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JOIN NOWHow to defend and attack set pieces?
HOW TO DEFEND AND ATTACK SET PIECES
Football CoachCoach
ANSWERS
Ian MarshCoach, England
Hello,
You're asking a very big and open question here! As a defender I can tell you that with your team you should find a system that works and practice it at training (from corners and free kicks), working with your attacking players against your strikers.
The two main defensive systems are zonal and man-marking. Zonal marking requires players to defend within 'their area' and go for any ball that enters this zone. Man-marking is where players pick an opposition player and stick with them until the ball has been cleared.
It's a difficult decision and there's arguments for and against both systems. Personally I prefer man-marking as I think this system forces players to pick up the opposition and take responsibility for their man (zones don't score goals, players do!).
However, whatever system you decide to use I think a good starting point would be to work on heading (attacking and defensive) as the first point of contact for most set pieces is with players' heads.
Hope this all helps and look forward to seeing other coach's suggestions.
