Free drill library · Soccer

At-home soccer drills for 11 to 13 year olds: center back

This is a free sample week of at-home soccer training for 11 to 13 year olds, for a center back: 3 of the 7 plans SSTracker has for this group, each 35 to 38 minutes, with every step and minute. Nothing here is written for this page alone; it is what the app gives a family.

Everything here can be done in a room, garage or yard. Drills that need a team are left out; a parent can be the partner in a pair drill.

Center backs win the ball and start the attack. At home a young defender can sharpen the habits that matter most: staying low and side-on, checking both shoulders before the ball arrives, and striking firm, accurate passes over distance. Live tackling waits for practice with a coach.

How much: 30 to 35 minutes (40 at most), 3 to 4 times a week.

What a young center back can train at home

  • Side-on footwork and jockeying, with no contact
  • Looking over the shoulder before receiving
  • Driven and lofted passes to a target
  • Receiving on the half-turn
  • Recovery runs (age 14 and up)

A free sample week of soccer for 11 to 13 year olds

Session 1

Center back session 1: Jockey corridor + Called moves 35 minutes

  1. Warm-up: jog, skips, side shuffles, squat jumps with a soft landing, plank, balance and catch · 8 min
    Knees over toes on every landing. Warm-ups like this, done twice a week, prevent injuries.
  2. Beat your score: wall passes in 30 seconds, each foot · 2 min
    Count clean passes. Write today’s number down.
  3. Jockey corridor 3 by 9 yards (3 by 8 m): switch your lead leg on a clap, no contact (6 × 20 s, 40 s rest) · 6.5 min
    Side-on, low, never cross your feet.
  4. Ball mastery: 8 moves, the last round called by a parent (step-over, V-pull, la croqueta) (8 × 40 s, 20 s rest) · 8.5 min
    Ball close, both feet. On the called round, react fast.
  5. Bodyweight strength: squats, lunges, push-ups, plank; Nordic curls 3 to 5 with a parent holding your ankles (3 × 60 s, 30 s rest) · 5 min
    Slow and controlled. Stop if anything hurts.
  6. Game: wall rally, how many in a row without a mistake · 3 min
    Calm touches, keep the rally going.
  7. Cool-down: walk and stretches, hold each about 20 seconds · 2 min
    Never stretch to pain. Note one thing you got better at.

Session 2

Center back session 2: Driven and lofted passes + Open-body receive 38 minutes

  1. Warm-up: jog, skips, side shuffles, squat jumps with a soft landing, plank, balance and catch · 8 min
    Knees over toes on every landing. Warm-ups like this, done twice a week, prevent injuries.
  2. Beat your score: wall passes in 30 seconds, each foot · 2 min
    Count clean passes. Write today’s number down.
  3. Driven and lofted passes to a wall target (4 × 60 s, 30 s rest) · 6.5 min
    Lock the ankle, strike through the middle for driven; under the ball for lofted.
  4. Wall pass, receive across your body into a side gate from 4 to 8 yards (4 to 7 m), alternate feet (5 × 60 s, 30 s rest) · 8 min
    Open your body before the ball arrives. Change the side every set.
  5. Ball mastery: 8 moves, the last round called by a parent (step-over, V-pull, la croqueta) (8 × 40 s, 20 s rest) · 8.5 min
    Ball close, both feet. On the called round, react fast.
  6. Game: wall rally, how many in a row without a mistake · 3 min
    Calm touches, keep the rally going.
  7. Cool-down: walk and stretches, hold each about 20 seconds · 2 min
    Never stretch to pain. Note one thing you got better at.

Session 3

Center back session 3: Half-turn receive + Colour call 37.5 minutes

  1. Warm-up: jog, skips, side shuffles, squat jumps with a soft landing, plank, balance and catch · 8 min
    Knees over toes on every landing. Warm-ups like this, done twice a week, prevent injuries.
  2. Beat your score: wall passes in 30 seconds, each foot · 2 min
    Count clean passes. Write today’s number down.
  3. Half-turn receive with a look over the shoulder first (4 × 60 s, 30 s rest) · 6.5 min
    Look, open up, receive on the back foot.
  4. Look, then play: a parent shows a colour as the ball leaves the wall, first touch to that side (5 × 60 s, 30 s rest) · 8 min
    Look before the ball arrives, then take your touch away from pressure.
  5. Wall pass, receive across your body into a side gate from 4 to 8 yards (4 to 7 m), alternate feet (5 × 60 s, 30 s rest) · 8 min
    Open your body before the ball arrives. Change the side every set.
  6. Game: wall rally, how many in a row without a mistake · 3 min
    Calm touches, keep the rally going.
  7. Cool-down: walk and stretches, hold each about 20 seconds · 2 min
    Never stretch to pain. Note one thing you got better at.

Want the rest of the plan?

This sample is 3 of the 7 soccer plans SSTracker has for this group. In SSTracker every step is on the screen, your child logs the work, and you see it. No club needed: the family plan is $7.50 a month per player, or $12 a month for the whole household, and the first 14 days are free.

Get the full plan free for 14 days Coach or club director? Set up your team free Print a free week for another sport or age

The drills in this week

Jockey Corridor

Ages 11 and up · 10 min

Defend a narrow corridor side-on, switching your lead leg when your parent claps. No contact.

  1. Mark a corridor 3 steps wide and 8 steps long.
  2. Your parent walks or jogs down it with the ball; you face them, side-on, low.
  3. Shuffle back to stay in front, never crossing your feet.
  4. On a clap, switch which foot leads. Do 6 rounds of 20 seconds.

