Win the ball with a firm block tackle. Jockey to stay in front, be patient, and step in on the front foot to block it the moment the attacker knocks it past, staying on your feet.
An attacker dribbles at a defender who jockeys, waits, and makes a front-foot block tackle to win the ball the moment it is knocked past, then clears it. Emphasise patience, staying on the feet, a firm strong ankle through the ball, and getting tight at the moment of the tackle. Do not dive in. Rotate the roles.
A tackle is not something a defender does, it is something an attacker allows. That reframing fixes more young defenders than any amount of technical instruction, because the fault is almost never the tackle itself. It is going for a ball that was never available.
The ball is available at one specific moment: immediately after the attacker knocks it past his own body, when it is momentarily closer to the defender than to him. Everything before that is jockeying. A defender who understands he is waiting for a cue rather than looking for an opportunity becomes patient automatically, and patience is what stops the lunge.
The technique is straightforward once the timing is right. Step in on the front foot with the inside of the foot locked, get tight through the ball rather than poking at it, and stay on your feet. Locked ankle matters because an attacker will often be striking through the ball at the same moment, and a loose foot loses that contest and can turn an ankle.
Staying upright is the part worth insisting on because it decides what happens next. A defender who wins it standing can play immediately, turning a tackle into possession. One who wins it on the floor has produced a loose ball that either side might get.
The honest note for young players: most attempted tackles in a match should not be attempted at all. Containing, delaying and shepherding an attacker away from goal is a better outcome than a fifty-fifty tackle, and a coach who celebrates only tackles will get defenders who dive in.
Save it to your private drills, then change the animation, adjust positions, swap equipment, or drop it into a session block. Or start from a blank pitch and build your own.