 I've been meaning to do a defending tutorial and I've got my friend Dawson here is gonna help me out So we're gonna demonstrate today. He's gonna play the attacker. I'm gonna play the defender And I just got a couple of tips a couple things I want to make sure that you're actually doing every time you play okay So first thing just want you to go right over there for me is closing down Okay, I want you to get in the habit of closing down guys a lot quicker Don't give him time to play what most of us are doing is he's receiving the ball And then we're slowly jockeying Slowly closing that space down or even worse. We're giving him space. We're just waiting over here and If he has the ball, I'm just waiting. I'm like trying to cut a passing angle or something. I'm not closing him down Okay, this is very dangerous Especially if he's a skilled player and he can pick a pass or set up a teammate if I don't close him down quickly He can hurt my team. So first things first playing the ball. I want you to close down much quicker Okay, so I'm trying to close down this space much quicker. Good. Okay, once I get here then yes You can jockey you can get a bit lower to the ground. Okay, and I want you to get lower to the ground But number one you have to close down that space a lot quicker. So let me fix this quick Good, so play me the ball back. Okay, so number one close more intensely. Now if he has a bad touch Okay, I'm there right away I can pick that up and sometimes you want to anticipate that bad touch if you're playing against a player say like a Defender you're closing him down as an attacker and you know, he's gonna have a heavy touch You want to get there right away because you're gonna win that ball more times than not Okay, if he's a really skilled player and I know he's gonna have a really good touch Then I need to be a little more cautious. Okay, but I'm closing out quick now. I'm here now I'm just trying to stay in front of them. So Dawson come to this side Okay, so when he has the ball again playing the ball Close them down quick Okay, now when I'm here I'm getting low to the ground and I'm really focusing on staying in front of him I don't even necessarily need to make a tackle. Yes, I want you to make a tackle But you will win the ball more times than not just by staying in front of him. So if he moves this way Okay, I want to stay in front of him if he moves back the other way Just stay in front of him low to the ground when he shows too much of the ball So say he does have a bad touch then I'm gonna step in then I'm gonna be hard I'm gonna step in and I'll make my tackle. Okay Dawson come back over here Okay, so first thing close down that space quicker be more intense expect bad touches anticipate that ball as well So I don't have someone to pass to Dawson, but imagine someone was passing him the ball. I don't want to arrive After he's taking his first touch and then I'm there. Okay, if I can You want to anticipate that balls coming from someone else play back So imagine his teammate passed him the ball Okay, I want to get there right on his touch Boom then if he has a bad touch I can get there I can clean the ball up or if he's gonna try to beat me. I'm ready. I'm in his feet right now Okay, I'm forcing him to make a decision So I'm either tackling him or I'm forcing him to go backwards now when he gets turned backwards play the ball And actually come on this side so everyone can see okay, so When he's in front of me. Yes, I want to be really low I need to give him a little bit of space especially if he's a skilled player But I don't want to give him too much space that he can make a pass or dribble past me easily Okay, but when he gets turned so say the balls played him and he turns Here I want you to get really tight. Okay, do not give him a chance to breathe. This is when you need to get low to the ground I need to almost like push him out of the field Okay, and I can win the ball like that if he's not strong on the ball I'm gonna win it but when he turns is back to you take advantage of that I want to force him backwards or I want to force him to make a mistake Okay, but that's a great time for me to win the ball. So if he plays he gets turned Good now. We're tight now. We're tight. I'm all over him. I'm pushing him out of bounds Okay, not fouling, but I'm all over him. But look at my body positioning Okay, am I defending up here like this? Trying to put a little toe in hey, no, it's down here. This is how you defend properly on the ground Yes, it risks the chance of me getting nutmeg, but if he does not make me play through Okay, I'm here. I'm low to the ground I can turn quickly if you're up on your heels when you're defending and he makes a cut this way Okay, it's really tough for me to stay with him. So get lower to the ground the last thing I want to say is I need to go hard in and when I do have the chance to win the ball Okay, so Dawson has a ball closing quickly. I'm getting in here when I do have that chance Okay, I want to step through if I'm making that tackle. I'm getting low. I'm stepping through I'm pushing through the ball. I'm pushing through the man Okay, don't be afraid to get a little bit of body with your tackles I'm not trying I'm not telling you to be dirty, but I'm telling you to go hard If you go in weaker if he goes in harder than me, he's gonna win the ball. Dawson go get that ball come back but Okay, if he goes in harder than me, I just put a foot in Let's go in for a 50-50 Okay, if I just put a toe in come and tackle the ball and he goes in hard If I just put a toe in like this, okay, or I'm I'm really scared to put my foot in there I'm gonna get injured. I'm gonna get hurt But if we both go in and I go in harder than him, okay, maybe the ball bounces out, but I'm going through him Okay, I'm gonna win that battle more times than not. So think about those four things Just come over here for me, please Okay, first thing close quicker Can't close that space quicker get lower to the ground with your body positioning When you do have the chance to go for the tackle go in hard Don't be a wuss go in hard win that ball take the man with it Okay, and the last thing was if he gets turned I really don't want to give him any space Okay, if he's in front of me and he has control of the ball and he's coming at me Then yes, I need to jockey a bit when I see that opportunity. I'm gonna go in hard play the ball back but if he gets turned Yes, take advantage of that can't get low to the ground So if he does turn one way or the other I can stay with him, but force him backwards. Okay, so those are just four things I want you to think about the next time you're defending but number one be more intense Okay, enjoy defending enjoy closing people down Enjoy going in hard for tackles. Enjoy winning the ball back for your team Thanks for watching this video. Please like comment subscribe and come back tomorrow for another video