• These exercises are to develop good touch on the ball.
• Perform slowly, but accurately at first. Increase your speed, but only with the ball under control.
• Work indoor or outdoor.
• Your will need a small area of about ten yards to be able to move forward.
• It is not about how fast you can get to the end. Its how many quick touches you can get from beginning to end.

1. TAP TOUCHES:
   Sometimes call soccer boxing. Tap touch the ball inside of both feet (alternating feet). Don’t wave the legs from side to side. Your legs should look like you are running in place, with quick short steps. The inside of your foot should come down on the ball and slightly tap it, then repeat with the other. Short quick touches, with the ball going very little distance. As you move forward the ball should stay very close to your feet. Just quick little touches of the ball to get the feel of touching the ball. When you get to the end, turn and repeat back.
   
2. CUTTING THE BALL:
   Take very short quick cut of the ball diagonally across your body, (across your body and forward). With the inside of your right foot, cut the ball to your left across your body. Then with the outside of your right foot, cut the ball back to your right. The ball should only move about 6 inches to a foot. These are very short quick cuts (cut, cut, cut). Go to the end, turn and repeat back. Repeat the exercise with cutting with the left foot.
   
3. ROLLING THE BALL:
   Role the ball with the sole of the foot. Turn your foot and your body slightly to the ball, which is slightly to the side of your body. Start your right foot on top of the ball. Bring your foot forward, rolling the ball forward. Again put your foot on top of the ball and repeat. It is a step down with the plant foot (left foot), and roll with the right, right touches ground, step with the left again, roll right and continue. Step and roll, step and roll. Continue to the end, turn and repeat back. Repeat the exercise with rolling with the left foot.
   
4. DANCING ON THE BALL:
   Lightly tap the ball with the sole of the foot. Alternate feet, and tap the ball in a tap, tap, tap, tap motion. At first tap the ball in a stationary position. Next tap the ball and move the ball forward, taking the ball forward with you. When you get to the end, simply take the ball backwards to the beginning. Remember, the sole of the foot touches on top of the ball, with a hop.
   
5. SHORT FORWARD TAPS:
   With the instep (shoelaces), as if you are speed dribbling with the foot turned slightly in. Make quick, short taps to the ball with the instep. Move the ball with you right foot with short quick taps. The ball should move only slight short distances. Move it to the end, turn and go back. Repeat with the left foot.
   
6. CUT AND PUSH:
   Cut the ball with the inside of the right foot across the body as you did in exercise #2 above. Just a short distance across your body. Then push the ball with the outside of the left foot in the same direction. (It’s a cut; push motion, going left, left). Then repeat, now cutting the ball with the inside of the left foot, back across your body and now with the outside of your right foot push the ball again right. (It’s a cut, push motion, going right, right). Keep repeating to the end, turn the ball and go back.
   
7. TAPPING THE BALL AS YOU STEP:
   The ball is tapped with the inside of the foot as you slowly run toward to the end. The ball is alternated between feet as you go. The ball moves slightly forward and is touched by the inside of one foot each time you take a step. It is a touch, touch, touch motion as you are slowly running. Keep the ball under control.
   
8. LUNGES:
   Lunge, taking the ball down to the end. You take a step left, not touching the ball, with the left foot. Then touch the ball right with the outside of the right foot. Then you would repeat, lunging right, not touching the ball, then touching the ball left, with the outside of the left foot. When you get to the end, turn the ball and repeat back.
   
9. With cones, (coasters, cans or any small objects will work if you don’t have cones). Place them in a straight line. Cut the ball through the cones, using the inside or the outside of the right or left foot. Keep the ball under close control, and don’t let it get away from you. You can place the cones all at the same spacing or different spacing. Experiment at different distances. Go to the end, turn the ball, and go back.

Note: Some of these exercises may not be understood if they were not first done at a training practice. If you are unsure of an exercise, e- mail me for a better explanation, or just do the ones you are sure of.

Remember these exercises are designed to give you good touch and feel for the ball. They are also designed to develop good fast footwork with the ball. You can’t do them in a lazy manner. You must aggressively attack the ball with a soft touch on the ball. Get the feel of the ball moving off your foot very short distances with quick footwork. If you watch professional soccer you will see players making short quick cuts with a mastery of the ball. This does not just come naturally. It all about feeling of the ball.

Additional Work:

1. With cones (coasters, etc.)- Randomly put cones or whatever in a 15 X 15 grid. Dribble to a cone and cut the ball around the cone, go to another and cut the ball again. Go around all the cones, under control of the ball. Work up your speed, but keep close control of the ball. (Cut the ball with the inside and outside to the foot.
   
2. Roll –Tap Touch: Roll the ball directly across your body with the sole of your right foot. Do a soccer box twice (tap, tap) with both feet, then role the ball back across your body with the sole of the left foot and repeat. It is a roll-tap tap, roll-tap tap.