Transcription
Hi guys, and welcome back to another video.
So today, I'm going to show you five drills you can use to improve your dribbling as a winger.
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The first drill is our dribbling warmup. This is going to set the foundation for the rest of the session. Today's emphasis is all on those body faints and hesitations—those twitchy movements that you can use to unbalance defenders so you can push the ball into space.
The setup for the first drill: I've got six cones, two rows of three. The cones are two steps apart, and as you can see, the cones on the opposite side are in between each of the two cones, so it's a staggered setup. We're going to do three exercises in total, almost like a dynamic ball mastery, but really emphasizing those body faint actions.
We start with the ball. We're going to push the ball with the outside of our foot 45° and then hop on this leg. This is an action you really want to get used to and develop—being able to balance on one foot as a dribbler. This is going to help you with those body faint actions, being light on your toes so you can explode in any direction at any moment.
For the first exercise, we push the ball 45°, hop, push the ball 45°, hop on the opposite foot, and then make our way through the entire course, being light on that opposite foot until we get to the end. Then you can just turn around and do the exact same thing back to the start.
So we push, hop, push, hop, push. As you can see, really throwing those body faints, leaning my shoulder, slight drop in the knee, but most importantly, being springy on that planting foot. At any moment, I could push the ball, I could throw a body faint, I could go in the opposite direction. Being light on those feet is really going to help you as a dribbler.
For the first exercise, every time you get to the opposite side of the cones, it's one repetition. I'd recommend starting with 10 to begin with. Begin slowly until you've got the action down, and then start to increase the explosivity, speed, and intensity.
For the second warm-up exercise, we're going to use the inside of our foot and our opposite leg to perform the body faint. We push the ball across, hop on that opposite foot, have a slight bend in the knee, stay on the ball of your foot so you're nice and explosive, and then you're going to push the ball in the opposite direction.
Do the same thing with the opposite leg, and then you're going to make your way through the gates once again. So really throwing those body faints, working on those hesitations, trying to be nice and light on our feet. Then once you get to the opposite side, you're going to do the exact same thing.
So we're really keeping the ball close, throwing those body faints, making our way through the course. Again, with this one, do 10 repetitions in total, and then we can move into the third warm-up exercise.
This one's slightly more advanced, so start slowly with it and then increase the speed and intensity once you've got the hang of it. So this is what it looks like: we push the ball with the inside of our foot to the middle of the two cones, it's a body faint back to where we just came from.
Then we continue, push the ball beyond the cone, then use the outside of our foot to hook it back, and then use the inside to push it into that space. Then we do the same thing: it's a step, push outside, middle, step, push outside, step, push outside.
Then we're going to do the same thing until you've gotten all the way back to the starting point. Then you're going to complete that five times there and back for 10 repetitions in total.
Then we can move into the second drill. Moving into the second drill here, this is a great one to work on the ability to go from slow to fast, which is a very valuable asset to have as a dribbler. It's going to help you stay unpredictable and create opportunities to cross, shoot, or get past the defender.
So this is the setup here: I've got 12 cones placed down, we've got four rows of three. These are the spaces we're going to be moving between with the ball, and they're about one step apart, so nice and tight, working on that close control.
We're going to be starting in this gap, and it's almost like we're one-on-one with the defender, trying to create an opportunity to get space to cross the ball. So we're going to be at a standstill position. We can work on a couple of hesitations or body faints, and then whenever you're ready, you're going to go from a standstill position to a really quick lateral movement across here.
Then you're going to push the ball into this space, slow it down again, and then you're going to move quickly across. We're working on the ability to explode and create those opportunities to get across or a shot.
So we move laterally, and then we're going to go all the way across. So this is what it looks like: move across, move across, slow it down, slow, and then it's fast.
So we're creating those opportunities to get across, a shot, or get by the defender. So really work on going from as slow as possible, almost a standstill position, to a really explosive lateral movement. Go for this for 10 repetitions.
So each time you get to the opposite side of the cones, that's one, and just come back to the starting point and repeat this 10 times.
Moving into the third exercise now, we're going to include some end product because the purpose of dribbling is to create opportunities either for yourself or your teammates.
So this is the setup: we've got two rows of cones, I've got them three steps apart. You can make them wider, shorter, you can add cones, but these are acting as the defenders. So we've got tight spaces here that we're operating in, and a big part of being a winger, a successful winger, is having the ability to dribble in those tight spaces.
So we're going to be using some of the actions we've already been working on in the first two exercises to get around these defenders and create opportunities either to cross the ball for our teammate or to cut inside and shoot.
So this is an example of what it could look like: we're going to throw some body faints, and then we're going to work on those quick actions to manipulate the ball in the tight spaces.
At the second cones, we're going to do the same thing. We can either take the ball to the inside, pass the ball into our number nine, or we can cut the ball inside and then get a left-footed shot.
For this exercise, I'd recommend going for 20 repetitions, varying up cutting both to the outside to find your number nine and cutting to the inside and getting the shot off.
All right, guys, moving into the fourth exercise. We've been treated to some lovely weather halfway through the video, but we'll carry on.
So the fourth exercise: we've got two cones placed inside the box. These are about two steps apart, and these are acting as a defender. As a winger, you'll often find yourself in this situation where you're driving into the box diagonally out from the wing. You want to create an opportunity to shoot.
So we're going to work on a couple of different body faints. We can faint and then take the ball, strike it across goal with our left foot, or we can cut to the inside. But it's really important to perform some of those hesitations before we push the ball. This is what's going to unsettle the defender, unbalance them, and create space to push the ball into.
So the second option: we dribble slowly, like we're going to go, and then push the ball to the inside and then strike the ball. The most important thing is once you create the space, accelerate and commit into it because once you've gotten past the defender, they're going to do their very best to try and intercept you once again.
So it's important, once you push the ball, to commit to the action and get the shot off before they can catch back up to you. I recommend going for 20 reps, varying up going both down the line, striking across goal, and cutting to the inside and bending far corner.
The final dribbling drill is another one we can use to develop close control at speed on the edge of the box to create goal-scoring opportunities.
So I've placed down cones randomly with no formation whatsoever. You can make the gap smaller or larger, you can put more or less cones down, and all we're going to be doing is dribbling at the cones at speed.
But the key for this exercise is to keep the ball moving. When you get to the edge of the box, between the fullback and the center back, it can be confusing for the defenders knowing which player needs to step to the ball.
So those moments of hesitation you can use to your advantage, keeping the ball moving, creating spaces, and then when you see the gap, push through and then finish on goal.
But the goal is to keep the ball moving, keep it close to your feet, and dribble at speed. Change your direction of the ball, and when you find the opportunity, commit to it, accelerate into the space, and get the shot away.
For this exercise, I'd recommend going for 15 to 20 reps, trying to find those corners as often as you can.
So there we have it: five drills you can use to improve your dribbling as a winger. Make sure you check out the rest of the playlist for more dribbling exercises.
And also, if you enjoyed today's video, make sure you smash the like button, hit that subscribe button for weekly training videos, and I will see you guys in my next video.
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