In this post we will talk about our 7 and 11, this means you are playing the Midfield Wing position. The 7 refers to the player on the right side of the midfield while the 11 plays the left side. For reference my U13 teams play a 4-2-3-1 and I am very comfortable with my Wing Backs (2 and 3) making overlapping runs up the field when we are in possession. If this is not your style of play you may have to adapt this concept to a more conservative back line preference. First we must look at the ideal traits of a Wing Midfielder:

Physical stamina to be able to attack on offense and get back to assist in defense
Must be good in 1v1 situations
Possess decent technical skills (similar to the 9 and 10)
Excellent at service to central field
Be EXCEPTIONAL at 1v1 DEFENDING
Be EXCEPTIONAL at intercepting passes when DEFENDING

Although it may seem that the 7/11 is very offensive minded the reality is this position does carry large defensive and marking responsibilities in the modern game. Unless your name is Ronaldo, odds are good you are going to have to defend as a winger.

Lets look at several common situations where our 7 or 11 needs to play defense and how to handle it:

SITUATION: The WING MIDFIELDER has made a run up the field on the offensive attack but we have now lost possession to the oppositions defender. The Wing Defender (2, 3) is in a support role behind you. PROBLEM: Our players are pushed high up the field in the attack (which they should be) but now we are open to a counter attack as we only have a single defender on either side of the field (our 2 or 3) and potentially three of the opponents midfielders (6, 8, 10) vs only two of our players (6, 8) in the center of the field. SOLUTION: 1) Identify if our 9 (forward) has isolated the field in a specific direction. 1a) The 9 HAS isolated the field AWAY from your side - you must make a hard run to drop and pinch-in to the midfield area on your side of the field to prevent the Central Midfielders on the other team from getting a easy pass up the middle (this is especially true if your opponent is playing a triangle midfield). The weak-side Wing Midfielder must both mark the opponents central midfielder while securing the passing lane to prevent any long passes/chips out wider then the position they are playing. 1b) The 9 HAS isolated the field TOWARD your side - you must mark the opponents outside midfielder and prevent a pass or through ball from breaking our line. You can live with the ball going to the 2 or 3 as they are not in a dangerous area. We want to prevent them from advancing the ball toward our goal but are content with them playing side-to-side. This is a situation where we play containment and attempt to trap the opponent while allowing our players who pushed-up to recover. 1c) The 9 has failed to or is not in position to control the direction of the ball - you must drop into a containment position on your side of the field and attempt to prevent a pass out wide. You want to keep the play in the middle of the field where we have more support. A Wing Midfielder cannot let the other team get outside and have a free run up the sideline.

SITUATION: The WING MIDFIELDER has made a run up the field on the offensive attack but we have now lost possession to the oppositions defender. Our Wing Defender has made an overlapping run and is also in a MORE forward position. PROBLEM: Our players are pushed high up the field in the attack but now we are open to a counter attack behind your position in the wide-area of the field. SOLUTION: 1a) Are you the closest defender to the ball? If yes, you must apply pressure (containment) but not stab or overrun. You must give your Wing Defender time to recover. The Defensive Midfielders (6 or 8) must slide over to fill the midfield space and provide the cover for you - one player only but never both. The Central Defenders (4 or 5) must also side over to the ball side whereas the 4 or 5 basically become the Wing Defender until that player can recover. 1b) Are you the closest defender to the ball? If no, you must make a recovery run to become the 2 or 3 Wing Defender until they can recover. You will need to identify any attacking players in a wide area and make sure you are ball side of them (in the passing lane of a long pass). You can play loose defense on them as long as you are close enough to recover if the other team chips the ball long to your side but you MUST remain on the goal side and keep them in an outside zone. Hopefully the Wing Defender (2, 3) has recovered into position and can provide you cover if you get beat.

SITUATION: Our team has made a run up the field on the offensive attack but we have now lost possession to the opposition who is playing the ball up the middle of the field. PROBLEM: Our players are pushed high up the field in the attack but now we are open to a counter attack. SOLUTION: Identify where is the player you need to mark. You will want to position yourself goal side of the mark (directly between them and the goal is ideal) with your eyes checking between the ball and the mark. The marking will most likely prevent the pass as it will look to be dangerous but if not you should be able to jump into the passing lane and intercept the pass. The big danger is if they can get a though ball past you to their wing midfielder making a run in behind you. Hopefully your defense can assist if this occurs but you must make every effort to prevent it from happening or looking to dangerous to risk.

SITUATION: Our opponent is in possession of the ball on our defensive third and is in a wide position. PROBLEM: Our Wing Defenders (2, 3) are defending the player with the ball but the other team is looking to drop the ball back into the midfield and potential swing the ball to the middle. SOLUTION: Identify where is the player you need to mark in the midfield to prevent the drop. You MUST be in the direct line of the drop pass. If our Wing Defender is doing their job and preventing the cross we must do ours in eliminating the drop option. As you can imagine this will greatly limit our opponents options and if our central players are also on the marks in the middle of the field.