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Two players on a soccer pitch in a 1v1 situation.

Best Soccer Shots and Techniques

updated on April 25th, 2024

8 mins read

Mastering different types of shooting techniques in soccer is vital for every player. This not only increases your chances of scoring by itself, it also makes you a more unpredictable player!

So let’s dive into the the best shooting techniques that help you score more goals than ever before!

1) Drive-Through

This shot is best used when you’re further away from the goal and/or need to give the ball a lot of power. It’s not as precise as other types of shots (e.g. in-step shots) but still gives you more than enough precision to beat the goalkeeper.

To perform this shot optimally, make sure to hit the ball with your laces, control the height of your shot with the angle of your upper body (the more you lean back, the higher the ball will fly), as well as the direction your supporting foot is pointing towards.

2) The Henry

Named after Arsenal legend Theory Henry, this signature move allowed the French superstar to score countless goals during his career.

It is best applied when you’re alone in front of the goal and/or inside the 16-yard box. While you’re running towards goal, open up your hips so your body points in an open position towards goal. Then use the inside of your foot to “pass” the ball inside the goal, aiming for the “net of the small side of the goal”.

But you don’t need to be alone in front of the goalkeeper to use this type of shot. On the contrary, you can use a defender to your advantage. Just run slightly parallel to the goal and then curve the shot (with the inside of your foot) right in the second when the defender stands between you and the goalkeeper, using the opponent to disguise your shot and making it harder for the goalkeeper to react in time.

3) The Aguero (= The Fake Henry)

Now that you know how to do The Henry, let’s look at the counterpart to it. Man City star Kun Agueroooooo has perfect this technique and used it to score many goals.

To pull off this shooting technique you start with the same open body position as with the Henry, pretending to aim for the long corner. But instead of passing the ball now into the long corner of the goal, you close your hips and shoot the ball with the inside of your foot into the short corner.

4) The Chip

The Chip Ball is indeed one of the hardest shots on this list. It is best used when the goalkeeper is far away from the goal line (e.g. in a 1v1 against the keeper).

Also make sure there is enough distance between you and the goalkeeper because if you start the shot too late, the ball might have not enough time to fly over the goalkeeper but instead land in his arms / hit his head or body.

But even more important than the timing is the technique of the shot itself. The pull of the perfect chip shot make sure to drive under the ball with your laces and then immediately, once your foot is under the ball, scoop the ball upwards, creating a backspin on the ball.

This is also the big difference to a lob. A lob creates a top spin, a chip creates a backspin.

5) Creative / Instinctive Finishing

But at the end, it doesn’t matter how you score a goal, as long as the ball ends in the net.

So instead of trying to control the ball to take the perfect shot and potentially wasting important time, being closed down, take the ball how it comes and use whatever you can to get the ball across over the line.

Knee, Toe Poke, head, volley, left foot, lob - whatever gets the job done!

But there is more to scoring goals than just the shooting technique itself! So if you wanna double your goals in your next match, check out our latest article on how to score more goals!

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