I can’t say if you’ll agree with me on this but in youth soccer drills, defense is the foundation on which the game depends. When the score in a game is 0-0, it is said to be a perfectly played defensive soccer by both sides.
But, in kids soccer drills, there are two phases to winning a game. First is when an exceptional defense is demonstrated. Second is the fact that your team has a great offense competent of defeating the other team’s defense.
In order for the players to score, they must be able to catch the ball. There are a few coaches who tend to teach their players either of the two; offense or defense. But, a player is completely trained only when he is proficient in playing offense when the ball is with him or her and defense when it is with the other team’s players.
Those players who let go of the ball in youth soccer practice should be the ones who chase the ball. This is necessary and most appropriate because the person who loses the ball is the one closest to the ball. So it’s imperative for him or her to put pressure on the player who has the ball now.
In other words, he must try to get the ball back as quickly as he can. An added benefit is that the remaining team members would also get a chance to recover and take their defensive positions. This way the opponent player who has the ball will not be allowed a free run on the field.
Players can be taught these skills by following the below mentioned techniques.
Immediate chase: When taken care of effectively in youth soccer drills, the opposition feels a lot of pressure from all sides. And eventually this has the effect of them losing the possession of the ball or executing a wrong pass.
Fall back and delay: This necessitates the remaining team members to fall back, and challenge the opponent with the ball and delay him or her from getting into their team’s goal area.
Since the center of the field is the trickiest place to be in, ask your players to force the opposition player with the ball towards the touchline. This will restrict his or her ability to pass the ball, and also limits the directions that he or she can go to.
Arc of Concentration: In terms of scoring, the Arc of Concentration is the riskiest area. Maximum number of goals is scored by players in the arc of concentration. So it’s very important to teach the players in youth soccer coaching to concentrate on moving the ball outside of this area.
This arc falls right ahead of the goal. It sets out from one corner post of the goal all the way through the corner of the goal box and goes on to the touchline. The chances of a goal being scored are high when the ball is in this area.
The above methods are the easiest and most effective in teaching players effective game strategies and youth soccer drills.
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Andre Botelho is a recognized authority in youth soccer coaching and has already helped thousands of youth coaches to dramatically improve their coaching skills. Learn how to explode your players’ skills and make training fun by downloading your free ebook at: http://www.soccerdrillstips.com.
