Amazing Tackles Can Win Major Matches

September 1, 2008

Is your tackling ability on a world class level? What would it take for you to elevate your skill to the world class level? Do you have what it takes to be a tackling specialist? You very well could and it all starts with you and simple fundamentals.

Tackling Defined

Tackling – is your ability to take the ball directly from your opponent. (pretty simple huh?)

What tackling looks like?

Players with strong tackling skills are excited about stripping the ball from their opponent. They look forward to and are as excited about taking the ball from their opponent as they are about scoring goals. Similar to they way a cat claws at ball of yarn, the tackling specialist knows just when to pounce on the ball.

Tackling should never be timid in nature. If you are going to tackle the ball go for it and get it. Don’t tackle your opponent with any doubt in your mind or you will have lost the battle before you begin it. Furthermore, you stand to risk injury to yourself if you are timid in your ability to tackle strongly.

Fabio Cannavaro, 2006 FIFA Footballer Of The Year, embodies the genius of tackling. With cat like reflexes Cannavaro’s tackling ability and defensive organization was on of the key reasons Italy won the World Cup in 2006.

The Right Action At The Right Time

Smart tackling requires a strong ability to read the game and more importantly the player from whom you must take the ball from. You have study their body posture, movement and the cues they give you. Look to see if they are timid on the ball an test them with your own jab (false step toward the ball) as it may just shake their control.

Picking the right time to tackle may be one of the more important aspects of the skill. Many times players are beaten by their opponent because they were not patient enough to see the right moment or are over aggressively by diving in and find their opponent blowing by them.

Allow your opponent to really show you the ball. For instance, when a striker is barreling down on goal and he exposes the ball out in front of himself more so than he appears comfortable with. This is the time, pounce on that ball like a tiger does on its prey and don’t look back.

Ideas for action:

Watch game film and take note of how various defenders tackle in various situations.
Record you own play and watch/review your tackling behavior carefully.
Challenge a few friends to 1 v 1, 2 v 2, and 3 v 3 games where the number of successful tackles that cause a change of possession earn a point.
Run ladder footwork drills to improve foot movement speed for tackling.
Count the number of successful tackles you make in your next game. Then work to beat your tackling record every game.

As part of FFC’s series on, “24 Key Elements To Being A Great Footballer” we are discussing each key element in 24 successive blog posts every Monday, Wednesday & Friday over an 8 week period inside the respective Game, Body and Mind sections. For more information about the 24 Key Elements get our Players Assessment Kit here. Be sure to also subscribe to FFC by email or RSS - just visit the subscribe button in the top right corner of the page.

What ideas, input, experiences or resources can you share?

Written by Jason · Filed Under GAME, Tackling | Leave a Comment

Marking To Protect Your Net

August 18, 2008

This kicks off our first post in our focused series, “24 Key Elements To Being A Great Footballer”. Over the next 8 weeks we’ll be taking an in-depth and fundamental look into the key skills that most great footballers possess. Today we are talking about marking.

What marking looks like?

Marking is your ability to track and apply pressure on your opponent or a specific area on the field of play. The two major forms of marking used in modern day football are known as ‘Man marking’ and ‘Zonal marking’.

MAN MARKING

There are a couple of critical factors to consider in this role. First, the distance between the marker and the opponent must remain minimal. Make your presence known by your opponent with contact - if your opponent knows your just a step from them they understand that they must be sharp to handle the ball or work harder to shake you off. Second, a marker’s concentration is to be on the player’s positioning, rather than the ball. Managers will often use ‘man marking’ when defending set pieces. So, don’t get caught ball watching or your opponent will break free and be in a position to score or become a serious threat on your net.

ZONAL MARKING

Zonal marking is based on the position of the ball in regard to the closest opposition player. Markers can increase the distance between the player and themselves if the ball is distant from them. A general guide in this case, would be to allow no more than a 90-degree angle of vision between the ball and the opposing player. Think of a perfect triangle with you at the point. If you’re equidistant between your opponent and the ball then your in position to manage potential offensive threats.

5 Ideas for action:

In order to improve your marking skill consider the following:

Watch the best strikers and how they lose their marker, remember the tricks and learn. For example Ruud Van Nistelrooy.
Look at how the best markers stay with their man and how they read the game. For example Riccardo Carvalho.
Practice with the best strikers available, play against different styles like tall, strong or quick and skillful. Create 1v1 and 2v2 situations with a server to play the ball in to your striker. Make these happen in and around the realistic positions of the pitch
Find evidence in the league tables of top scores and best defence and watch both teams (if different)
In training try new ways of staying with your man for man marking or reading the game when playing zonal. This will give you more confidence in the game and also give you better knowledge of your own capabilities

What ideas, input, experiences or resources can you share?

Written by glittlefield · Filed Under GAME, Marking & Defending | 1 Comment