In recent years, the vocabulary of soccer training has undergone a remarkable theoretical evolution. Concepts that once belonged exclusively to the field of complexity science or to cutting-edge methodology are now commonly discussed in presentations, on social media, and in textbooks. However, this popularization has brought with it a dangerous side effect: the trivialization of these terms.
The clearest example of this phenomenon is the Preferential Simulation Situation (PSS), as defined by our former colleague in the Methodology Department at FC Barcelona, Paco Seirul·lo. Nowadays, it’s common to hear coaches refer to any rondo, positional game, or small-sided game as “a PSS.” It has, mistakenly, become a mere, fancy synonym for a training exercise.
Nothing could be further from the truth. Reducing a PSS to a mere exercise is to strip it of its pedagogical and methodological substance. At ForeFront Football, we believe it is necessary to restore rigor to this concept and examine the real implications of its design if we truly aspire to optimize the soccer player.
PSS: A Structural Definition
A PSS is not just another run-of-the-mill exercise copied from the internet. When Paco Seirul·lo coined this term, he wasn’t looking for a new label for the same old exercises. He was defining an environment where the player experiences the interactions of a specific real-game situation, but with a focus (a point of attention and stimulation) on certain specific elements. These elements become the primary optimization targets thanks to the design itself and the appropriate use of constraints.
For a PSS to be truly effective, it must meet four criteria that guide its implementation. As Seirul·lo told us, a PSS must be massed, specific, with continuity and variability.
- Massed: The skill to be trained appears often enough for the player to practice it a sufficient number of times.
- Specific: It must be representative of the game and the real-life situations the team will encounter.
- Continuity: There must be a common thread that connects the objectives throughout the microcycle.
- Variability: It must present constant changes that require the player to adjust their responses in order to remain effective in the skills they are practicing.
Beyond the definition, in our Team Training course, we explain in detail how to design training so that these four aspects are used correctly and efficiently for the team.
The Invisible Balance: Continuity and Variability
One of the biggest challenges for a coach when designing PSSs is managing the tension between continuity and variability.
On the one hand, we need continuity. Players cannot spend time during a session trying to figure out the complex rules of a new exercise every day. If the PSS structure is familiar, players already know where to find the information they need. They know where to look and where the relevant information comes from.
On the other hand, we need variability. If we repeat the same task without any changes, the player falls into a rut, their attention wanes, and their learning process stalls. Introducing variability within the same PSS (changing distances, modifying opponents’ behavior, varying the number of touches) maintains anticipation and interest, forcing the player’s brain to constantly reorganize itself to provide responses adapted to new situations. Some teaching methods, such as positional drills or situational drills, already have sufficient inherent variability, though the coach can add more if deemed necessary.
The Coach’s Role: Designing the Flow of Practice and the Microcycle
In our paradigm, the coach’s role is purely architectural and pedagogical. It does not consist of giving direct instructions during practice, but rather of knowing how to structure, organize, and schedule the PSSs throughout the week and the season. The proper sequencing of tasks within the training session itself has a direct impact on motivational and physical conditioning aspects.
Designing a PSS ultimately means creating a game context that reflects the concept of the game you want to practice. The success of training lies in ensuring that the flow of the session unfolds in such a way that it compels players to constantly make decisions, explore solutions that may occasionally require them to step outside their comfort zone, and communicate nonverbally with their teammates.
ForeFront Football
