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Methodology

The TSG Method.

Three principles, sixteen pillars of play, and a Spanish methodology delivered by UEFA-licensed coaches.

3 Principles · 16 Pillars · UEFA Coaches · 1:12 Ratio

What Is the TSG Method?

The TSG Method is Total Sports Group's football coaching methodology, built on the Spanish positional game. It organises every session around three principles — Context, Space and Decision — trains the four phases of the game and their transitions, and breaks play down into sixteen pillars. It is led by Carlos Grande Rodríguez, formerly first-team staff at Real Madrid and Atlético de Madrid, and delivered by UEFA-licensed coaches in Madrid and, on request, on a club's own pitch.

The Method at a Glance

What it is
A coaching methodology rooted in Spanish positional football: possession with purpose, correct occupation of space and faster decisions than the opponent.
Structure
Three principles (Context, Space, Decision) · four game phases (offensive, defensive, and the two transitions) · sixteen pillars of play.
Who leads it
Carlos Grande Rodríguez, Head of TSG Method — twenty years in elite football, including first-team staff roles at Real Madrid and Atlético de Madrid.
Who delivers it
UEFA-licensed coaches at a 1:12 coach-to-player ratio, in 90-minute sessions delivered in English.
Who it is for
Clubs, academies, schools and programmes — players from U10 to senior, from grassroots to elite level.
Where
Madrid, Spain, across TSG's training bases — or on your own pitch through the On-Site Experience pathway.
How it is delivered
Monthly cycles: microcycles and session templates, two observable success indicators per cycle, and a feedback loop that sets the next month's focus.
Levels of support
Five pathways, from monthly microcycles and guidance to video feedback, application alongside Madrid academies and on-site delivery.

TSG Methodology

The TSG Method.

Our goal is to imprint personality onto the game — through training, game strategies, individual skill work, and a specific methodology built to dominate every stage of play.

Every proposal is built around the fundamentals our partner wants to enhance — we select objectives, design the tasks, and measure their impact.

Context · Space · Decision

Carlos Grande Rodríguez — Technical Coach & Fitness Expert · C.G.R.

Head of TSG Method

Carlos Grande Rodríguez

Technical Coach & Fitness Expert · C.G.R.

Twenty years inside elite football — first-team staff at Real Madrid & Atlético, sporting-director roles at CD Guadalajara & UD Sanse, a championship-winning technical directorship at PERSIB (Indonesian Liga 1 Champions 2024 & 2025), and personal coaching for top-flight strikers including Victor Boniface (Bayer Leverkusen) and Franco Mastantuono (Real Madrid).

  1. Real Madrid crest Real Madrid First-Team Staff
  2. Atlético de Madrid crest Atlético de Madrid Assistant S&C Coach — First Team
  3. CD Guadalajara crest CD Guadalajara Youth Academy & Sporting Director
  4. PERSIB crest PERSIB Liga 1 Champions · 2024 & 2025 Technical Director
  5. UD Sanse crest UD Sanse Director — Spanish 2nd Division
  6. Bayer Leverkusen crest Bayer Leverkusen Personal Coach — Victor Boniface
  7. Real Madrid crest Real Madrid Personal Coach — Franco Mastantuono
  8. Espanyol RCD crest Espanyol RCD Personal Coach — Álvaro Aguado

Philosophy

Three Principles That Build Every Session.

Spanish football is built on small, fast decisions inside tight spaces. Our coaching is engineered to train exactly that.

  1. Context

    Rules that provoke decisions. Every drill is built to force the exact choice we want trained — not random repetition.

    Constraint-Led Coaching

  2. Space

    Zones and heights dictate where the action lives. We structure the pitch so the game produces the moments we want.

    Pitch Geometry

  3. Decision

    What, when and why. We coach the read before the action — not just the action itself.

    Read · React · Repeat

The Game In Four Phases

Train Every Moment Of The Game.

A modern game is a sequence of four interlocking phases. We coach all four — and the transitions between them.

