Picking Your Opponents Pocket By Reading The Game
September 25, 2008
In football you’re either picking pockets or getting your pocket picked. Who are you? Hopefully, you’re a step ahead of your opponent and picking pockets or are the interceptor but, if you’re not you can do something about it. Learning the art of interception is all about timing and reading the game. And, if you watch some of the best footballers in the world, you’ll notice how good they are at this skill.
So, what does intercepting look like?
Intercepting is your ability to consistently be a step ahead of your competitor and being able to dispossess your opponent. To intercept is to stop the ball or arrivarriving at it’s destination. For example, a pass from one player to another player across the field. This can be achieved in many forms, a catch from a goalkeeper, a header from an intended cross cleared by a defender or more commonly the dispossession of an opponent while making or once made a pass.
Alternatively a lack of good ball control can offer a dispossession opportunity. Intercepting differs from tackling as it is considered to be a judgement, an anticipation of an opposing players pass, cross, or shot. Timing is crucial and would be attributed in the past to players who may have lots of experience such as the amazing Bobby Moore, a world cup winner with England in 1966. Also, from Germany the famous Franz Beckenbauer and more recently Lothar Matthaus are two other masters of reading the game and the art of interception. An ideal player to watch today would be Claude Makelele who plays for Paris St. Germain and the French National Team.
Now that you have a basic understanding, the time is now to focus on becoming one of the best interceptors and play makers. You would not believe how many of personal goals are made available now to due to this new system.
5 Ideas for Action:
1. In a small group, a light warm-up without over stretching, would be to form a circle with players in close proximity and have one opposition player in the middle who can only intercept a pass. Thus aiding to the reading of players movements and faints before making a pass.
2. Practice long passes amongst a group of five with emphasis on control and pass (two touch) giving the opposition players (2) an opportunity to put pressure on and eventually win the ball by anticipating the pass.
3. A good way to understand when to intercept is to mark an opposition player and then anticipate his next move therefore arriving before and stealing possession. An excellent practice is 1v1 marking with 4 servers at varying distances and angles. The marker in this case can only win possession by anticipating a pass.
4. Watch different leagues and players . It’s important to see good and bad examples of anticipation and intercepting and evaluate each as so.
5. Develop an intuition in training matches for when is the correct time to intercept and when not to.
Comments
Got something to say?
