There's nothing worse than a defender who dives in willy nilly, without thinking about whether it's the right thing to do or not. To help prevent this sort of reckless defending in this session we look at ways you can get your players to hold up their man, forcing them wide and hold up the attacker until the cavalry arrives!
Facing down an oncoming attacker is no easy feat. However, if you know how it needn't be quite so intimidating.
To deal with these tricky situations we practice 1 v 1s, starting with a drill which sees your defenders shadowing their man, standing with bent knees so that they're ready to change direction at any given moment! After this your players will progress through a number of increasingly difficult 1v1 drills which will test their ability to defend against an oncoming player when it matters the most - just like in a real match your players will be penalised if they dive in and don't get the ball too - so the stakes are raised!
in more ways than one
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in more ways than one
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Set pieces account for roughly a third of all goals in football, yet many coaches spend surprisingly little time coaching defensive organisation at corners and free kicks. This article compares zonal and man marking systems, explores hybrid approaches, and provides a practical session structure for building set piece resilience into your team.
A player's first touch determines everything that follows: whether they can play forward, turn, or simply retain the ball. This article explores why training first touch in isolation is not enough, and how to design sessions that develop this critical skill under realistic game pressure.
The coaching methodology revolution sweeping grassroots football - and how to implement it at your club this season.
