Side-foot into the corners
Transcript
A side-foot finish trades power for accuracy. Here's a game to sharpen it. Warm up first. You need a goal, two cones and six balls. Put a cone one metre inside each post. Line the balls up ten metres out, and check nobody is behind the goal. Watch. Pass it into a corner gate with the inside of your foot. First, aim just inside the post. Then, open your hips, lock your ankle, and strike through the middle of the ball. A gate scores three, the middle scores one. Our target is three rounds of six, with a minute of rest. Then take the free test at footballreach.com.
What it trains
Place the ball into a small target with the side-foot: accuracy over power. England Football calls the side-foot probably the most common finish, especially inside the box, and says it offers accuracy over power. The points game makes every shot count.
Set up
- A goal
- 6 balls
- Cones 1 m inside posts
- 10 m from the goal
How it works
- Warm up first. Use a goal that is anchored or weighted, with nobody in or behind it. Put a cone on the goal line 1 m inside each post: the two corner gates are your targets.
- Line up 6 balls 10 m out. Size 3 ball up to U11, size 4 at U12-U13, size 5 from U14.
- Open your hips so the inside of your foot faces a gate, lock your ankle and pass the ball along the ground into that gate.
- Score each shot: a corner gate = 3 points, the middle of the goal = 1, a miss = 0. Shoot all 6 and add up your total.
- Collect the balls and rest 1 minute. Do 3 rounds of 6 (our target) and try to beat your best total.
Coaching points
- Aim just inside the post. Aim just inside the post, through the gate between the post and the cone. Pass it into the corner rather than blasting it.
- Open hips, lock ankle. Turn your kicking foot out so its inside faces the gate (open your hips), keep your ankle firm (locked) and strike through the middle of the ball so it stays on the grass. These are coaching cues, not research findings.
Not this
Trying to blast it. The side-foot is for placing the ball: a firm, controlled pass into the gate beats a big swing that sprays it wide or over.
Dose
- Gate 3 points, middle 1
- 3 rounds of 6, 1 min rest
Our target: 3 rounds of 6 with 1 minute of rest, from 10 m at 1 m corner gates: Football Reach targets, not FA rules.
Harder / Easier
Harder
Take one touch out of your feet, then finish into a gate (the ladder's next step). Then play a round with your weaker foot.
Easier
Move closer, to 6 m, until most shots go in. Younger players can start with a size 3 ball and a wider gate.
Safety
- Warm up first. Only use a goal that is anchored to the ground or has a weighted back bar, and never climb or swing on it.
- Flat grass or a pitch, with nobody in or behind the goal and clear space behind it: never a road, a window or a neighbour's wall. Anyone collecting balls stays to the side and only goes in between rounds.
- Ground shots only, along the grass. Stop if anything hurts.
Sources
- England Football Learning - different finishing techniques (side-foot place) (opens in a new tab)
- England Football Learning - how to coach shooting (opens in a new tab)
- FIFA Training Centre - ages 8-12: technical skills in unopposed warm-ups (gates, then a shot) (opens in a new tab)
- The FA - goalpost safety (opens in a new tab)
- England Football FutureFit - ball sizes by age group (opens in a new tab)
Not sure which skill to work on first? The free Football Reach test gives you a Player Development Score and shows which of the four corners of your game to work on next, in about two minutes.
Take the free test
