I watched Jamie Carragher the other night and it was apparent he was in his opponent's personal space. he was there the whole game. He just wouldn't leave them alone. He had his hand on their shoulders he pushed them away, he shoved them with his shoulder. He pushed them around. Of course this is his job, and has been for the past 20 years, to interfere with, harass and stop his opponents from scoring. What makes him (and others like Vidic, Gallas, Skrtel, Terry and Puyol) so successful?
They are willing to make physical contact with their opponents. Soccer is a contact sport and whoa to the soccer mom and dad who think their little jewel isn't going to be pushed around, stepped on or tackled. This is the game. Attacking players make moves to get around defenders and defenders get in attackers personal space and screw them up.
A simple drill I watched the other night requires very little organization, about 20x40 m minimum 10-12 players and a couple of balls.
Have the players spread out in the grid and start by just passing around. Low hard quality passes. The passer follows their pass, and the receiver takes a touch and then passes to another teammate.
Now comes the challenging part. The passer must "tag" the receiver. This means the passer must sprint after their pass and close down the receiver. Do not have them block the pass. Use at least two balls to maintain tempo, increase to three if the players can handle the additional pressure.
This drill if performed well encourages fitness, initial contact and passing under pressure. Simple to learn and not hard to master.
Walk On
Hal White
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