensive player in the team, they need to move slightly to the side on the left, or right, to receive  a diagonal ball from the defensive player in possession.

.  

the two parts of the video I use with kids is the running with the ball and recieving the ball. It is really useful how it highlights the part of the foot to use

For  this video, I have a few problems with the instruction techniques - being too one footed, but the Running With The Ball at I minute 47 secs is perfect! He calls it dribbling, but the KNVB and Aus Nat FC define it as Running With The Ball. Dribbling is more of a 1v1 skill, trying to beat opponents 1v1.

So for Running With The Ball at 1 minute 47 secs, this video is excellent and  it shows the correct part of the foot to  Run With The Ball. Some  people learn this with the toe or tip of the foot - which is incorrect.

If a player is struggling with a technique -  asa teacher, reinforced by the KNVB, but not the Aus Nat Curric, slow it down and do it slowly. Then as a player increases  proficiency, increase the speed or Running With The Ball. To go fast take big touches.

The next step is to Run With The Ball whilst keeping the head up. Again start it slowly and build the speed up. Very few Aussie pros can do this well . Young tyros Jake Hollman  and Lachan Brook do this superbly! 

Another more advanced technique, take a big touch at speed, then a small touch at slower speed.  With Ball Carrying/Running With The Ball - this changes pace. I acquired   this through  a PSV Eindhoven youth exercise.

Before 1 small touch, 1 big touch,  take a few small touches at lower speed, then a few big fast touches at higher speed.

Do all this  with a team at  any level,  rather than running laps with the ball, to 1) acquire fitness and 2) Running With The Ball proficiency. 

Another exercise is  to have players in a grid,  each player  Ball Carrying with their own ball and trying to  avoid each other. This is game realistic.

The first game is a KNVB shooting game.

The KNVB up until 2014 emphasised width and depth in any game as being  game realistic.

Hence, they implemented a diamond shape. The diamond shape of 4 v 4, or 5v5 with keepers tends to optimise passing in diagonal  passing lanes  as one has a body shape facing forwards whilst simultaneously being able to scan the field of play to see,  and receiving the ball. The players on  the left and right indicate depth. The forward and back indicates depth.

The Aus FA Nat Curric indicates something similar. Only did these early coaching courses in the old system.  They had none of this prior to the Guus, Pim, Baan, Berger tenure in Aus. They do this now.  

If one passes to a player in an advanced position straight up the pitch, if marked they can't see their  opposition  marker and receive facing forwards. Players need to develop a slight diagonal angle to receive. Kids and adults love this game! A lot of goals are scored!

Key:
G denotes  goal posts
X denotes one team going downwards on page.
O denotes the other team, going upwards on page.

...........................G...................G
.....................................X
....................................O ... X
O..X........................................................0...X
.................................O...X
...................................O
.........................G....................G

-A rule I make is no more than a 2- 3 passes before shooting.

-Big goals age appropriate - the  objective is  to score as many goals as possible.

- Swap players around in different positions, so all players have a go at being central striker.

- This is a bot of a guess, but a small grid of 20 X 20 metres for 7-8 year olds. 15 m X 15 m might be better - haven't done  this for a decade.

- Try and get kids to shoot with both feet. If they don't introduce a system where a shot  from the non-preferred foot is worth 2 goals, and 1 for their  preferred foot.

- If you have any parents have them behind the goals and on the side, rolling balls in as they go out to restart play. This increases intensity. iF no parents, get the players to pass the ball in to restart play.

- Get the keeper to roll, throw or pass it out as quickly as possible. If no keepers try and put a pole in  the middle of the  goal to simulate a goalkeeper, with cones set each side about 20 cm inside each goalpost for shooters to aim at. Or put a different  pole in to aim for 20 cm inside the goalposts, whilst the middle pole has a jumper on it to denote a keeper. 

This was available on the internet, bit the diagrams have been taken down.

for running with the ball this video was useful for kids because it highlights the part of the foot to use for dribbling
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fl248V4tIU
awkward at first

The four main skills focused on in Football Aus  since circa 2012 in the Skills Acquisition Program, are:

 First touch:
Receiving with the foot, chest, thigh - stopping the ball dead - and - taking the ball away from an opponent into space.

Striking the ball :
Passing ( inside of the foot, outside of the foot, shoelace part of the foot)
Shooting - heading, shooting with feet.
Dead balls.

Running with the Ball:
This occurs in space. One usually takes big touches here with the slight outside  of the shoelace part of the foot. There are good videos on this, which  someone  else will post here soon, I hope.

1v1
a) Attacking skills - dribbling, heading contests, muscle on muscle duels.
b) Defensive skills - tackling ( block, slide, side tackles), heading contests  (often headed high for distance), muscle on muscle, jockeying, delaying, showing.

I'm passing a lot of high quality  coaching methodology on for free, as there is too much money changing hands in Aus for high quality coach education to be disseminated widely enough. This stifles collective knowledge.

Up until about 2014, I undertook a lot of  coach education and worked with  some internationally renowned Dutch KNVB coaches, Arie Schans and Ad Derkson; Dutch Tech Dirs for Football Fed Aus, Rob Baan and Han Berger; plus some top Aus coach educators/coaches informally on the training ground as well as in coaching courses. This  includes Ange Postecoglou and Phil Moss ( passing on  Guus Hiddink training ground methodology he acquired  from Arnie at CCM). 

The  former Football Tas Tech  Dir let  me  distribute coaching methodology  via email, to about 30 coaches on this site, but I  did not  have authorisation to post it directly to the forum publicly.

What I'm going to do now is set it out useful training ground practices with simple detail. I  don't  know how to  post videos on here, but others do who are currently living overseas, and can't access Football Aus coach education.  I usually send stuff to them via FB messenger.

It is suitable from ages 7-8 onwards.