How To Improve Soccer Technique

Learning to control height and pace of volleys

By Tony Carr

This is one of things that if you get right puts the frighteners on your opponents before the game has even kicked off. It is also a lot of fun for your players, seeing if they can put a few volleys together keeping the ball off the floor.

I don't expect you to create ball jugglers straight away! Volleying the ball is hard without expecting players to be able to volley to each other consistently so they can pass it around in the air. But they can practise and if they practise enough they will be able to keep the ball going long enough to get a real kick out of it.

The key to this is to get them to start off slowly just volleying and catching and eventually build up to seeing how long they can keep the ball in the air between them.

Your players will be able to experiment using different parts of their feet to see how it effects the height and pace of the volley.

• Around a 10 x 10 yard grid stand 4 players, the practise begins with the players passing the ball around the grid in the air by throwing up gently to serve themselves and pass with a volley.

• They should use a variety of volleying techniques, predominantly the inside of the foot and the laces of the boot.

• The ball is always played in the air.

• Players should start by staying in their positions, only moving to get misplaced passes, then they can advance to moving around the grid and varying the height and angle of the pass.

Development

1. Players now throw to a partner who volleys the ball for the next pass, the receiver catches and throws another serve; each player taking opportunities to serve and volley.

2. If the volley pass can be volleyed again, or controlled in the air before volleying, without losing quality then there is no need to catch and throw.

3. Eventually see how long the players can keep the ball up in the air using only headers and volleys.

Tony Carr is the Academy Director of West Ham United in the English Premier League.