Mass Youth Soccer Academy - Defending 2v2
Coaching Points: Defenders need to have the correct stance, be on their toes, with knees bent, one foot forward, one back, trying to anticipate when to close down their opponent. 1ST defender needs to bend their run to "take away" (block the path to) the goal, or force the ball in the direction of the second defender. The first defender then needs to "approach fast, arrive slow", bend run, have correct stance, try to win ball off first touch of opponent, delay progress of opponent by jockeying the player with the ball, and try to force them out of play and in the direction of the second defender. Once opponent goes where the defender wants them to go, they should tackle with front foot, not back foot.
1st defender says " I have ball", second says keep it left/right. Make sure that the 1st defender "affects" the ball…gets the head of the first attacker down by getting close to the 1st attacker ASAP. 2nd defender needs to be at approximately a 30 degree backward angle to the first defender on the side that the first defender is showing the ball towards. 2nd defender tells 1st defender which way to push attacker and gets ready to step towards the second attacker. Once the ball is passed to the 2nd attacker, the defenders roles change, and the previous 1st defender needs to be ready to drop off and cover (now serving as 2nd defender.)
1) Truck and Trail Warm-up. Balls are spread around the playing area. Players jog around in two’s and pressure (press) any ball, and their team-mate covers them. Then roles switch. Variation: can’t go to a ball that another pair is pressing. Variation: if another pair gets to the ball first, they can dribble at/past you and you play it live for 5 seconds. (10 Minutes)
2) Soccer Golf. This game is played in a space 22 yards by 17 yards, with two 2 yard goals in diagonally opposite corners. Two teams of 6 players are at the adjacent corner of the grid from where they are defending their goal. The supply of balls is there too. Game starts by one team passing the ball to their opponents. Play 2v2 until the ball is out of play. If a team dribbles through the goal, they get three points, a pass through the goal equals two points, and a dribble over the rest of the end line is worth one point. (14 Minutes)
3) 2v2 Flying Changes. Four goal game in grid 21X22. Goals are one yard wide, and about 9 yards apart, with 5 yards outside each of the goals. Each pair of goals is 22 yards from the opposite pair of goals. There are two groups of balls, one group behind one goal at each end. One pair brings ball out…one player from each line, to play 2v2 against one player from each of the two lines opposite. If ball is played over end line, the team defending that end go off, and immediately the next two players come on for that team with a ball. The team that had played the ball over the end line stay on, and now must transition to defense. If the ball goes over a side line, it's "all change", and the coach points to one of the two teams to say which team brings the next ball in. Should have at least 4 players behind each goal, for a total of 16 players. Keep game going at fast pace once players understand. Coach at end of game, rather than stop the fun. (14 Minutes) (1 minute water break)
4) 2v2 to goal Tournament. In 17x22 grids with two yard goals. If space is too small, have team teams of four, with 2 on 2 off, and switch every 2 minutes. (20 Minutes)
5) Review coaching points by asking questions of players.
