Receiving The Ball Techniques Explained
Receiving the ball is not so complicated as you may think. After few practice sessions you will have pretty solid receiving skills.
But, try to receive the ball while having an opponent at your back who is doing everything he can to clear the ball away from you and it suddenly becomes pretty difficult. Don't you agree?
The reason for why it is harder to receive the ball while being under pressure is that your brain needs to concentrate on two things at the same time. Besides watching out for where your opponent is you need also to receive the ball and do something useful with it.
So, how can you increase your receiving skills? You can start by studying professional soccer players either on TV or LIVE. You should not study a fullback if you are playing as forward. It will improve your game in offense buy it will surely not improve your abilities in defense.
While studying your favorite players, watch for how they move. Start by looking what he/she is doing before receiving the ball. ? What he/she doing after receiving the ball (shooting, passing, dribbling etc?).
Second thing you can do is to practice more. If you feel that receiving is something difficult try to practice longer and harder. While performing receiving drills on your regular practice, your focus on them should be 100%.
Don't walk around and talk with your teammates during your practice. You will not only lose focus on the drill but your coach may get angry and send you off the field.
Third way to improve you receiving skills is to practice alone. The only thing you will need is a ball, a piece of ground and a wall.
Many great soccer players have gain their tremendous receiving skills by kicking the ball against a wall. This is a great drill and the wall will never complain and you will be able to practice on different methods of receiving (chest, inside of the foot, outside of the foot etc).
Keep in mind that you will not become a good soccer player over a night. You need to practice, practice and practice again. If someone told you that you can become a good soccer player without practicing then that person is a liar. Always try to perform better and don't be satisfied if you have been voted as the player of the match. Try instead to be it next game as well.
Now, let me present few receiving methods that you will use during your games...Inside
This is the most frequently used method for receiving the ball. While it is pretty easy to learn this skill, you'll need to spend many hours before mastering it completely. One of the best methods for learning the inside technique is to kick the ball against a wall and then try to receive it by using the inside.
Instep
This part of your foot is usually effective when a ball is dropping and you have time to gain control over it without pressure from opponents. You may also use the instep part when trying to steal the ball back from your opponent with a slide tackle.
Thigh
This part of your body is very effective for controlling the ball when you have an opponent behind you. The part of the thigh that you will use to control the ball can be marked just about the bottom of your shorts.
Chest
This is the largest area of your body. It may hurt a little while practicing on your chest control especially if the ball is hard. To avoid this you should try to be relaxed and let the ball cushion on your chest just like landing on a pillow. This method of controlling the ball is especially useful in situations with little space and many opponents around you.
