In order to have a great defense players must first communicate and give tremendous effort.

Without communication and effort all defensive schemes will fail. In the Championship Productions video,below Doug Elder, Midwest State University Head Coach and winningest active coach in NCAA Division II soccer, demonstrates a 3 v 2 drill that focuses on defenders’ communication and work rate.

The drill is one in a series of progressive drills he uses to teach pressure defense.

The video has sound so please make sure your sound is turned on. The video is a You Tube video, so you will need to be able to access that site.

For more information about the DVD that this clip came from click the link Winning With High Pressure Defense

In this 3 vs 2 drill Coach Elder has the players working in a small box approximately 10x10yds. The two defenders are working in tandem to pressure the ball and eliminate the through ball or pass to the middle.

The drill begins with the coach passing to ball to one of the three offensive players. The nearest defender sprints to the ball communicating with his teammate that he has the ball. The on-ball defender is tight trying to win the ball or pressure a bad pass.The other defender sprints to the middle to position himself such that he can prevent a through ball.

The defense is trying to force the pass back or square. On the pass the nearest defender will take the ball and the other defender will sprint to the middle and squeeze the gap in order to eliminate a through ball. To achieve this the will have to work hard to not get stretched. The must squeeze in order to protect the middle.

The key teaching points in this drill are:

1. Communication
2. Work Rate
3. No Pretend Pressure

The players will defend for 45 seconds and then rotate groups. The drill can be made competitive by awarding a point every time the offense moves the ball across the line and the defense gets a point if the hold for 45 seconds.