By David Clarke

I’ve been focusing my young players on controlling high balls this weekend. It’s a skill that players need to set themselves up for a shot at goal. I can remember Eric Cantona of Manchester Utd and Leeds fame commenting that every night he threw balls high into the air and controlled them as they hit the ground.

At Barcelona they have a great drill that covers these points

Bringing down high balls
Close control
Setting up the shot
Accurate shooting

All you need are four cones a ball and a goal with target areas marked out. Put a couple of cones a few yards in from the posts on either side of the goal and call these the target areas. Put four cones in a 10 yard square around the penalty spot so the penalty spot is in the middle.

Players must start with their back or side to goal
Juggle the ball three or four times then kick high
Keep the ball inside the zone
Finish in the target areas either side of the goal

Watch how Barcelona coach it here: