Why We Play Rondo

We begin many training sessions playing a soccer possession drill called Rondo. This exercise is intended to do a few things for the players:
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1. First Touch- Ideally, we want the players to be moving the ball within one or two touches. This keeps the ball moving, keeps the defense on the move and opens passing lanes to progress the ball forward.
2. Strategic Awareness- thinking a step ahead in order to assess where the next pass should go in a limited amount of time.
3. Defensive Positioning- For the players inside the circle, they're working on defensive positioning, first defender/second defender and reaction time.

In a game situation, we are hoping to build this into a greater use of possession to accomplish some goals: 

1. Maintain the ball in our possession
2. Create opportunities in attack
3. Prevent the other team from having the ball