Coach's cue: Side-on, low, never cross your feet.

Bring: 4 cones, partner or parent

Safety: No contact and no tackling: the parent or partner only moves, calls or rolls the ball.

Ball Mastery: Eight Moves, Called

Ages 11 and up · 10 min

Eight ball-mastery moves in rounds; in the last round your parent calls the move.

  1. Warm up with toe taps and sole rolls.
  2. Do 8 moves for 40 seconds each with 20 seconds rest: step-over, V-pull, la croqueta and five you know.
  3. Last round: your parent calls a move every few seconds.
  4. React fast and keep the ball close.

Coach's cue: Ball close, both feet. On the called round, react fast.

Bring: soccer ball, partner or parent

Hamstring and Lunge Strength

Ages 11 and up · 10 min

Strength work for the back of the leg and hips that helps protect knees and hamstrings.

  1. Kneel with a partner holding your ankles (or hook them under a sofa).
  2. Lean forward slowly with a straight body, then sit back up; go only as far as you control.
  3. Do 5 leans, then 8 walking lunges each leg.
  4. Rest and do 2 more rounds.

Coach's cue: Slow down, straight line.

Bring: partner or sturdy sofa, soft mat

Safety: Lean only as far as you can control. Stop if you feel a sharp pull.

Driven and Lofted Passes to a Target

Ages 11 and up · 10 min

A center back’s range: a firm driven pass low, then a lofted pass high, both at a target on a wall.

  1. Mark a low target and a high target on a wall.
  2. From 8 to 12 steps, drive the ball at the low target: ankle locked, strike through the middle.
  3. Then lift a pass at the high target: strike under the ball.
  4. Do 4 sets of 6 of each, both feet.

Coach's cue: Lock the ankle; through the middle for driven, under the ball for lofted.

Bring: soccer ball, wall with a chalk or tape target

Safety: Make sure nobody is standing near the goal, the wall or the target before you strike.

Open Body Receiving

Ages 11 and up · 10 min

Receive on your back foot so your first touch moves the ball on to the next target.

  1. Stand between two partners in a line, 10 yards each way.
  2. Open your hips toward the passer.
  3. Receive with your back foot and pass on to the far partner in two touches.
  4. Do 30 passes, then swap who is in the middle.

Coach's cue: Open up, back foot, move it on.

Bring: soccer ball, 3 cones, partner

Half-Turn Receive

Ages 11 and up · 10 min

Look over your shoulder, open your body, and receive on the back foot so you face forward.

  1. Stand 5 steps from a wall with a cone gate behind you to one side.
  2. Pass to the wall. Before the ball comes back, look over your shoulder at the gate.
  3. Open your hips and receive with the foot farther from the wall.
  4. Play forward through the gate. Do 4 sets of 6, then switch sides.

Coach's cue: Look, open up, receive on the back foot.

Bring: soccer ball, wall, 2 cones

Look, Then Play: Colour Call

Ages 11 and up · 10 min

Your parent calls a colour as the ball comes off the wall; your first touch goes to that side.

  1. Put a red cone to your left and a blue cone to your right, 3 steps away.
  2. Pass to the wall from 5 steps.
  3. As the ball comes back, your parent calls a colour.
  4. Take your first touch toward that cone. Do 5 sets of 10 receptions.

Coach's cue: Look before the ball arrives, then take your touch away from pressure.

Bring: soccer ball, wall, 2 coloured cones, partner or parent

Safety for ages 11 to 13

  • Plans for this age group use beginner and developing drills only. Advanced drills open from age 13 in the app.
  • Home plans use only drills for a room, garage or yard. Stop if anything hurts.

Before you start: soccer

  • Shin guards under socks for every game and partner drill.
  • A ball the right size for age (size 3 for the youngest, size 4 from about 8, size 5 from about 12).
  • No heading the ball at age 10 and under (U.S. Soccer). Ages 11-13: light heading in practice only, with a coach.
  • No slide tackles in practice games; stay on your feet when you defend.
  • Goalkeepers learn to fall on soft ground first, starting from the knees.
  • A warm-up with balance, jumping and landing (like FIFA 11+ Kids) cuts injuries by about half.
For every sport and age (7)
  • Head knock or concussion signs (headache, dizziness, confusion, feeling "off"): when in doubt, sit them out. See a doctor, and no return the same day.
  • Back to sport only with a doctor's written OK, after a step-by-step return. Every U.S. state has a youth concussion law.
  • Heat: drink water before, during and after. Take shade breaks, ease into hot weather over about two weeks, and stop if dizzy, sick or headachy.
  • Lightning: if you hear thunder or see lightning, go inside a building or a closed car. Wait 30 minutes after the last thunder (the 30-30 rule).
  • Pain is a stop sign, not something to push through. Stop and tell a grown-up; pain that lasts or comes back each session needs a doctor.
  • Water and rest are part of training: 1-2 rest days a week, plenty of sleep, a meal or snack before and after, and other sports welcome.
  • Know where the nearest AED (heart defibrillator) is, and who calls for help in an emergency.

The research behind these plans

Which drills are shown at which age, and the safety notes, follow the 77 sources below: national governing bodies, medical associations and studies on youth sport (last reviewed October 2026). Where no study gives an exact number, the plans use cautious defaults, and we change them as the research does.

Age, development and practice design (22)
Positions, scanning and technique (11)
Goalkeeping (10)
Safety, load and injury (26)
Motivation and parents (8)

More plans