SK Player Guides – Position by Position: Central Defender, with Gemma Bonner

Liverpool and England’s centre back sets out the position from the inside, and the emphasis falls as much on possession as on defending. A centre back’s job, she argues, is to keep the ball out and to start attacks, and should be as good at one as the other: play forward where possible, manage the tempo by waiting for the right pass, and go direct when there is space behind. Out of possession she describes the pairing – one in front of the centre forward to deny secure possession, one covering behind for loose balls – and the constant covering angles that need talking through with the midfield. Her lasting lesson is never to give up on a scenario, because a team mate, a ricochet or the woodwork may buy the time to recover.