Inside the foot pass :

1. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football Inside the foot pass: The right way to kick a ball is by using the ‘instep’ to kick you will be able to kick a ball with power and accuracy. The wrong way is to kick the ball with your toe because the toe presents a curved surface to the ball producing little power and poor accuracy. P1

2. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football The lofted kick is the soccer skill used to play the long ball, cross the ball into the penalty area, and to clear the ball from defence. Apart from the chip, used for short-range kicks, this is the only technique for lifting the ball into the air with real power. The way to do it is to strike low down on the ball and lean back slightly to generate lift. Bending or swerving the ball -this skill is important in many areas of football, such as shots at goal around defenders that are obscured from the goalkeeper's view, corner kicks, crosses into the box, and passing the ball around opponents. There are two main methods, namely using the outside of the foot to swerve the ball away from you, or using the inside of the foot to bend the ball inwards. Swerve is produced by kicking the ball off centre on the opposite side to the side you want the ball to swerve to. For example, if you want to bend the ball from right to left with your right foot, you make contact with the ball on the right side using the inside of your foot. To make the ball bend away from you from left to right, kick the ball on the left side using the outside of your foot. A tip for improving your skill using the inside of the foot is to swivel on your non-kicking foot as you kick the ball, but this movement should not be exaggerated. To bend the ball from right to left contact is made on the right side of the ball using the inside of the right foot or the outside of the left foot.

3. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football The chip is a football kicking technique used to quickly lift the ball over short distances, for example, to pass the ball over an opponent to one of your team players, or to lift the ball into the penalty area from a few metres away. The disadvantage of the chip over the lofted kicking technique is that it lacks power. The advantages are that lift can be produced quickly, and that the backspin generated from this method causes the ball to slow down on hitting the ground. This is especially useful when the ball is passed into a confined area, such as near the touchline. The chip uses a stabbing or chopping motion in which the lower part of the foot, but not the toe, makes contact low down on the ball. The knee of the kicking foot is bent, and high at the end of the follow-through. As for the lofted kick, it is best to lean back slightly, but with the head down looking at the ball. A useful tip is to place the non-kicking foot slightly behind the ball. The foot chops down on the ball producing lift and backspin. This kicking technique is very effective over short distances. P1

4. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football The wall pass, or one-two is good tactic for working the ball through the defence, beating the offside trap, for creating space in midfield, and for avoiding tight marking. The wall pass can even be played in defence. The move is simple, player one passes the football to player two, who immediately passes it back to player one. It's important that both players keep moving, and especially that player one runs into space as soon as he has played the ball. He runs into space so he is ready to receive the ball again, One Two P1

5. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football A technique of great volleys is the swivel motion. Start from a square position with both feet a comfortable distance apart. Then, without moving your feet twist your upper body to the right until your left shoulder is facing directly in front of you. Next, twist back to the right until your right shoulder is facing in front of you.. For a left-footed volley twist first to the right, and then to the left. Keeping the ball down is one of the worst problems with volleying technique. As with all kicking skills watching the ball, and keeping the head down helps, but it is important to try to keep the knee over the ball. The volley technique uses a twisting motion with the head down, and the knee in a high position. Both feet must leave the ground for the overhead kick to be performed properly. The method is to jump off the kicking foot, and to throw the head back so that the body follows. At the point of contact with the ball, the upper body should be almost horizontal to the ground. On landing, try to keep the arms flat on the ground, and arch the back. In particular, avoid landing on your head, the base of your spine and your elbows. P1

6. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football The block tackle technique is an essential skill, because any team must be able to win the ball. If you cannot tackle you are left relying on intercepting passes when your opponents make a mistake. Tackling allows you to compete for the ball, and take the initiative The block tackle starts by planting the non-tackling foot firmly on the ground to provide a firm anchor. The inside of the foot is used for tackling, not the toe, and it's important to put the full weight of the body behind the football, and to get the head down over the ball. As with any tackling skill, timing is crucial. Try to tackle when your opponent is off balance, or lets the football go too far in front of him. This is often called "showing too much of the ball". Another good time to tackle is when your opponent looks down at the ball. The leading leg is planted firmly on the ground before the tackle P1

7. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football The sliding tackle is best to tackle with the foot that is furthest from the ball. This gives you extra reach, and reduces the chances of giving away a foul. The sliding tackle is best made from a square position with your leg going out to the side rather than straight in front of you. Timing is vital, and takes plenty of exercise to get right. The key factors for any player are to watch the ball carefully, try to anticipate your opponents move without being distracted, and to always go for the ball. If you get a foot on the ball first, there is no foul, but if you miss the ball, you will give away a free kick or penalty depending on where the tackle took place. P1

8. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football Heading techniques are vital for air power in the game of football. The team that dominates in the air can win the ball in the vital danger zone in front of the six yard box both when defending and attacking, and that team can win the ball from long goal kicks. Heading skills also enable a team to use the long ball tactic bombarding the opposition with long passes towards their penalty area. The correct part of the head to use is the forehead because this is the hardest and flattest part of your head, and it will give you better control over where you want to make the ball go as well as giving greater power. The forehead is the correct place to header the ball Defensive header techniques in soccer enable a player to direct the ball upwards in such situations as clearing the football from defence. The key to this skill is to start with the forehead underneath the ball, so that the head can move upwards to attack the ball. The best way is by heading upwards is that your eyes remain below the ball, so that at the moment your forehead makes contact with the ball, your head is moving upwards. Use your legs to push yourself upwards just before heading the ball as this helps to obtain good distance. The ball is going up into the air so therefore it is a defensive header P1

9. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football Attacking header techniques are football skills for directing the ball downwards to score goals, and win the ball in the air. The attacking header requires getting the forehead and eyes over the ball, so that the ball can be attacked from above The diving header technique gives a football player that extra edge and versatility to get to the ball first, and to get a head on crosses that otherwise would be missed. This is particularly true at the near post where the attacker is trying to get in front of the defender. The diving header require getting both feet off the ground, and a jump towards the football. You should be almost horizontal as you head the ball, using your forehead as always. Generally, take off is from only one foot, because the diving header is usually attempted on the run. Jumping over an obstacle is a great method of learning the diving header as it forces both feet to leave the ground. P1

10. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football The glancing header technique provides versatility, and disguise in the air. When it isn't possible to face the direction in which you want to head the ball, or you want to disguise your intentions, you can deflect the football off the forehead. This soccer skill is important in front of goal to direct the ball past the goalkeeper, and anywhere on the field for passing to another player. The ball should be struck off the centre of the forehead, not the side of the head. Deflection is produced by turning the head just before impact, and the amount of deflection depends on the angle that the head is turned. A potential error is to allow the head to sway to the side instead of keeping it inline with the ball. The glancing header P1

11. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football The flick-on (back header) enables you to play the ball in any direction off the head. The flick-on technique is often used in front of the near post when the ball is crossed from the wing, or on corner kicks. The ball is helped on its way into the danger zone, and it is very difficult for the goalkeeper to cut out this type of cross. The flick-on does not require a lot of power; the idea is to use the speed of the ball. We simply flick the head back to deflect the ball behind us off the centre of the forehead. When you finish the flick, you should be looking directly at the sky. The flick-on P1

12. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football Football passing techniques are vital for keeping possession and controlling the game, and many parts of the foot can be used. The simplest and most accurate method for short distance passes is to use the inside of the foot, which presents a large flat surface to the soccer ball. Inside foot Back-heel Back-heel techniques, the main element to passing using the back-heel effectively is vision. It's no use at all playing a back-heel into a vacant space, or to one of your opponents! The secret of good vision and awareness is to look around before receiving the ball, and to receive the ball sideways-on rather than front-on whenever possible to get a better view of the play. P1

13. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football Taking free kicks is an important skill that requires awareness of football tactics as well as sound technique. Free kicks provide an opportunity to control play, and around the penalty area they are goal scoring opportunities. The coach should plan several attacking set plays with his team, including free kicks from different angles, so that each player knows what he should be doing. When taking free kicks around the penalty area, the fewer touches before shooting at goal the better. Teams and coaches should aim for a direct shot or a single pass before shooting, because set plays involving more than one pass allow plenty of time for the defence to organise and close down. Here are some example plays: A direct shot around or over the wall. A pass to the side of the wall followed by a shot at goal. A chip over the wall towards the edge of the six yard box aiming for a player to head into goal. Other tactics include decoy runs or late runs into the penalty area. For example, a player might run up to the ball as if to take the free kick himself, but step over the ball, and run into an attacking position looking for a pass. Another tactic is to put a player on the end of the wall, to disrupt the wall, or to move late to the side of the wall looking for a pass. In the midfield, free kicks are opportunities to build an attack. Look to take the free kick quickly if there is a player with space, but otherwise allow time for your own team to push forward. In defence, free kicks are similar to goal kicks with the choice of playing a short ball, or a long ball. This will depend on your team's strength and tactics, but the ball should always be cleared from dangerous positions P1

14. Skills, Techniques & Tactics in Football Taking a penalty The orange areas are good places to aim the penalty kick, although low or high shots are even better. There is some room for error in case the shot is wider or higher than the target. The throw-in technique starts by gripping the ball firmly, but comfortably. The ball is brought back over the head, and the back is arched. Using the full extent of the arms, and the power of the back and shoulders the ball is released in front of the head. The feet position is a matter of personal preference with some player standing square and other placing one foot in front of the other. The final ingredient is to add a short run to generate rhythm and momentum. Tactics at the throw-in in soccer depend on where on the pitch the throw is being taken from. In the attacking third of the pitch, the objective is to get the ball into the penalty area as soon as possible either by a direct throw, or by creating an opening for a cross. In the middle third, the tactic should be to make forward runs. In the defensive third, the team must play safe, and try to create space to clear the ball away from danger. Useful tactics for creating space are overlapping runs, sudden changes of direction and decoy runs. In an overlapping run, players run towards each other overlapping in the middle. A decoy run could take a marker away from the player, you would like to throw to. The soccer throw-in technique illustrating the arched back and full extent of the arms. Even the legs and wrists can be used to add distance for the long throw The arms are fully extended at the point of release, which is in front of the head. P1