As their soccer teams' top scoring threats, strikers need composure when they get inside the opponents' penalty box. Looking up, seeing where the goalkeeper and defenders are lined up and placing the ball in the back of the net comes with experience and training. Work with your players so they are prepared for the thrill of scoring in a game by conducting appropriate training drills.
Game-Like Scenarios
Work on goal-scoring training to mimic game conditions. To work on bending and chipping balls, position two offensive players about 30 yards from the goal, the book "Coaching Soccer for Dummies" recommends. Designate one player as the shooter and one as the passer, and add a defender between them and the goal. The passer rolls the ball to the shooter, who hits the rolling ball, trying to chip it over the defender or send it past her using sidespin.
Considerations
The more variety your players have in their shooting approach, the more they will confuse defenders. They must strike the ball with the top surface area of their cleats, called the instep, just below the laces, to provide power. Have them use the inside of the foot for accuracy and placement, wrapping the foot around the ball to bend the shot. Use the outer portion of the front of the shoe, above the three smallest toes, called the "tres dedos" in Brazil, the Soccer Training Info website advises. Players should experiment with dozens of shots using each approach during practice
Types
In addition to shots taken with the ball on the ground, devote part of your training to the volley, when players strike the ball out of the air. Instruct players to stand in a balanced position, square their hips to the ball, lock one ankle and drive that foot through the ball in the direction of the goal. Work also on the half volley --- striking the ball just after it bounces, as it rises from the ground, Soccer Training Info instructs. For true professional flair, work on the bicycle kick, where a player stands with his back to the goal and snaps off an overhead kick; ideally, practice over mats to cushion the players' landing.
Expert Insight
Work on give-and-go drills, German soccer coaches Klaus Bischops and Heinz-Willi Gerards recommend in their book "Soccer Training for Girls." Have the players pass the ball to the coach, standing on the edge of the penalty area, on the way to the goal. She in turn passes the ball back, so the player takes a shot on goal. Work from both sides of the penalty area. Have the players count who scores the most goals out of five shots.
Significance
In youth soccer particularly, players tend to swarm the ball, making the area around the goal mouth crowded as the forward approaches for a shot. Bischops and Gerards recommend setting up a slalom course of cones leading to a small goal marked by flags. The players dribble around the course, which mimics defenders crowded around a real goal, and finish with a shot at the goal, either unguarded or marked by a goalkeeper as the players become more advanced.
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