First Touch
Pressure Aerial Control Zone
Control balls arriving out of the air
First Touch
Receiving
Pressure Aerial Control Zone is a 12-minute first touch drill for 2-14 players, suitable for Under 9 to Adults at beginner, intermediate, advanced level. You need balls, cones. Below you will find the objective, the set-up, how to run it, coaching points, common mistakes, progressions, regressions and variations.
Back to drill libraryFirst Touch
Receiving
Technical Practice
Beginner
Intermediate
Advanced
Full Squad
Minimal Equipment
Youth Friendly
Adult Suitable
Under Pressure
Duration
12 min
Players
2-14
Pitch size
16 x 12 yards
Ability levels
Beginner / Intermediate / Advanced
Pitch diagram
Pressure Aerial Control Zone — Marked area · 16 x 12 yards
Step 1 of 5Server throws or lofts the ball into the control zone.
- 1. Server throws or lofts the ball into the control zone.
- 2. The receiver controls with thigh, chest or laces and sets the ball down.
- 3. The receiver then plays a firm pass back to the next server.
- 4. The defender is released the moment the ball leaves the server's foot.
- 5. The working player scores by completing the action before pressure arrives; the defender scores by blocking it.
- Cones mark the area
- Dashed lines = zones / thirds
- Ball
- C = coach / server
- Solid arrow = pass, thick = shot, dashed = run / dribble
Objectives
- -Control balls arriving out of the air
- -Choose the right surface for the height of the ball
- -Play out cleanly after the control
Setup
- 1A control zone with a serving line ten yards away in a 16 x 12 yards area.
- 2Position a recovering defender behind each working player, starting two yards back.
- 3A supply of balls at the serving line.
Coaching instructions
- 1Server throws or lofts the ball into the control zone.
- 2The receiver controls with thigh, chest or laces and sets the ball down.
- 3The receiver then plays a firm pass back to the next server.
- 4The defender is released the moment the ball leaves the server's foot.
- 5The working player scores by completing the action before pressure arrives; the defender scores by blocking it.
Coaching points
- -Get behind the flight early
- -Relax the surface on contact
- -Second touch is a purposeful pass
- -Feel the pressure with your body, take the touch away from the defender
Common mistakes
- -Reaching for the ball instead of moving feet
- -Stiff surface bouncing the ball away
- -Facing your own goal and getting trapped by the press
Where this drill fits
- More football first touch drills
- More football receiving drills
- football drills for U10s
- football drills for U12s
- football drills for U14s
- football drills for U16s
- Football session plans built around this theme