Football/Soccer Session (Academy Sessions): Specific Practice Defend Breaking Lines (Start Time: 15-Jul-2024 17:00h)

Description

Primary Focus Defending breaking lines with emphasis on creating a narrow and compact shape and staying narrow and compact, getting fast pressure on the ball including pressing inside shoulder to force play wide protecting middle spaces between lines and the space in behind and preventing passes from splitting defenders.

Organisation (Practice Layout & Transition) 6 red players attacking against 5 blue field players and a keeper with the blue being the focus team.  

Area size: Half field 60x70 with corner cut off due to lack of wing players for the focus team.  Mannequins to show back line where to push up to on reset or clearance from the penalty area

Player Numbers: 6 red v 7 blue for specific practice and 9v9 for small sided game

Timings: two 9 minute blocks with 2 minute rest in between. Ball rolling time 40-50% in specific practice additional 2 9 minute blocks with 2 minute rest in between for small sided game with target ball rolling time of 75-80%

Explanation: Specific practice to improve the defensive organization to get and stay compact.  Apply quick pressure on the ball with an emphasis of good body shape and low and balanced and applying pressure to the inside shoulder to force play wide.  The red team will be managed to attempt to score centrally but generally can attack in any manner.  Blue will be encourged to play in to far goal quickly within 5 seconds to encourage repetition.  

Conditions: Red attack centrally when possible, Blue on winning ball play to goal in less than 5 seconds.

Progressions: Possibly add additional attackers to make it more challenging for blue in block 2.  

Key Points:

Quick pressure on the ball - stay low and press inside shoulder

Get compact and stay compact - Reference points for two defensive midfielders and two centerbacks is within the 6 yard box.  Reference point for full backs is within 5 yeards of nearest centerback and within the 18 yard box.

Prevent passes from splitting defenders - narrowness and proximity to nearest defender important.  

Protect middle - minimize distance between midfield line and back line - stay compact

Protect space behind.  Keeper communication is key and winning aerial balls and tracking runners switching runner off between defenders and communicating the switch

Interventions:

Walk through - set stage for shape, narrowness and compactness and demonstrate good pressing technique and highlight inside shoulder press

Concurrent - foucs on technique of pressing and communication from all defenders and keeper

Terminal - focus on correcting shape, highlighting reference points and 

During small sided game mostly concurrent coaching on staying narrow and compact and getting to mannequins for offside line.  Encouraging midfield 3 to protect middle and prevent splits and the centerbacks and 6 to protect the space behind.  Work with keeper on organization and moving and shifting the defense in front and taking charge on high balls into the box.