Craig Bloomfield

Coaches' Voice Lead Writer/Website Editor. Possibly the UK's foremost Maltese football expert.

[CV Academy @CVAcademy]

🆕 Coaching Session ⚽️

In this video, @StevenageYouth head coach Nick Mountford leads a practice that works on Under-18 players’ individual learning plans.

It features two phases of play in quick succession, in which six players work on position-specific skills.

The clip begins with Mountford coaching technical details to a receiving midfielder, and culminates in an opposed pattern of play that brings the players together to create, attack and defend a cross.

The full Stevenage session on final-third finishing – also featuring assistant coach Mark Hughes – is available now for Coaches’ Voice Academy subscribers. See the replies for access ⤵️

#FootballCoaching #CoachesVoice #Stevenage

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Rest in peace Kevin Keegan – a football icon who made his mark as an outstanding player, renowned manager, and much loved person.

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Tactical highlights from Spain’s World Cup final win against Argentina, with analysis from the Coaches’ Voice team of UEFA-licensed coaches 🔍 🇪🇸 ⚽ 🇦🇷

See the full Spain v Argentina analysis via the link in our bio 🔗

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Luis de la Fuente is now a World Cup winning coach 🏆 👏

Here is his incredible list of honours as coach of various Spanish national teams:

Spain U19
󠁯•󠁏󠁏 2015 European Championship winners 🥇

Spain U21
󠁯•󠁏󠁏 2019 European Championship winners 🥇

Spain U23
󠁯•󠁏󠁏 2020 Olympic Games silver medal 🥈

Spain national team
󠁯•󠁏󠁏 2023 UEFA Nations League winners 🥇
󠁯•󠁏󠁏 2024 European Championship winners 🥇
󠁯•󠁏󠁏 2025 UEFA Nations League runners up 🥈
󠁯•󠁏󠁏 2026 World Cup winners 🥇

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Our UEFA-licensed coaches have analysed Argentina’s semi final victory against England at the 2026 World Cup 🏆

Here, we present a selection of their analysis.

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Brazil are the last country to win back-to-back World Cups, in 1958 and 1962 🏆🏆 🇧🇷

The first manager to win the World Cup for Brazil was Vicente Feola, who was in charge for the 1958 success in Sweden. Feola played a 17-year-old Pelé, despite a team psychologist insisting that the teenager was too “infantile” to warrant selection. Feola is said to have replied: “You may be right. The thing is, you don’t know anything about football.”

By 1962, Aymoré Moreira had succeeded Feola. A former Brazil international, Moreira had been in charge of the national team for seven games in 1953, before taking the reins again in 1961. He lost Pelé to injury during the 1962 World Cup, but guided Brazil past Spain, England and the hosts Chile to reach the final against Czechoslovakia. It was the first World Cup where the two finalists had both previously appeared in a final.

In Pelé’s absence, Garrincha was Brazil’s main inspiration – an attacker described by French newspaper L'Equipe as “the most extraordinary right winger football has known”. He had been sent off in the semi final, but with no automatic bans in place, a disciplinary committee allowed him to play in the final. There, the holders became the second nation – after Italy in 1938 – to retain the Jules Rimet trophy 🙌

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Sir Alfred Ernest Ramsey led England to their greatest victory when he oversaw the World Cup triumph of 1966 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 🏆

An England international and league champion with Tottenham Hotspur in his playing days, Sir Alf managed Ipswich Town to the Second Division (now the Championship) title in 1961. Incredibly, his team were crowned champions of England the following season, paving the way for Ramsey to be confirmed as national team manager in October 1962.

He officially took charge of the Three Lions in May 1963, boldly predicting that “we will win the World Cup”. Another bold call was vindicated when he chose to stick with Geoff Hurst for the 1966 final, ignoring pressure to recall England's leading scorer, a fit-again Jimmy Greaves. Hurst scored the first World Cup final hat-trick to help Ramsey’s England win 4-2 against West Germany at Wembley Stadium 🦁 ⚽

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Under Ståle Solbakken, Norway have reached a World Cup quarter final for the first time in their history 🇳🇴

The Norwegians were one of just four teams across all of 2026 World Cup qualifying to achieve a perfect record, winning eight from eight games in Group I of the European zone. In doing so, they became just the ninth European nation ever to record a 100 per cent record in qualifying.

