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At-home soccer drills for 14 year olds and older: center back

This is a free sample week of at-home soccer training for 14 year olds and older, for a center back: 3 of the 7 plans SSTracker has for this group, each 45 to 47.5 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: about 45 minutes (60 at most), 3 to 4 times a week, with rest days.

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 14 year olds and older

Session 1

Center back session 1: Switch the field + Recovery runs 45 minutes

  1. Warm-up: jog and skips, lateral and cutting moves, bounding, plank series, single-leg balance · 10 min
    Build from easy to fast. Quality landings: knees over toes, quiet feet.
  2. Beat your score: one-touch wall passes in 45 seconds · 2 min
    Sharp and clean. Your own best is the only target.
  3. Switch of play 27 to 33 yards (25 to 30 m) to a target (park or field) (5 × 60 s, 45 s rest) · 9.5 min
    Look up first; strike through the ball with a firm ankle.
  4. Reaction start, 5 yards (5 m) recovery sprint, then jockey, no contact (8 × 8 s, 60 s rest) · 9.5 min
    Full rest between reps for full speed. Not on a team-training day.
  5. Ball mastery combos at match speed, then random calls with head-up checks (5 × 50 s, 30 s rest) · 7 min
    Match speed, eyes up between touches.
  6. Game: match-speed challenge, receive, turn and finish into a small target · 4 min
    Game speed, full focus. Score your own round.
  7. Cool-down: walk, then hip, hamstring and calf stretches · 3 min
    Slow breathing, gentle holds. Drink water.

Session 2

Center back session 2: Two looks, then drive + Switch the field 47.5 minutes

  1. Warm-up: jog and skips, lateral and cutting moves, bounding, plank series, single-leg balance · 10 min
    Build from easy to fast. Quality landings: knees over toes, quiet feet.
  2. Beat your score: one-touch wall passes in 45 seconds · 2 min
    Sharp and clean. Your own best is the only target.
  3. Two looks before receiving, then drive a pass into a target (6 × 60 s, 30 s rest) · 9.5 min
    Know your next pass before the ball arrives.
  4. Switch of play 27 to 33 yards (25 to 30 m) to a target (park or field) (5 × 60 s, 45 s rest) · 9.5 min
    Look up first; strike through the ball with a firm ankle.
  5. One-touch wall rhythm: weak-foot-only sets, half-turn receives, lofted passes to a high target (6 × 60 s, 30 s rest) · 9.5 min
    Every set, change the foot, the distance or the target.
  6. Game: match-speed challenge, receive, turn and finish into a small target · 4 min
    Game speed, full focus. Score your own round.
  7. Cool-down: walk, then hip, hamstring and calf stretches · 3 min
    Slow breathing, gentle holds. Drink water.

Session 3

Center back session 3: Recovery runs + Two looks, then drive 47.5 minutes

  1. Warm-up: jog and skips, lateral and cutting moves, bounding, plank series, single-leg balance · 10 min
    Build from easy to fast. Quality landings: knees over toes, quiet feet.
  2. Beat your score: one-touch wall passes in 45 seconds · 2 min
    Sharp and clean. Your own best is the only target.
  3. Reaction start, 5 yards (5 m) recovery sprint, then jockey, no contact (8 × 8 s, 60 s rest) · 9.5 min
    Full rest between reps for full speed. Not on a team-training day.
  4. Two looks before receiving, then drive a pass into a target (6 × 60 s, 30 s rest) · 9.5 min
    Know your next pass before the ball arrives.
  5. Two looks before every receive, then play away from a parent’s pressure call (6 × 60 s, 30 s rest) · 9.5 min
    Check both shoulders before the ball arrives.
  6. Game: match-speed challenge, receive, turn and finish into a small target · 4 min
    Game speed, full focus. Score your own round.
  7. Cool-down: walk, then hip, hamstring and calf stretches · 3 min
    Slow breathing, gentle holds. Drink water.

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

Switch the Field

Ages 11 and up · 15 min

Move the ball from one side to the other to find the open player.

  1. Mark three zones side by side across a 30-yard grid.
  2. One player stands in each zone.
  3. Pass from one side to the other through the middle player, or skip them with a longer pass.
  4. Count successful switches in 5 minutes, then rotate.

Coach's cue: If one side is busy, go to the other.

Bring: soccer ball, 6 cones, 3 or more players

Recovery Run and Block

Ages 14 and up · 12 min

Recover from behind an attacker and get goal-side in time to block the shot.

  1. Start 3 yards behind your partner, who dribbles at goal from 30 yards.
  2. Sprint to get between them and the goal.
  3. Turn side-on and block or force them wide.
  4. Do 8 reps each with full rest.

Coach's cue: Run to the goal side first, the ball second.

Bring: soccer ball, partner, goal

Safety: Stay on your feet; no tackles from behind.

Ball Mastery Combos at Match Speed

Ages 14 and up · 10 min

Chain 3 or 4 moves at match speed, then random calls with head-up checks.

  1. Pick 3 or 4 combinations, for example step-over into la croqueta into a drag-back.
  2. Do each for 45 to 60 seconds at game speed, 30 seconds rest.
  3. Then 2 rounds of 60 seconds where your parent calls the move.
  4. Look up between touches.

Coach's cue: Match speed, eyes up between touches.

Bring: soccer ball, partner or parent

Two Looks, Then Drive It

Ages 14 and up · 12 min

Check both shoulders before every receive, then drive a firm pass into a target, the way a center back starts play.

  1. Stand 6 steps from a wall with 2 target cones 10 to 15 steps behind you, left and right.
  2. Before each rebound, look over both shoulders. Your parent points at one target.
  3. Receive and drive a firm, low pass at that target.
  4. Do 6 sets of 60 seconds.

Coach's cue: Know your next pass before the ball arrives.

Bring: soccer ball, wall, 3 cones, partner or parent

One-Touch Wall Rhythm

Ages 11 and up · 10 min

Keep a one- and two-touch rhythm off the wall, alternating feet; at 14 and over, weak-foot-only sets and lofted passes.

  1. Stand 4 to 6 steps from a wall.
  2. Pass with two touches, then with one, keeping a steady rhythm.
  3. Every other pass uses your weaker foot.
  4. Do 5 sets of 45 to 60 seconds. Older players add a lofted pass to a high mark on the wall.

Coach's cue: Keep the rhythm; weaker foot every other pass.

Bring: soccer ball, wall

Scan and Play Under a Pressure Call

Ages 14 and up · 12 min

Two looks before every receive, then play away from the side your parent calls as “pressure”.

  1. Set a gate on each side of you, 5 steps away.
  2. Pass to the wall. As it comes back, your parent calls “left” or “right” as the pressure side.
  3. Look twice, then receive and play out through the other gate.
  4. Do 6 sets of 60 seconds.

Coach's cue: Two looks, then the pass that breaks the line.

Bring: soccer ball, wall, 4 cones, partner or parent

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

Safety for ages 14 and up

  • Plans for this age group use beginner, developing and advanced 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)

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