Heading a ball while diving requires that you propel the body in the path of the ball. Your arms must be stretched forward to protect you from injuries when landing on the ground. Many soccer players find the diving part being the most difficult part. But don’t worry after reading this article you will know exactly how to do.

This text will be replaced

The Forehead

When heading the ball you must use your forehead. This part of your head is flat and hard which will make it possible for you to control the ball better. Besides that you will also be able to hit the ball with greater power comparing to the other parts of your head.

Now, at this point you might be worried about heading the ball. I know when I first started to learn the game of soccer, I had the same fears. I saw the way others headed the ball with their foreheads.

All I could think was that it was the perfect way to get a headache. However, this isn’t really the case in reality. Keep in mind that when you’re really in the middle of a soccer game, your adrenaline is flowing.

You’re looking forward to really winning and doing big things, and when you get the chance to head the ball you’re not going to be thinking about pain in any way, shape, or form.

You’re going to be thinking about…winning! Hit the ball with power, and you will never have to worry about a headache.

Using a Hurdle or Bag

You may find it difficult to learn the diving technique properly. To help you overcome this barrier you can practice by putting a low hurdle down, for example a large bag, a couple off twigs or a teammate crouched down low on the ground.

Of course, if you can’t find a willing teammate that will volunteer, that’s okay – just do your best. Jump over the hurdle without hesitating, panicking or freaking out.

Your hurdle isn’t going to move, so don’t think that you’re going to mess this up. If you truly see success in your mind, it’ll be reflected in your body movements. Don’t believe me? Try it!

Once you master just jumping over the hurdle, be sure to try the same approach again, except this time have a teammate serve the ball. This is going to force you to jump over the hurdle to head the ball.

Back in Time

When I really start talking about this diving technique, I’m taken back to my early days of playing soccer.

I was around 11 years old, and it was my second or third practice with a real soccer team. As you can imagine, I was really nervous and I wanted to be great no matter what.

One day, the coach told us that we’re going to practice on not just heading, but also diving. At the time, I felt confused because I didn’t really know what he was talking about. I wouldn’t say it out loud, but I just didn’t think diving with your head seemed logical.

Well, I was wrong… At first, I thought diving really wasn’t that big of a deal. I was already on the field watching some teammates perform the move before me. All I could think of at the time was, “Wow! This is really easy!”

When one of my teammates performed a cross into the 18 yard box I performed the greatest dive of all time, but instead of heading the ball I missed it completely and landed into the biggest slop of all time. Do I need to mention that this story made me famous?

Summary

Remember that this is really one of the hardest heading techniques to learn, especially compared to all of the other ones. Good luck – hard work really does pay off!