Dribbling is a motion and a skill in football that players use to propel the ball towards the goal. In simpler terms, it means travelling with the ball or maneuvering the ball on the field without losing it. This is one of the most difficult skills to master in playing football which involves a variety of feints and manipulative tricks in order to successfully go past an opponent.
Dribbling is very important in football especially at the wings or the third part of the pitch, where the majority of the attacks are happening. This is true since dribbling allows for the creation of enough space in tight situations like when a player dribbling the ball is marked or closely guarded by opposing players. Once space is made, the player who is dribbling the ball will have bigger scoring chances.
However, if dribbling is not done well, it may result in the opponent’s possession of the ball. This is why there are a lot of factors involved in mastering the skill like speed, physicality, agility as well as control, feints, and acceleration. All of these should be mastered by every football player to prevent his or her opponents to steal the ball or being tackled and to make sure that a goal will be scored.
Learning How to Dribble
Dribbling is the most important skill every football player must possess. Mastering it would be an advantage and this would first require learning some basic steps. These include using the arms, staying in an athletic position, and using the front of the feet as well as using foot place correctly and raising up the knee.Using the arms means a player needs to move their arms just like when they sprint. This helps create speed when dribbling. It is good to keep the arms out especially around defenders. This basic step is great to keep defenders at bay and improve balance.
The next step is staying in an athletic position. This will help a player remain balanced which in turn will help him or her cut quickly in whatever direction while keeping control of the ball. Players should take in mind to feel comfortable and relaxed while keeping back straight, bending knees slightly and carefully centering position of gravity.
The third and the fourth steps are using the front of the feet and using the place foot correctly. Landing on the front feet is advantageous since landing on the heels can reduce the balance and slow a player down. It is always advisable to land on the front feet every step of the way while dribbling forward. In addition, when dribbling forward, the place foot or the foot that is not doing the dribbling should be pushing off the ground and when cutting. This place foot should slightly hop to increase speed and retain balance.
Last but not least is raising the knee. This step helps in building momentum, which can greatly increase speed.