Offensive

Offensive Organisation

Progress · Create Advantage

  • Build from the back with controlled possession
  • Create numerical superiority in midfield
  • Disorganise the opponent's defensive block
Defensive

Defensive Organisation

Compact · Protect The Centre

  • Deny central progression options
  • Maintain vertical & horizontal compactness
  • Force play wide and trap
Attack → Defence

Transition Att → Def

Regain Or Delay In 5″

  • Immediate counter-press upon loss
  • Close the nearest passing lanes
  • Protect the defensive line if pressure fails
Defence → Attack

Transition Def → Att

First Pass Forward · Attack Space

  • Vertical pass to break lines immediately
  • Exploit disorganised opponent space
  • Finish the action within 10–12 seconds

Football Fundamentals

The 16 Pillars Of Play.

The complete vocabulary of the modern game — every drill we design strengthens one or more of these.

  • 01 Space Occupation
  • 02 Width
  • 03 Depth
  • 04 Support & Lines
  • 05 Third Man
  • 06 Numerical Superiority
  • 07 Positional Superiority
  • 08 Switch Of Play
  • 09 Pin & Release
  • 10 Circulation Tempo
  • 11 Finishing
  • 12 Press After Loss
  • 13 Compactness
  • 14 Shifting
  • 15 Protect The Centre
  • 16 Transitions
Every proposal revolves around the fundamentals the client wants to enhance — we select objectives, design tasks, and measure their impact.

Delivery Blueprint

How We Deliver The Method.

Six layers that translate the philosophy into work that lands on your training pitch.

  1. 01

    Selected Fundamentals

    • Prioritise the right fundamentals
    • Focus: build · defend · transition
    • Clear on-pitch outcome
  2. 02

    Game-Phase Focus

    • 1–2 primary phases per cycle
    • Linked behaviours
    • Clear training intent
  3. 03

    Success Indicators

    • 2 simple, observable KPIs
    • Observation cues for staff
    • Weekly & monthly review
  4. 04

    Monthly Delivery

    • Microcycles + session templates
    • Task-library variants
    • Monthly update pack
  5. 05

    Execution Guide

    • Coaching points
    • Common errors + fixes
    • Role cues by line
  6. 06

    Feedback Loop

    • Adjustments from evidence
    • Progress / regress rules
    • Next-month focus

Service Pathway

Choose Your Level Of Support.

Pick the level of implementation that fits your club, academy or programme. Every pathway is delivered monthly.

  1. 01

    Microcycles

    Microcycles tailored to client priorities — focused weekly planning.

    Monthly
  2. 02

    Guidance

    Explanation and follow-up to support staff execution and clear doubts.

    Monthly
  3. 03

    Advanced Feedback

    You send match & training video — we return corrections and tactical fixes.

    Monthly
  4. 04

    Real Application

    Apply tasks alongside top local academies in Madrid & Spain.

    Monthly
  5. 05

    On-Site Experience

    We travel to support implementation directly on your pitch.

    Monthly

The TSG Method, Answered

The questions clubs and academies ask before they adopt the method.

What is the TSG Method in one sentence?

The TSG Method is a Spanish-style coaching methodology that trains players to keep the ball, occupy the right spaces and decide faster, organised around three principles (Context, Space, Decision), four game phases and sixteen pillars of play.

Who created the TSG Method?

The method is led by Carlos Grande Rodríguez, Head of TSG Method, whose career includes first-team staff roles at Real Madrid and Atlético de Madrid, sporting-director roles at CD Guadalajara and UD Sanse, and a championship-winning technical directorship at PERSIB in Indonesia.

What are the three principles of the TSG Method?

Context, Space and Decision. Context means every drill has rules that provoke the exact decision being trained; Space means zones and heights on the pitch dictate where the action happens; Decision means players are coached on the read — what, when and why — before the action itself.

Is the TSG Method the same as the Spanish football method?

It is TSG's own structured version of it. The Spanish football method is a national style — possession-based positional play — and the TSG Method turns that style into a deliverable programme: principles, phases, pillars, session templates, success indicators and monthly review.

Can a club adopt the TSG Method without travelling to Madrid?

Yes. The first three support pathways — monthly microcycles, guidance and video-based advanced feedback — are delivered remotely. The fourth applies the method alongside academies in Madrid, and the fifth brings TSG coaches to your own pitch.

Who delivers TSG Method sessions and at what ratio?

UEFA-licensed coaches at a coach-to-player ratio of 1:12, in 90-minute sessions delivered in English, with Spanish a natural part of the daily environment.

See all frequently asked questions

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