Emergency Defending

Our picks

Try these sessions selected by our coaching team if you're not sure where to start. Or scroll down to browse all the sessions in this section

Alan Pardew

Defending crosses with a back three

This session is all about setting a team up in a 3-5-2 formation and coaching them to defend against crosses from wide areas. It initially ...

Graham Alexander

Defending in the final third

This session is all about defending in the final third. It’s a practice that we use regularly as it replicates situations that defenders ...

Dean Smith

Defending the box

This session is all about the back four and the real basics of defending. It teaches players that if one player goes for a header, the ...

Gary Rowett

Defending the danger zone

This session is designed to work on defending in the ‘danger zone’, but it also works on attacking in the danger zone too. Studies have ...

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Armand Kavaja

Desire to defend at all costs

This session focuses on defending the box through repetitive attacking waves. During the session, players will get plenty of opportunity ...

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Matthew Etherington

Emergency defending

This training session is a based around a 4v2 possession scenario that progresses into a 5v4 overloaded transition for the defenders.

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Mark Hudson

Improving transitions

This training session is designed to create multiple opportunities for players to instantly switch from an attacking moment to a defensiv...

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Alex Bruce

Attacking and defending in wide and central areas

In this session two teams work on attacking and defending in wide and central areas of the pitch

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Jack Cassidy

Full backs defending in wide areas

This is a position-specific session aimed at making full backs better at defending in wide areas of the pitch.

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Gabriele Cioffi

Building up and transition to defend a cross

This session is about how we get our centre backs to build up play against two or three opponents (two strikers, or two strikers and one ...

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Mark Bowen

Defending 1v1 and against overloads

This training session is aimed at educating defenders in the skillsets, communication ability and decision making needed when they are go...

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Jack Ross

Improving the defence

This training session gives your players the opportunity to rehearse different kinds of defending, setting up situations where they are: ...

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Andy Leaning

Shot-stopping for keepers

This high tempo session is used to improve a goalkeeper’s footwork and mobility around the six-yard box. It helps him to move into line a...

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Nigel Adkins

Defending crosses

This session enables defenders to learn how to best to repel a number of different crosses into the box. We test defensive strength again...

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Mark Yates

Reorganising for the second phase of crossing

This session is about defending the second ball. There are a number of teams in our league who use crosses into the box as a key repetiti...

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Joe Dunne

Defending the phases from crosses

This session helps players improve their ability to defend the first ball into the box, then subsequent phases of crosses.

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David Kemp

Defensive headers

This session examines the skill and art of defensive headers. It’s a simple exercise, but practice makes permanent.

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John McMahon

Crosses into the box

This session examines the roles of the keeper when dealing with crossing, and attacking threat from wingers and forwards in penalty box s...

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Stephen Constantine

Defending crosses

This session is designed to rehearse players in defending against different types of cross from a variety of positions on the pitch, so w...

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Tony Mowbray

Defending the box

My defenders tend to panic when winning the ball in defence and punt the ball out, only for it to come straight back. How can I get them ...

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Gareth Ainsworth

Defending crosses

This session is all about defending against crosses in and around the penalty area. It allows us to work with the players on their defens...

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Steve Davis

Preventing crosses

This session is about full-backs and wingers stopping crosses into the penalty area.

Most attacks come from out wide, so the abi...

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Roberto Martinez

The 1v1 situation

Any football game relies on being able to control 1v1 situations, in defence or in attack. In 1v1s, it’s not just the technical aspect of...

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Martin Ling

Defending in the final third

This session examines defending in the final third, specifically through the organisation and movement of the back four.

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Derek Egan

Emergency defending with a back three

This training session is focused on making the three centre backs understand the four D’s – that they should delay, deny, dictate and def...

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Keith Hill

Defending in and around the box

This session is about defending the 18-yard box when in control and when in states of ‘chaos’. It’s a great practice that improves both i...

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Andrew Sparkes

Shot stopping for keepers

This is a functional shot stopping session that starts using just the goalkeepers and the goalkeeping coach and it then progresses into a...

