Featured Links

67 Fun Soccer Drills For Coaches, Easy To Teach. Click Here to Download

Play Great Soccer - #1 Instructional Program - Coerver Coaching DVDs

Teaching Two Touch Soccer

As a coach, you don’t want your players to become afraid taking players on or holding on to the ball too long when doing a drill where you say they can only use two touches. Sometimes this is drilled into their head too much, playing with two touches, and they make poor decisions in game situations when they’re thinking they must play two touch soccer.

Players should have the freedom to play creatively. Don't drill that out of them so to speak with rule driven practices. Try to balance this out and show them when and where it's best to use more than two touches. Sometimes you can spin or turn on a player in one touch, but players should have the freedom to try different things - especially at a young age.

Playing smart soccer is about doing things fast, and two touch soccer accomplishes that, but there are always exceptions. Really, it's about using the space around you and reading the play. But again, one thing you don't want your players to develop is the fear of trying new things and taking players on. There is nothing like the ability to take players on. It's a skill that separates the good teams from the great ones. All the great teams have a few players who can turn the game on it's head and change the outcome of the game by a few cuts or dribbles - think Messi, Kaka, or Ronaldo.

The art of teaching one and two touch soccer is centered in a players fundamentals and how they control the ball. Get your players to play the ball out in front of their feet when they control it. They don't want to control it too close to their bodies. They should control the ball away from the pressure but a few feet away from themselves so they can make their next move more easily. If the ball is 'out of their feet', it's easier to make the next pass, turn, or cutting movement.

Beyond two touch soccer is of course one touch soccer. Again, it's about stressing the idea to try things, and not make these hard and fast rules. It’s difficult at times but getting your players to play one touch soccer will really get them thinking about where and how they want to play the ball. One touch soccer forces your players to think before they get the ball and anticipate where they have to move to receive the ball. If anything, one and two touch soccer teaches players how to move with out the ball and support their teammates.

But before they can do all of this they have to have exquisite touch and control – how do you get that, by spending time with the ball, whether with other teammates or knocking the ball against a wall with both feet.

Players need to learn how to use their bodies to protect the ball when they receive the ball so a defender can’t get it – this entails having the ability to play with both feet. More often than not, a player will lose the ball because he or she is trying to play the ball with their favored foot and their body isn’t shielding the ball when they're trying to do this. If you’re dribbling up the left side of the field and there’s a defender on you, then you’ll need to use your left foot to dribble the ball. This way your body is between the defender and the ball. If the defender tries to win the ball it will go out for a throw-in and your team will still have possession.

Here's an excellent example of two touch soccer that results in a goal. This is England versus the United States in a friendly in 2008. The first goal is a Terry header off a Beckham cross, but the second goal is a classy goal that's all about keeping the ball moving with quick one and two touch passing. The eleventh pass results in a Steven Gerrard goal. The United States made England look like Brazil in this play. Take a look.

Steven Gerrard Goal