Great Defenders & How to Play Like Them

[Paul Seager]

Like the previous two incarnations of this highly informative series of topics, I'm going to select a playing position and dissect the elements needed to succeed. This week I shall be covering the defense position.

So what are the typical ingredients for an impenetrable defense? Well, it all depends what formation you're playing. Like the midfield, the back four/three of a defense needs to be a blended mixture of skill, pace, agility and strength. Other attributes such as a player's height comes into it, but "tallness" is hardly an attribute that you can train towards obtaining.

In my eyes, there are mainly three types of defenders used in the modern team. You've got your strong, "heart on your sleeve" types like John Terry, you've got your classy defenders like Rio Ferdinand that like to pick up the ball and immediately link the defense to attack and then you've got your quick footed, attack-minded fall backs like Daniel Alves.

So allow me to kick off this week's proceedings by covering a true giant of the modern game, Johnathon Terrence.

John Terry (Chelsea)

You can say what you want about the man, but as a player there's nothing you can hold against him. He's been the rock at the back of Chelsea's and England's defense for little under a decade now, and a lot of the team's success has been down to his strength of character and will to win alone. This is a player that leads by example, and although not particularly skilled in an attacking sense, you can be sure that every time he walks on to that field he'll be giving his all for the cause.

Attributes
Power
Tackling ability
Leadership skills
Bottle

How to play like him

Power
John Terry's strength lies in his physical build, which has a lot to do with a person's genes. Obviously anyone can bulk themselves up by going to the gym, but it's your genes that determine wether or not you're going to be 6'5 or 5'3. Power is an important attribute for a defender to have, regardless of height, as you'll need to be able to contend physically with the most brutish of players.

Tackling ability
Ah, the art of the tackle. Probably one of the more controversial aspects of the beautiful game, but without it I don't believe the sport would be half as engaging to watch. There's nothing like watching a tackle being executed to perfection. It's a skill that you can learn, but generally it's about accuracy and more importantly, timing. Which I believe has more to do with natural ability than it does practice. Take Paul Scholes for instance. He's a master of the game, yet his tackling (to be frank) is down right shocking at times. So it goes to show, you're either born with it or you're not. That doesn't mean that you shouldn't try to become good at it, but I can't think of many drills that allow you to practice the skill without potentially causing harm to a team mate.

Another thing that's important about tackling is not to go sliding in at the first given opportunity. As I said, it's all about timing and players that are good at dribbling absolutely love a player that goes flying into a tackle. Remember, it's a lot harder to round a player that's standing his ground than one that's on the floor.

Leadership skills
This is probably the ability that John Terry is most noted for. He leads by example, and always gives nothing less than 110% every time he walks out of that tunnel.

Being a good leader requires a number of attributes. You've got be vocal, be organised and be willing to give support to your team mates in the most difficult of circumstances. Like when a player on your team scores an own goal or makes a huge error. Of course it's frustrating for you and the team as a whole, but it takes good leadership to get the team motivated enough to turn things around.

Bottle
If your from the outside the UK, you probably don't know what the term "bottle" means. To have "bottle" is to be brave and fearless in the face of danger, and when he's on the pitch, John Terry is certainly that. I've seen him suffer a variety of injuries due to his "live or die" approach, yet he still comes out raring to go every time. People say that there's a thin line between bravery and stupidity but when the time calls for it in football, it's sometimes best to be both.

Video example





Rio Ferdinand (Man Utd)

Being a die hard West Ham, I've been aware of Rio since his early days when he come through the ranks of the prestigious West Ham academy. He's as solid as a defender comes, world class in fact and was always destined to play at the very top. His main notable attributes are his awareness of the game in motion and his anticipation, but he's also largely renowned and applauded for his ability to link defense to attack.

Attributes
Power
Pace
Positioning/Anticipation
Tackling ability
Quick feet

How to play like him

Power
See John Terry.

Pace
Being quick has a lot to do with natural ability, but it also helps to know the right running techniques. There is also a good body of drills that can be utilized to improve a players speed and agility, which helps you improve your acceleration and speed on the turn.

Positioning/Anticipation
Everyone has heard the phrase "right place at the right time", well, Rio's timing and anticipation is impeccable. It's down to being able to read the game well. You can't learn the art of positioning with just yourself and a ball. You need to be playing with a group of people in a reasonably competitive environment to really get a grasp of it. Next time you're playing, try to anticipate your opponents next move and try to be aware of where space is needed to be filled.

Tackling ability
See John Terry.

Quick feet
See Dani Alves.

Video Example



Daniel Alves (Barcelona)

A remarkable full back who naturally is the protege to the great left back Roberto Carlos. Not only has he got the strength and stamina to compete with the best, but he's also got a great awareness of knowning when to attack and when to sit back. It's important for a full back to exercise a certain degree of caution when pushing as it's a lot harder to rectify mistakes when they happen at the back. Problem is, a team can stagnate and become sterile if a full back is unwilling to push and make overlaps. So timing is crucial and Daniel Alves is the master of it.

Attributes
Passing
Positioning
Quick feet
Stamina

How to play like him

Passing ability
For an attacking full back, being able to pass from a distance or at close range is imperative. It's their job to link the defense to the attack and to utilize the space on the wings. Without a good decent range of passing your team will suffer. Like a lot of things in football (and in life) it takes time, patience and dedication to get good at it. Start by getting the basics right (passing with the outside, inside, and front of your boot) and then start practicing your long range and quick one touch passing.

Positioning
See Rio Ferdinand.

Quick feet
This, like a players stamina and passing ability, is another skill that can be refined over time. The best way to do this (in my opinion at least) is to just practice, on your own, with the ball at your feet for extensive periods. Go through little drills with yourself. You don't necessarily need to use cones (although they do help), just go through a variety of touches. Knock the ball in between your feet or behind you, turn on the ball, do step overs, and weave the ball backwards and forth with the inside and outside of your boot respectively. The different combinations of moves and touches available at your disposal are endless really, and a lot of them you just simply make up on the spot after a while. First however you need to make sure you get the basics right, and like anything you practice enough, it'll start coming together for you.

Stamina
Having good stamina is something that you can definitely achieve from training alone. The best and most effective way of gaining this attribute is by long distance running. The average professional player runs up to 12 miles in a match at a variety of different speeds. If you can apply this to a strict cardio regime with a varied degree of speed, you'll be "match fit" in no time.

Video examples



Well that's it for now folks, this was the last installment of this trilogy of topics (you can find the other ones in this forum as well). As you've probably found out over the course of these threads, it takes a lot to be the best. Most of these techniques and attributes can be taught and perfected on the training field. Professional football players aren't gods. They're human beings, you're not born with the ability to play professional football. It takes hard work, determination and a hell of a lot of time to reach that level of performance, and with the right motivation and work ethic, there's absolutely no reason why anyone else can't either.