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Andy Thorn

Balancing the back four

This session is about the back four working as a unit. It looks for them to clear the ball past a target when dealing with a range of del...

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John Sheridan

Clearing defensive danger

This session is about the reactions and movements of defensive players. It looks primarily at the role of the back four in squeezing up a...

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Andy Quy

Great goalkeeping

This is a session for goalkeepers that teaches and rehearses dealing with crosses, both opposed and unopposed, and in the context of a sm...

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Dave Jones

Penalty box battles

Defending is a skill that needs practice, as much as dribbling or passing. Within that, it’s vital that players win their 1v1 duels, part...

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Mark Bowen

Defending crosses

Use this session to develop the decision making and positional awareness of defenders when faced with a variety of dangerous balls crosse...

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Seamus McDonagh

Direct distribution

Distribution from goalkeepers - using both feet - is now a vital part of the game. This session helps distribution to real targets become...

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Eric Steele

Keeper match day warm-up

Make sure your keeper is properly warmed up for a match, both mentally and tactically – after all, his or her first task might be to rece...

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Adrian Tucker

Keeper’s kicking drill

The platform for success often starts with a comfortable and confident goalkeeper, which is why this practice is designed to enhance the ...

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Perry Suckling

Goalkeeping 1v1

A goalkeeper must be quick to deal with a 1v1 situation. Not just quick footed, but quick thinking too. This training session creates jus...

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Kenny Jackett

Dealing with crosses

Get your players dealing with crosses that are played both into and outside of the 18-yard box. Heading, clearances, blocks and communica...

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Richie Barker

Crossing for keepers

Coach your goalkeepers in the basics of anticipating crosses and dominating their area. Having a trustworthy, proficient keeper positivel...

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Adrian Tucker

Close range blocking for keepers

Develop the speed of your goalkeepers' close-range reactions by getting them to use different techniques to secure, block, parry or defle...

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Dave Bassett

Defensive understanding through heading

Use this session to improve understanding between your defenders and goalkeeper. It teaches them how to cope with long aerial deliveries,...

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Javi Gracia

Defending crosses

This is a session to improve both individual and team defending when an attack comes from wide and balls are crossed into the box.

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Billy Mercer

Keepers: crossing and distribution

This is a keeper session that looks at dealing with crossing then distributing into counter-attacking areas beginning with a good warm-up...

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Simon Grayson

Defending crosses

Challenge your players to properly defend crosses into the 18-yard box with this session that examines the requirements of technique, com...

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Dean Smith

Match specific defending

Use this session to teach players the key points involved in being a solid defensive team – namely patience, and the ability to delay the...

Angled shot stopping

This session is focused on angled shot-stopping. It looks at the principles of moving around the goal in order to give a keeper the best ...

Dealing with crosses

This session is designed to help goalkeepers deal with crosses of different heights, power and trajectories. It will not only show them the ...

Defending the box

The session looks at the core ideal of defending the box, and with it, the goal. It uses 1v1, 2v2 and 3v3 systems working in a unit, ...

Clever keeper distribution

This session is about keeper distribution and retaining possession by building play from the back. It mimics short passes to centre-backs ...

Defending crosses

You only have to look at the number of goals scored from crosses to know why it’s important for to practise this session. It works ...

Defensive principles

All basic defending principles can be developed and practised with this session, particularly holding up attacks, pushing up from the back, ...

Goal kicks: Phases of play

Use this session to focus on the phases of play from offensive and defensive goal kicks and pass-backs.

Improving defending

This session is all about establishing and improving defensive principles. It is essential that players know how to defend in all ...

The sweeper keeper

Using this session improves goalkeepers’ reading of the through-ball, and strengthens decision-making behind a back three or four.

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Emergency Defending

Our picks

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Coaches' Testimonials

Alan Pardew

Arsène Wenger

Brendan Rodgers

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José Mourinho

Jürgen Klopp

Pep Guardiola

Roy Hodgson

Sir Alex Ferguson

Steven Gerrard

Join the world's leading coaches and managers and discover for yourself one of the best kept secrets in coaching. No other training tool on the planet is written or read by the calibre of names you’ll find in Elite Soccer.

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