You must be aware that defense is the foundation of any soccer game and the drills for soccer should also teach them to conquer the opposite team’s defense.
There are some coaches who only teach their players either defense or offence. Those soccer drills are apt that train all players on defense in case the ball is with the rival team and offense when the ball is in their custody.
Players should immediately go after the ball once they’ve lost it. The first one to go after the ball should be that player who lost it. Since this player is next to his rival who has the possession of the ball, he must have the potential to put a lot of pressure on him. Putting a lot of pressure on this player will lead him to making a bad pass or losing the ownership of the ball.
Ensure that in soccer practice, when a player is running behind a opponent who has the ball, the remaining players can back him up. They should try to delay him from entering into their team’s goal area.
Center of the soccer field is the most risky area. So the drills for soccer should be devised in such a manner that they compel the opposite team’s player to move near the touchline. It will result in putting a restriction on the passes he can make along with the number of directions that he can set out to.
It’s the arc of concentration where record number of goals is scored and is also the most hazardous. This arc is in the front of the goalpost. It starts from the corner post of the goal all the way through the corner of the goal box and goes out to the touchline. Consequently, fill your training sessions with a lot of soccer exercises that teach them to work the ball around in this area as the opposition can easily score a goal here.
When it comes to defending, success is achieved by maintaining a balance. Here, the players who are next to the ball play tight. This leads to the idea that they should remain in close proximity to the ball. Players that are far away from the ball play lose. This means they place themselves at a position which covers all possibilities in a specific area and not just a single player.
Your team will have the edge when they possess the ball. To do this, steal the ball away from your opposition as fast as possible. A whole lot of coaches mistakenly allow the players to control the ball. This suggests that the player maneuvers the ball away from the opponent with touching him.
If they miss the ball here, they will be back to the ground and opponents would attack the goal.
So include these tips in your drills for soccer so that your players get more adapted to playing a defensive game. If you wish to keep yourself updated on the happenings in the field of youth soccer, join our youth soccer coaching community and discover a wealth of knowledge, tips, articles, newsletters, videos and the like.
Andre Botelho is a recognized expert in youth soccer coaching. He influences well over 35,000 youth coaches each year with his unique coaching philosophy, and makes it really easy to explode your players’ skills and make training more fun in record time. To download your free youth soccer coaching guide visit: Drills for soccer.
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