Southgate: Defend without tackling

Gareth Southgate, talks you through defending effectively without going to ground

With tackles scrutinised by referees more than ever before, it has become much tougher for defenders to do their job effectively.

While a well-timed challenge is still a thing of beauty, even the slight mistiming of a tackle can leave you treading on egg-shells for the rest of the match or - worse - heading for an early bath.

“More and more in the modern game free kicks are given for tackles,” former England defender Gareth Southgate told FFT.

“Staying on your feet is something that is very, very important. If you do that, then the forward always has to beat you and you’ll always have a chance to recover.”

Southgate, who made 429 Premier League appearances, believes that curbing your desire to dive in will, in turn, give you the opportunity to size up your opponent.

“In the amateur game, you’re likely to come up against a player you’ve never seen before. Allow yourself a bit of space - he could be the quickest thing you’ve ever seen, so you’ll have to give yourself a yard, until you’ve assessed what his strengths are.”

In this video, Southgate reveals how correct positioning and pressing can be much more effective than going to ground straightaway…

Gareth Southgate was speaking at the launch of the Carlsberg Pub Cup, a nationwide five aside competition for players of all standards. To register your pub visit www.carlsberg.co.uk/pubcup. Carlsberg is The Official Beer of The England Football Team and sponsor of UEFA EURO 2012.

Also see:
Southgate: Recovering from a setback
Southgate: What you need to win the cup
Southgate: Get your head on a goal kick
Midfield to defence: Making the switch
Southgate: Containing the threat
Southgate: Lay the perfect offside trap
Southgate: Defending set pieces
Southgate: Defending a lead under pressure
Southgate: Playing out from the back