Solbakken, 58, has been in charge of Norway since late 2020, after seven years as the head coach of Danish side Copenhagen and a brief spell as Wolves manager in 2012/13. He won 58 caps for Norway between 1994 and 2000, playing at the 1998 World Cup, before he was forced to retire in 2001 after suffering a heart attack.

Now his team will meet England for the first time at a major tournament when they go head-to-head in a Miami quarter final 🌴

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Vicente del Bosque led Spain to their first – and to date only – World Cup win, in 2010 🇪🇸 🏆

A two-time Champions League-winning manager of Real Madrid (2000 and 2002), he also managed Spain to Euro 2012 glory 🏆🏆

That was the only time a European nation has won three major tournaments in succession – his predecessor Luis Aragonés having been in charge for Spain’s Euro 2008 victory 🏆🏆🏆

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Captain of France in the 1998 final when they beat Brazil to win their first World Cup, Didier Deschamps was manager 20 years later when Les Bleus won their second world championship, against Croatia in Russia 🇫🇷 🏆🏆

He then came within a penalty shootout of adding a third triumph in the 2022 final against Argentina. Now set to step down after 14 years in charge of the national team, will Deschamps bow out as only the second coach ever to win two men’s World Cups as a manager? If he does, he will join Italy’s Vittorio Pozzo in that very exclusive club 💎ᴠɪᴘ

[CV Academy @CVAcademy]

Unopposed, opposed and free-play situations can all be useful ways to structure learning for young football players ⚽

In this clip, experienced coach developer Carl Plunkett considers how Arsenal Academy coach Josh Hinckson skilfully blends unopposed and opposed elements into a practice ▶️

#FootballCoaching

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Mexico have not won a knockout tie at the World Cup since 1986 – the last time they played in the tournament on home soil. Since then they lost at the last 16 stage seven times in a row between 1994 and 2018, before crashing out at the group stage in 2022.

Now they face Ecuador in the new last-32 knockout stage, at the Azteca Stadium in Mexico City. The Ecuadorians are in the knockouts for only the second time – the previous occasion being a 1-0 defeat to England in 2006.

🇲🇽 ⚽ 🇪🇨

[CV Academy @CVAcademy]

Using constraints in training practices can be an excellent way to aid learning on the football pitch ⚽

Here, coach developer Carl Plunkett considers how constraints are expertly used in an U9 session at Everton’s academy 🎓

See the replies for a link to the full video ⤵️

[Craig Bloomfield @editor_craig]

Whoever is in charge of music on ITV’s coverage of England v Croatia in Texas is a Dazed and Confused fan. Three songs off the soundtrack so far tonight. Stranglehold, Highway Star and Never Been Any Reason. #alrightalrightalright

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

It’s a rematch of the 2018 World Cup semi final with England v Croatia in Dallas 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 ⚽ 🇭🇷

Croatia won that game 2-1, but when they last met England won 1-0 at Euro 2020.

They will meet at least twice more this year, having also been drawn together in the Nations League.

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Portugal head coach Roberto Martínez discussed his dreams with the Seleção das Quinas, as well as his spells as manager of Swansea City, Wigan Athletic, Everton and Belgium, in this piece for Coaches’ Voice: https://t.co/lGrW3ixQ9K

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

European champions in 2016, then Nations League winners in 2019 and 2025, Portugal begin their bid to win a first World Cup when they play DR Congo in Houston.

DR Congo are making their first appearance in the finals since playing in 1974 as Zaire.

🇵🇹 ⚽ 🇨🇩

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Belgium begin their 2026 World Cup campaign against Egypt in Seattle. The Egyptians enter this World Cup having never won a game at a World Cup finals – in three previous appearances they have played seven, drawn two, lost five. Can they end that run in the US?

🇧🇪 ⚽ 🇪🇬

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

World Cup debutants Cape Verde face one of the favourites to win the tournament, when they play Spain in Atlanta.

With just over half a million residents, Cape Verde are the third-smallest nation by population ever to reach the World Cup.

🇪🇸⚽️🇨🇻

[Coaches' Voice @CoachesVoice]

Sweden failed to win any qualifying games in UEFA Group B, but via the Nations League got into the playoffs, where Graham Potter led them past Ukraine & Poland.

Now they play Tunisia in Monterrey. The Tunisians kept 10 clean sheets in their 10 qualifying games.

🇸🇪 ⚽ 🇹🇳