Football/Soccer Session (Academy Sessions): Wrexham AFC Interview - Defending U16s

Technical (15 mins)

Set Up: 15 minutes

• 2 separate areas. 4 v 4.
• 1 central player stays in the scoring zone and 3 around the outside.
• Defenders only allowed inside the larger square but can't go into the scoring zone.
• Ball played in by the coach for scoring zone player to make a quick pass to outside.
• From there in the time limit the outside blues have to find a pass into the central man to score a point.
• Reds have to stop the passes being fired in.

Adaptations (Progressions & Regressions):

• Time limit shortening or lengthening.
• Touch limit.
• Swap a defender to an outside blue for more attacking success. 
• Let the middle blue go anywhere in the box would make it harder for defenders.

Challenges, Conditions or Targets:

• Defending team stopping the break of a line.
• Narrow and compact, defending the middle showing blues out wide.
• Affective communication among defenders to shuffle as a unit.
• Swap teams to beat their score.
• Rotate groups, 3 sets of games. 
• Promoting short sharp movements of defenders, checking shoulders, communicating, shuffling around to block passing lanes.

SSG (25 mins)

Set up: 25 minutes

• Half pitch.
• Cut off full back areas for the Blues as it isn't needed.
• Creating channels which run from the edges of the 18 yard box up the pitch.
• To create a defensive mindset blues goals are worth 2 if scored inside the box. (Conditional).

• Red team (Coached) setting up in a back 4, 2 holding midfielders and a striker. 

• Blue team (Supported) only condition is they keep their wingers in the wide areas when they have the ball in order to stretch the reds and create 1v1 in wide areas.
• Encouraged to get inside the box to score with 2 goals on offer.
• Ball speed and forward runs to create repetition of reds needing to defend.

Adaptations (Progressions & Regressions): 

• To start the blues get 2 goals for scoring inside the box, this can be reduced or increased depending on how the game is going.
• Red full backs are being left 1v1 with the wingers, this will progress to a red CM being able to drop in too if needed.
• Eventually the wide area marking are taken away to create 'free play' match experience. 
• Placing red team on limited touches as I don't wan't them controlling the game as defending is the topic.
• When red team win the ball back a time limit is in place for them to score otherwise possession is lost.
• No throw ins, always goes back to blue goalkeeper

What I want to see: 

• Defensive principles worked on throughout the session coming out.
• Defending narrow and compact, forcing out wide.
• Defending the box, stopping shots and dealing with crosses.
• Press quickly and aggressively when in an overload.
• Delay, compact and force back if attackers have the overload.