Playing out from the back drill
A 6 v 4 playing out from the back drill: goalkeeper, back four and a midfielder find the free player against four pressers and pass to a target.
A good playing out from the back drill puts your goalkeeper, back four and one midfielder against four pressers in half of the field. The build up team scores by passing to a coach standing just past the halfway line. The pressers score by winning the ball and shooting at the big goal. With six players against four, there is always a free player, and the drill teaches your defenders to find them, including with a pass back to the goalkeeper.
How the playing out from the back drill works
Set up on half of a full size field with a goal and goalkeeper at one end. The back four and a central midfielder start in their build up shape: the center backs at the edges of the penalty area, the full backs wide and higher up, and the midfielder between the center backs. Four pressers start around the edge of the box, two in the middle and two out toward the full backs. A coach stands just past halfway as the target.
Every restart begins with the goalkeeper. The build up team gets a point when the ball reaches the coach. If the pressers win it, they get one chance to score, and then the goalkeeper restarts. Rotate the pressers every few minutes so they don't tire, since they do most of the running.
The four pressers can cover four of the five outfield players at most, and only if they guess right. That is the lesson. When one side is closed, the answer is usually the goalkeeper, who can move the ball to the other side faster than the press can shift. Players new to building out often see a pass back as a failure. In this drill it is often the pass that leads to the point.
Step by step
O is the build up team, attacking to the right, with C as the coach at halfway. D9, D10, D7 and D8 are the pressers.
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Step 1
The goalkeeper passes to O2. D9 presses O2, D10 steps up to O6 and D7 closes in on O1.
The goalkeeper passes to O2. D9 presses O2, D10 steps up to O6 and D7 closes in on O1.
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Step 2
With no safe pass forward, O2 plays back to the goalkeeper. D9 follows the ball.
O2 has no safe pass forward, so they play back to the goalkeeper. D9 follows the ball.
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Step 3
The goalkeeper passes to O3 on the other side. D10 leaves O6 to press O3, and D8 closes in on O4.
The goalkeeper passes to O3 on the other side. D10 has to leave O6 to press O3, and D8 closes in on O4.
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Step 4
O3 plays inside to O6, who is free now that D10 has left.
O3 plays inside to O6, who is free now that D10 has left.
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Step 5
O6 turns and passes to the coach, C, past the halfway line.
O6 turns and passes to C past the halfway line.
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Step 6
That is a point for the build up team. If the pressers win the ball, they attack the big goal, then the goalkeeper restarts.
That is a point for the build up team. The pressers had a player on everyone they could reach, and the switch through the goalkeeper still found the free player.
Start at walking pace with the pressers moving only when the ball moves, so the defenders can see who is free before they receive. Then let the pressers go at full speed. If the build up team is scoring easily, take the midfielder out and play 5 v 4. If it is struggling, let the goalkeeper roll the ball out to restart instead of passing. For how this fits into a full match, see how to play out from the back in soccer, and for the pressers' side of it, the high press.
The full play
You can take this playbook into your own account and change it for your team, for example adding a second target at halfway or moving the pressers' starting spots.
If you coach a youth or rec team, you can also put your roster on Playspedia so everyone knows who is playing each week.