SPORTS ACADEMY

When teaching the fake shot, have the player make their plant foot far away from the ball, so that there is enough space for their other foot that is pretending to kick the ball to come through on the same side.

Also, make sure that the plant foot is fairly far ahead of the ball, so that the player is balanced to turn the other direction. Once the foot swings through that has pretended to take a shot, but didn’t, take the ball with the outside of that foot and dribble back in the direction the player came.

There are other common escape moves that are simple to learn and are just a click away on Youtube.

Others we like to teach at girls can include the Cruyff turn; the Conti, in which the foot is again on top of the ball and the ball is dragged across the body from one foot to the other; and the step-over turn, where the player steps over the ball and turns and goes the other direction.

This latter one, as a defender, I like to use with a player on my back. If you do the step-over well enough, the defender will always go for it, leaving space to turn and go back the other direction, free from the opposing player.

Emphasize to the players that as attackers the ultimate goal is always to be attacking with more players than there are defenders. Doing an escape move to get away from pressure instead of dribbling into traffic, and playing a pass to keep possession, is one of the most basic tools that you can give your players.

And maybe if they are lucky, they’ll do it enough to earn themselves a lifelong nickname. In my defence, the fake shot still works every time.