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Coaching Soccer – Defending Principles

Watch a video coaching soccer to understand basic defensive principles of play: See an interactive, 3D animated drill on soccer coaching demonstrating defensive principles: There is also a printable coaches chalkboard soccer coaching session, all designed to assist a soccer coach with coaching basic defensive principles of play

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

Soccer Coaching – Defending Principles 

It is important that when a team loses possession a soccer coach should ensure that their team understand the basic principles of defending.

There are 3 periods of play in soccer. 1. When the team have possession 2. When possession is lost, the transition period 3. When the opposition have the ball. 

Soccer coaching sessions that help the players to understand how to react in this key transition period will really help the defensive performance of the team and the individual players. As soon as possession is lost, the players should quickly look to get compact as a team, to get a defensive shape; to get players behind the ball, to compact centrally to deny space in central areas; to quickly get as many players behind the ball as possible and to finally and most importantly to defend their goal.

Understanding, planning and applying this basic defensive principle in soccer coaching sessions, will help your players to have a solid defensive platform from which they can then make defensive decisions, such as making attacking play predictable and keeping the ball in front of them and deflecting play away from the goal; whether to apply pressure, what kind of pressure, the cover and balance of supporting defending players and communication between the defensive players.

Soccer coaches should also look to help players to understand the different defensive decisions players might make from this solid defensive platform. For example, if the defenders have a matched up situation against the attackers, 2 v 2, 3 v 3 etc, then they might be able to apply pressure on the ball: when and how to pressure and cover and the need to recognise when the attacking team have a numerical advantage, an attacking overload of 2 v 1 or 3 v 2 and the different roles of the defenders when this happens. Players will also need their soccer coach to help them to understand how to make it difficult for players to turn with the ball, to deal with high balls and crosses, the need to move and adjust defensively as individuals and as a team when the attackers move the ball and how to react defensively, looking to block shots when the goal is under a direct threat.

The following might be considered key technical soccer coaching factors to improve defending when organised and matched up numerically:

• Soccer Coaching Key Factor #1 – When possession is lost, the transition period, the team to react quickly and get behind the ball centrally. To get their solid defensive shape and to be compact.
• Coaching Soccer Key Factor #2 – From this defensive platform can they apply pressure on the ball? Players will need to make decisions on how tight the defensive pressure player gets to the ball. This will depend on how far away from the goal the opposition player is when they receive the ball and what danger they pose to the defenders goal and what support and cover the pressure defender has from their team mates. Pressure on the ball might mean getting tight enough to stop the ball being played forward, rather than trying to win the ball.
• Soccer Coaching Key Factor #3 – Decisions on whether the pressure player shows the attacker inside the pitch to the cover player or down the line away from the goal. As a rule, the further the player on the ball is away from the defenders goal, play should be forced inside, into traffic and the covering players. If the attacker receives the ball wide and in a more attacking, advanced position, play can be forced down the line and away from the goal and the danger of the attacker cutting inside to shoot.
• Coaching Soccer Key Factor #4 – As pressure is applied on the ball. The covering player and balance players will need to communicate and provide a good angle and distance of cover and balance for the pressure player
• Soccer Coaching Key Factor #5 – Early, clear, concise communication between defenders. It is vitally important that defenders provide clear and good information to each other
• Coaching Soccer Key Factor #6 – If the ball is passed between attackers, this gives time for the defenders to switch or pivot their roles. The pressure player can now drop and cover and the nearest covering player can apply pressure.
• Soccer Coaching Key Factor #7 – Recognise the danger of shooting opportunities. At this point defenders must defend the goal. Tighten up the pressure on the ball the closer the attackers get to the goal. The closer to goal the ball is, the more the need for tighter pressure on the ball. The shot on goal becomes the priority. The nearest player to the ball must close it down and defend it bravely.
• Coaching Soccer Key Factor #8 – If there is a danger of a shot then the angle and speed of approach from a defender to an opponent who is in a position to shoot is very important for players to understand. It is important that where possible the initial line of pressure is for the defender to take a defensive pressure line on the shooter where they try to get their body between the ball and the goal to affect the shot
• Soccer Coaching Key Factor #7 – The goalkeeper is also a key defender and should play and active and verbal role in defending. Their communication and positional play are vitally important in coaching defending principles

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This soccer coaching video on defending principles will help you coach, understand and structure a soccer coaching session on applying defensive principles.

Taken from our members' area of defending, this is an interactive, 3D animated soccer coaching drill to improve defensive principles called "Delay, defend and recover"

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