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Coaching soccer skills – Defending

Watch a video on soccer coaching skills to improve defending: See an interactive, 3D animated drill on coaching soccer skills for pressure and cover when defending: There is also a printable coaches chalkboard session, all designed to assist a soccer coach with developing the soccer skills required for effective defending in 2 v 2 situations.

There are also Tour Videos to give soccer coaches a real insight into what a membership of Grassrootscoaching.com offers. 

Coaching soccer skills and techniques for defending 

Defending in soccer is hard work. It requires concentration, communication, patience, controlled aggression, individual, unit and team understanding and co - operation, responsibility, discipline and the soccer skill of reading and anticipating dangerous situations. Not easy for young players to immediately grasp and understand!

Soccer coaching sessions that enable players to practice and understand these key soccer skills for defending will greatly help your players to improve their soccer defending skills.

Soccer coaching sessions designed to focus on these defending soccer skills should start with a series of progressive practice drills that will test and improve players individual soccer skills for defending and progress to working on the soccer skills needed for working in units of twos and threes that are specific to relevant areas of the pitch the players will need with their soccer skills to improve their technique and understanding of defending. In a game, defending starts from the front, so forwards will need to understand and improve their soccer skills on how to defend against the opposition defence when they are in possession. Do they need to pressure or make it difficult for the opposition to play the ball forward centrally? How they can recover to help the defensive team shape and how they can defend from the front when the ball is passed beyond them. If the opposition by pass the forwards, the midfield players will need to work on specific defending soccer skills needed for their position. For example, when to pressure, when to make play predictable, tracking runs and shielding and marking. Defenders will need a lot more coaching on improving and developing their soccer skills for defending, both as individuals in 1 v 1 situations, in 2 v 2 scenarios on pressuring and covering, when to mark when to drop and how to react and work as units in key defensive areas of the pitch.

Coaching soccer skills tips for 1 v 1 defending

  • Tip #1 coaching soccer skills – Defender quickly puts appropriate pressure on the ball, as the ball travels
  • Tip #2 coaching soccer skills – Defender to angle their approach as they pressure the ball – try and force the attacker in one direction. Dictate to the attacker
  • Tip #3 coaching soccer skills - As the defender gets close to the attacker, slow down, be patient, don’t get too tight and unbalanced
  • Tip #4 coaching soccer skills – The defenders body position should force the attacker in the direction that allows the defender to dictate the situation. Defenders should not be square to the ball
  • Tip #5 coaching soccer skills – The defender to be balanced, low, sideways on and the player should react watch and react to the ball, not the attackers’ feet.
  • Tip #6 coaching soccer skills – Adjust defending position and distance on the attackers touch – poor touch, maybe the ball can be won. Good touch, back off, keep the distance and slow the attacker down
  • Tip #7 coaching soccer skills - If the attacker advances with the ball – defender backs off and keeps a safe distance between the attacker and themselves
  • Tip #8 coaching soccer skills - If the attacker moves the ball across defenders body, defender adjusts their feet to keep their body shape or to pivot on back foot and change body position – now forcing attacker in a different direction
  • Tip #9coaching soccer skills – Defender to be patient, to keep their eyes on the ball, to look to force the attacker to blink first and make a mistake
  • Tip #10 coaching soccer skills – If the opportunity presents itself, try and tackle with the front – leading foot. It will help with the defenders balance and recovery if they miss the ball or it ricochets forward.
 

Watch videos

This coaching soccer skill video for defending 2 v 2 will help you coach, understand and structure a soccer skill drill for effective defending in a 2 v 2 situation.

Videos: Soccer coaching | Soccer skills | Defending

See animated drill

Taken from our members' area of defending, this is an interactive, 3D animated drill on soccer skills for effective defending called "2 v 2 defending"

Anmated drills: Soccer coaching | Soccer skills | Defending

Coaches chalkboard session

All members have access to our planning and design software called "Coaches Chalkboard" Click on to access a soccer skills session on defending 2 v 2 you can print out and take to training.

Chalkboard software: Soccer coaching | Soccer skills | Defending

Testimonial

Coaches, players, members testimonials

Tony Pulis – Manager of English Premier League Team, Stoke City, says … ”the opportunity to see and understand training sessions on the internet, before you begin coaching is invaluable…
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