Heading
Defensive Heading Clearance: Shadow Pressure
Clear the ball high, far and wide
Heading
Defending
Set Pieces
Defensive Heading Clearance: Shadow Pressure is a 12-minute heading drill for 3-14 players, suitable for Under 12 to Adults at beginner, intermediate, advanced level. You need balls, cones, full goals. Below you will find the objective, the set-up, how to run it, coaching points, common mistakes, progressions, regressions and variations.
Back to drill libraryHeading
Defending
Set Pieces
Technical Practice
Beginner
Intermediate
Advanced
Full Squad
Youth Friendly
Adult Suitable
Goals Needed
Opposed
Under Pressure
Game Realistic
Duration
12 min
Players
3-14
Pitch size
Penalty area
Ability levels
Beginner / Intermediate / Advanced
Pitch diagram
Defensive Heading Clearance: Shadow Pressure — Marked area · Penalty area
Step 1 of 4Defender attacks the delivery and heads clear into the target zone.
- 1. Defender attacks the delivery and heads clear into the target zone.
- 2. Recover to the edge of the box after every clearance.
- 3. Ten repetitions each.
- 4. A shadow defender applies half pressure and can win the ball only after the first touch.
- Cones mark the area
- Dashed lines = zones / thirds
- Ball
- C = coach / server
- Solid arrow = pass, thick = shot, dashed = run / dribble
Objectives
- -Clear the ball high, far and wide
- -Attack the ball first
- -Reorganise after the clearance
Setup
- 1Server on the flank delivering into the box.
- 2Defenders start on the six yard line.
- 3Target zone cones outside the box.
Coaching instructions
- 1Defender attacks the delivery and heads clear into the target zone.
- 2Recover to the edge of the box after every clearance.
- 3Ten repetitions each.
- 4A shadow defender applies half pressure and can win the ball only after the first touch.
Coaching points
- -Attack the ball at the highest point
- -Head through the bottom half to send it high
- -Clear towards the side, not the middle
- -Take the touch away from pressure
- -Protect the ball with the far foot and body
Common mistakes
- -Waiting on the goal line
- -Heading straight up
- -Static jump with no run-up