What are dead ball situations in soccer? Dead balls in soccer are just another name for a free kick or throw in, or any kind of stoppage of play when the team in possession or who is fouled gets to take a kick or a throw. Dead balls in soccer are situations in the game when the soccer ball is dead, not moving.
It’s a rare moment in soccer and one that your team should take advantage of; it’s that time where a plan or a set play can actually work. Dead balls in soccer are ideal times to have pre-planned set plays or even patterns to run through. Yes, there are set pieces or dead ball situations in soccer / football were “plays” can be used to great effect.
Strive to get something productive out of all dead balls, whether these are free kicks, goal kicks, corners, or throw-ins. Your team has the advantage, especially on throw-ins, a part of the game of soccer that doesn’t get much attention. This is that rare moment in the fluid game of soccer when a pre-planned pattern can be pulled off.
Make use of a throw-in and try to move the ball down field or keep possession by throwing the ball to a player posting up nearby who can lay the ball back to the thrower. It’s very frustrating to see a team loose possession off of a simple thrown-in or not get the cross in when they have the chance from a free kick near the sidelines.
If you have a player who can throw the ball in a long ways, use that player. There’s nothing wrong with this. If the player can throw the ball into the box or to a tall player who can flick the ball on, that’s a big advantage for your team. Use it.
Many times a team will throw the ball backwards when they should just pitch the ball into the corner and gain some real estate. Soccer doesn’t always require that you play beautiful soccer. Rather, play beautiful soccer in the attacking areas more than in your defensive third. Pay attention to the moment of the game. Is it nearly half time or close to the end of the game? Does your team need a goal?
NEW: See how to perfect the DEAD BALL EFFECT when striking the ball. Make the ball move in the air or knuckle like Cristiano Ronaldo. There are dead balls in soccer, as in a free kick, and then there’s the dead ball effect!
In those moments, when you have a dead ball, get the ball away from your goal and into the mix so to speak if your team is losing? Or if your team is ahead, get the ball into the corners to waste time. One thing you don’t want to do is waste those opportunities—free kicks or dead balls allow you to survey the scene and pick someone out, make good use of it. All this simple aspects of the game add up and are things your team can gain confidence from and build off of.
5 ways to improve free kicks. Learn free kick skills and how to become better at shooting free kicks with these 5 tips that you can add to your free kick training sessions. These 5 tips will make you a better free kick taker and help you score more free kick goals in real football matches – but nothing will of course happen without hard work so watch this video right now to learn 5 ways and useful tips on how you can improve your free kicks and become a better free kick specialist!
Dead balls in soccer are those moments where you can change the game.
The first tip to improve your free kicks is to practice with a goalkeeper. Training free kicks with a goalkeeper makes your training session more game-like and you will learn how to score goals from free kick situations against a real goalkeeper – instead of just practicing with an empty goal. Another great tip for becoming a better free kick taker is to practice with a wall.
This makes a lot of sense as in real games there are always people in the wall trying block your shot and in your training sessions, you need to learn how to successfully bend the ball over the wall and into the goal – and the best way to learn that is to practice free kicks with a wall.
It’s also important to find a routine for your free kicks: if you have a routine you always do when practicing free kicks, in an actual game situation the only thing you have to do is repeat that same routine of yours. Without having a free kick routine, you might start overthinking things in a real game situation and that’s of course the last thing you as the free kick taker want to avoid.
Your free kick routine can include anything from placing the ball down in a specific way, taking the same run-up to the ball every single time or even going through the same mental scenario in your head before taking your shot – it’s up to you to find a routine that works for you.
The last two tips are all about efficiency: make sure to bring more than one football to your free kick sessions so you can get more out of your training sessions instead of running after the ball after every strike, and keep in mind to practice your free kicks from various angles and spots.
You don’t want to get stuck only practicing free kicks from one specific spot, as in actual games, you never know where the free kicks might come from!
