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The Principle of Space
Travis Braden, Regional coach Administrator
627-4666 (home)
629-5859 (work)
travis_braden@mgoblue.com
March 30, 2005
Today we are going to discuss one of the major keys to winning soccer-SPACE. Simply put the offensive goal is to create space and the defensive goal is to deny space. The following principles primarily apply to U10 and above, when the offside rule comes into effect, but they can (and should) be taught on a basic level at U8 and U6.
-Effective offensive space is created by moving, without the ball, away from defenders and teammates. Players should never stand still and they should never go to the teammate with the ball (“bunching up”), but rather the teammate should get the ball to them. Players should spread the field and use as much of it as possible in order to create space. Moving away from the ball takes defensive players away from it and therefore creates space. REMEMBER-MOVE INTO SPACE, NOT TOWARD THE PLAYER WITH THE BALL.
-Effective defensive space is created by closely marking opposing players, regardless of whether they have the ball or not, in an effort to deny space. More space means more options to dribble, pass, or shoot. The closer a player is to the goal the better chance of scoring. It seems logical to fall back and defend your goal, when in fact it’s much more effective to move forward and deny the opposition space.
-Defenders should move forward in accordance to where the ball is at on the field. If the ball is deep in the opponents’ end the defenders should be at midfield. This is much more effective than staying close to the goal. Staying near the goal only creates huge gaps in midfield which the opposition can use to create an effective attack or counterattack.
-Moving forward to deny space also utilizes the offside rule. The further forward the defenders are the less space the opposition has to work with because as soon as they penetrate they are offside. Defenders should not worry about opponents behind them (assuming they are offside) and thus they are able to fully concentrate on the ball and pressing forward in an attacking defense. Tying in with this is the “offside trap”, in which defenders (usually on a predetermined signal) all move forward at the same time, leaving previously onside opponents suddenly offside.
-Effective marking defense involves moving forward towards the opponent with the ball (again, denying space). Two steps is the ideal spacing between defender and attacker. Defending players must go after the ball and not backpedal as the attacker dribbles (creating space). Defending players must never run alongside the attacker as they dribble (again, creates space). Every attempt should be made to get in front of the defender or at least go after the ball.
-Moving forward to deny space can also create space for offensive attacks. Attacking with midfielders and even defenders is much more effective than just attacking with forwards. Defenders who come up can be a great help in providing good ball to the forwards and midfielders involved in the attack.
Easier said than done, right? Experience proves that players, especially younger players, tend to all bunch up around the ball and move in packs. Experience also proves that players will run the length of the field to stand in front of their goal because that way the opponent can’t score, right? However, by taking some time to explain the above principles, and taking the time at practice to implement them, your team will be much more successful in both attacking and defending. It all comes down to space-nobody can do anything without the space to do it in.
GOOD LUCK AND LET’S HAVE SOME FUN!!
Travis Braden
Region 151 Coach Administrator
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