The Playbook Series · No. 04 Coaches' edition
The Pressing Playbook
When to jump, where to trap and how to win it back: the high press, the counter-press and the block.
Every press is a bet. This book shows you how to set the odds.
- 93 pages
- 87 boards
- 20 sessions
Instant PDF download · Yours to keep · Your price is applied at checkout
What is inside
Every press is a bet. This book shows you how to set the odds.
Pressing is not just running. It is eleven players who see the same trigger, jump at the same moment and steer the ball to the place they chose before the game. This playbook gives your staff one language for every moment without the ball, with the cost of every choice and a session for every idea.
- 01 The triggers: when to jump, and when to wait
- 02 The block: three heights and the distances that hold them
- 03 The curved run and the press against every back line
- 04 Four traps: the touchline, the centre, the keeper and the long ball
- 05 Zonal, man-to-man and the hybrid press
- 06 The counter-press, rest defence and the delay
- 07 An opponent matrix for six build-ups
- 08 20 sessions, from rondo to 11 v 11
The impact
What you will be able to do after reading it.
Read it well and this is what changes for you, your staff and your players. Each point is a chapter of the book, not a promise on top of it.
- Your staff 1
- Training ground 2
- Match day 2
- Analysis room 1
- Your staff Ch. 03
Agree when to jump
The triggers that start a press, the false ones that should not, and how one call moves all eleven players at the same moment.
- Training ground Ch. 04
Set the block at the right height
High, mid and low, the distances that keep a block compact, how it shifts and squeezes, and where your line of engagement sits.
- Match day Ch. 05
Press any back line
The curved run and the cover shadow, the press against a back four and a back three, who takes their 6, and what changes when their keeper joins in.
- Analysis room Ch. 06 · 07
Choose where you win it
Four traps: the touchline, the centre, the keeper and the long ball. Then zonal, man-to-man or the hybrid press, and which one suits the game in front of you.
- Match day Ch. 08 · 11
Win it back, or drop in time
The counter-press after you lose it: who hunts, when to drop and how to delay. Then the cover behind the press, what pressing costs and when to switch it off.
- Training ground Ch. 10 · 12
Plan the press for every opponent
An opponent matrix for six build-ups, your pressing plan on one page to fill in with your staff, and 20 sessions picked by the problem you saw.
20 sessions and over 80 boards drawn to scale turn every point into something you can show your players, then train.
Buy from €9.99 Free samplePages from the book
Every board drawn to scale.
Read a 13-page sample
The front matter and introduction, the start of chapter 1, the first session and the back cover. PDF, 1.2 MB.
Contents
12 chapters, then the index.
Each chapter is a bookmark in the PDF, and every row of the contents page is a link to it.
- 01 Why press What winning it high is worth, and how to measure it
- 02 Where pressing came from From Maslov to Iraola in sixty years
- 03 Read: the triggers When to jump, and when to wait
- 04 Shape: the block High, mid and low, and the distances that hold it
- 05 Jump: the first line Curved runs, cover shadows and every back line
- 06 Trap: where to win it The touchline, the centre, the keeper and the long ball
- 07 Zone, man or both Zonal, man-to-man and the hybrid press
- 08 Hunt: the counter-press The first five seconds after we lose it
- 09 The mid and low block When not to press high, and how to press from deep
- 10 The opponent matrix Six build-ups and how to press each one
- 11 Cover: the last line and the cost Depth, the long ball and when to switch off
- 12 The training ground 20 sessions, from rondo to 11 v 11
Get The Pressing Playbook
Yours in a minute. On the grass this week.
One payment, no subscription. The PDF is in your account the moment you pay.
- Studio plan price on any paying Amateur, Pro or team plan
- Full price without a plan
-
This book
The Pressing Playbook
With a Studio plan
€9.99
Without a plan €14.99
- 93 pages, 87 boards, 20 sessions
- Instant PDF download, yours to keep
- Bookmarks, clickable contents and an index
-
Best value
The set · Nos. 02, 03 and 04
With a Studio plan
€25.47
€29.97Without a plan €38.22
€44.97- All three paid books, one payment
- Over 290 pages and 60 sessions
- Build-up, the 4-2-3-1 and the press, in one language
-
No plan yet?
