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Supreme Being
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Last Login: 18/05/2012 09:23:53
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| When your team defends free-kicks they should be ready to build a wall and know beforehand who is going into the wall and your goalkeeper must know which part of the goal to defend - they can't defend the whole goal themselves. On Saturday Didier Drogba was Chelsea's goal hero in the English FA Cup at Wembley with a free kick which gave them a 1-0 win over Portsmouth. It earned Carlo Ancelotti's side their first-ever League and FA Cup Double in his debut season in England. The free-kick was just outside the penalty area. However if the wall had been stronger it would have made the shot much more difficult and Portsmouth may not have gone a goal down. The players didn't remain solid or jump at the same time. Some of them even turned away as Drogba shot so they were unable to see the ball. The positioning of the England goalkeeper David James was poor, as well, allowing Drogba to score in the half of the goal James should have been protecting. You can watch a clip of the goal below, and in tomorrow's (Wednesday, May 9) Soccer Coach Weekly I have written a step-by-step guide to help you coach your players in the principles of building a wall - starting with your goalkeeper.
Dave Clarke, Editor of Better Soccer Coaching Head Coach of Soccer Coach Weekly blogging at Soccer Coach blog
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Forum Newbie
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Last Login: 18/05/2010 16:55:46
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I respectfully disagree that the wall is the reason Drogba was able to score in this case. Yes, it was not a great wall, and it does serve to show how it should not be done. But the shot is nearly perfect (a bender just inside the far post) and, most importantly, the keeper does not hold his spot, but instead slides over to behind the wall just before the shot, instead of defending the space he originally chose to (the far side of the goal, away from the wall). If the keeper had not moved over just before the shot, he might have had a play on that ball, even with as great a shot as it was.
You may be right in that the poor wall may have led the keeper to lack confidence that the wall would handle a shot coming its way, and that may have been what caused him to move over behind it at the last second. But Drogba ignores the weak wall and shoots for the narrow space just outside the keeper's reach. His focus and concentration are impressive.
Just my two cents.
Dino
Central California Soccer coach
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Forum Newbie
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Last Login: 18/05/2010 19:24:13
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| No question it was a great shot, but with all due respect, the wall is the problem. Watch the video, and at approximately 0:47 (taken from behind) you can see the defender move his head out of the way of the shot. If he doesn't move, he blocks it (painfully, no doubt, but that's not the point), and the keeper's poor positioning/movement doesn't matter. Also, if the defender who moved his head out of the way is tight against the player to his right, Drogba can't consider the shot me took.
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Supreme Being
Group: Moderators
Last Login: 18/05/2012 09:23:53
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If you watch carefully you can see Number 15 Florent Malouda of Chelsea lurking in but slightly behind the wall creating a man-sized gap. The Portsmouth players make no attempt to close that gap apart from a loose arm which swings into view in front of the ball. Malouda turns and would have been first to any rebound off the goalkeeper. In fact Malouda's role deserves some discussion and credit. He was the most aware player once the kick was taken. Also he takes the goalkeepers eye as something else for him to beware.
Drogba is very clever in the way he kicks the ball with direction and power through the gap, but James should have been better placed. If he had been would Drogba have tried that?
Dave Clarke, Editor of Better Soccer Coaching Head Coach of Soccer Coach Weekly blogging at Soccer Coach blog
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Forum Newbie
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Last Login: 19/05/2010 20:32:08
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Why oh why do a lot of players turn away when the opponent shoots? It doesn't hurt if you attack the ball so I can't understand why he turned his head away.
Drogba Malouda did great exploiting the weaknesses in the wall and it shows why they play in Chelsea and not in Pompey.
www.mrsoccerguru.com - Soccer Coaching and Free Drills
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