Practice: Defending in twos

This fast and frantic session offers a series of challenges in different zones and encourages players to apply defensive pressure the second that the opposition touch the ball. The four games in this activity provide players with opportunities to learn individual technique as well as visual cues that can help them decide when and where to provide cover.

Set up

Play a series of 2v2 games on the four different shaped zones shown in the diagram. Each zone has a coach or a server feeding balls in. 

How to play it

Divide players into pairs and play eight one-minute games. Each time a ball goes out of play, the server plays in a new ball to make games short and intensive. After each one-minute game, the losing team does five press ups for each goal’s difference in the scores. After each game rotate players to a different zone and play different opponents. Each zone provides a unique mental challenge, so soccer intelligence is activated too. With eight games, rotate to every field twice. 

Technique

This encourages players to apply pressure straight from the receiver’s first touch, with defenders adopting an angle of approach that denies options and protects vulnerable areas such as the goal and the passing lanes.