Start a plan and get the book in the same checkout, for less.
- Pro, first month + this book
- €27.18
€33.98 - Amateur, first month + this book
- €21.58
€26.98
From then on you pay the Studio plan price, €9.99 a book. The plan renews at its normal price until you cancel.
Your price is applied at checkout. Buying needs a free account; free trials pay the full price.
- Instant PDF download
- Secure payment by Stripe
- Apple Pay, Google Pay and cards
- Read the free 13-page sample first
- Affiliates earn 20% to 30% of every copy
The format
A PDF built to be used on the training ground.
- Format
- PDF, A4 portrait
- Length
- 93 pages, 87 boards, 20 sessions
- File size
- 5.8 MB
- Navigation
- Bookmarks for every chapter, a clickable contents page and cross-references
- Index
- Terms, people and teams
- Printing
- Laid out for A4, so every page prints as it looks on screen
- Language
- English
- Price
- €9.99 on any paying Studio plan, €14.99 without one. One payment, instant download.
- Edition
- First edition, version 1.0, October 2026.
- Licence
- This copy is licensed to the buyer for personal and club coaching use. You may print pages for your own players and staff. Please do not share the file publicly, upload it or resell it. For a licence that covers a whole club or academy, write to us.
Questions
About The Pressing Playbook
What does it cost?
€9.99 if your account is on a paying Studio plan, alone or in a team, and €14.99 without one. The three paid books together are €25.47 with a plan, or €38.22 without (€44.97 bought one by one). One payment, no subscription, and the right price is applied at checkout.
See the prices How do I get it after paying?
You pay on our secure checkout with a free Total Football account. The PDF is in your account straight away, under Your e-books, to download whenever you need it, and the link comes by email too.
Your e-books Can I read some of it first?
Yes. The free sample is 13 pages of the real book: the front matter and introduction, the start of chapter 1, the first session and the back cover.
Who is it for?
Coaches, analysts and staff who want one shared language for this part of the game, with the cost of every choice and a session for every idea.
Can I print it and share it with my players?
This copy is licensed to the buyer for personal and club coaching use. You may print pages for your own players and staff. Please do not share the file publicly, upload it or resell it. For a licence that covers a whole club or academy, write to us.
Can I get a refund?
A download is delivered the moment you pay, so at checkout you ask for it straight away and the 14-day right to cancel ends when it arrives. Read the free sample first. If a file is faulty or will not open, write to us and we fix it or refund you.
E-book terms Can I earn by recommending it?
Yes. In the Total Football Studio affiliate programme, on an Amateur or Pro plan, you earn 20% or 30% of every Playbook Series e-book bought by someone you referred, for 12 months from the day they signed up through your link. They pay the same price either way.
The affiliate programme What format is it in?
A 93-page A4 PDF of 5.8 MB, with bookmarks for every chapter, a clickable contents page and an index. It opens on any phone, tablet or computer that reads a PDF, and prints on A4.
Do I need Total Football Studio to use it?
No. The book is a PDF and stands on its own. Every diagram in it was built in Total Football Studio, so you can draw the same shapes on your own board if you want to.
Open the StudioThe Playbook Series
The other three books
-
No. 01 · Free edition The 4-3-3 Playbook Variations, attacking positions and defensive shape. 24 pages · 15 boards · 3 sessions
Free -
No. 02 · Coaches' edition Playing Out From the Back Building up against every press: count it, shape for it, bait it, beat it. 101 pages · 84 boards · 20 sessions
€9.99 with a Studio plan · €14.99 without -
No. 03 · Coaches' edition The 4-2-3-1 Playbook One shape, many systems: how football's most-used formation builds, creates, presses and protects. 99 pages · 80 boards · 20 sessions
€9.99 with a Studio plan · €14.99 without
