Soccer Volley

A volley is an air-borne strike in association football, where a player's feet meets and directs the ball in an angled direction before it has time to reach the ground. A volley can be extremely hard to aim and requires good foot-eye coordination and timing.

In general, the volley requires that the player strike the ball with the front of his foot, with the toes pointing downward, ankle locked, and the knee lifted. It is important for most applications to keep the knee high over the ball when struck, and lean slightly forward to keep the shot accurate and keeping it down. Doing so imparts a great deal of topspin and prevents the ball from flying wildly over the goal if done correctly. Because of the power and spin imparted on the ball, the shot can follow an unpredictable path to goal and prove difficult to defend against.

Used offensively, the volley can play a crucial role in scoring straight goals. Since a volley occurs when the ball is in the air, they often occur in front of goal as a result of a cross or a corner. In this instance, one attacking player passes the ball across the goal in the air, and the other player (either standing in place or in motion) strikes the ball with his foot before it hits the ground. This is advantageous over a normal strike in that the player does not need to trap the ball, taking an extra touch and allowing the goalkeeper a few extra seconds to react. Generally, the ball is struck on the laces with the toe pointing downward towards goal, though variations such as the bicycle kick or scissors kick in which the player's body moves in acrobatic fashion are occasionally employed, much to the delight of spectators.

Used defensively, the volley can quickly clear the ball from play and allow the defending team to recover their position. While less accurate and harder to execute than a normal long pass, the volley is useful for clearing balls that are bouncing towards or away from a defender because he does not need to trap the ball or change directions if he's running towards his own goal.

The volley is used less often for passes, as it is harder to control, though it can often be used to flick the ball on to another player. In this use, the strike is softer and more controlled than either the shot or the clearance. Also, the inside of the foot, outside, or even the heel may be used to flick the ball on off of a volley. When the heel is used to volley the ball over the player's head (from back to front) it is often referred to as a "donkey kick".

A Half Volley is also commonly used, which is when the ball is kicked after a bounce on the ground. A famous half volley goal was executed by Eric Cantona in 1996 FA Cup Final with Manchester United vs Liverpool. The ball was punched by the keeper from a corner and bounced on the ground before Eric Cantona took a superb half volley and scored the decisive goal to win the Cup for Manchester United.

Outline

SPORTS WORLD

Soccer | Football

The goalkeepers are the only players allowed to touch the ball with their hands or arms while it is in play and only in their penalty area. Outfield players mostly use their feet to strike or pass the ball, but may also use their head or torso to do so instead. The team that scores the most goals by the end of the match wins. The Laws of the Game are the codified rules that help define association football. They are the only rules of association football subscribed to by the sport's governing body FIFA.

Gameplay: Two teams of eleven players each compete to get the ball into the other team's goal (between the posts and under the bar), thereby scoring a goal. The team that has scored more goals at the end of the game is the winner; if both teams have scored an equal number of goals then the game is a draw.

Players: Each team consists of a maximum of eleven players (excluding substitutes), one of whom must be the goalkeeper.

Referee: Is the person responsible for enforcing the Laws of the Game during the course of a match.

Assistant referee: The assistant referee's duties generally consist of judging when the ball has left the field of play.

Equipment: The basic equipment or kit players are required to wear includes a shirt, shorts, socks, footwear and adequate shin guards.

Game duration: A standard adult football match consists of two periods of 45 minutes each, known as halves. Each half runs continuously, meaning that the clock is not stopped when the ball is out of play.

Misconduct (Foul): Fouls and misconduct in football/soccer are acts committed by players which are deemed by the referee to be unfair and are subsequently penalized.

Positions: A team is made up of one goalkeeper and ten outfield players who fill various defensive, midfield, and attacking positions depending on the formation deployed.

Player styles: Most players will play in a limited range of positions throughout their career, as each position requires a particular set of skills and physical attributes.

Formations: The formation describes how the players in a team are positioned on the pitch. Different formations can be used depending on whether a team wishes to play more attacking or defensive football.

Tactics and skills: Well-organized and well-prepared teams are often seen beating teams with supposedly more skillful players, even over time.

Advanced skills: There are various individual skills and team tactics needed to play effective football.
Team Positions

SPORTS WORLD

Team Positions

In the sport, each of the 11 players on a team is assigned to a particular position on the field of play. A team is made up of one goalkeeper and ten outfield players who fill various defensive, midfield, and attacking positions depending on the formation deployed. These positions describe both the player's main role and their area of operation on the pitch.

Goalkeeper: Goalkeeper, often shortened to keeper or goalie, is one of the major positions of association football.

Centre-back: The job of the centre-back is to stop opposing players, particularly the strikers, from scoring, and to bring the ball out from their penalty area.

Sweeper: The sweeper is a defensive position in football, so called because their job is to 'sweep up' any attacking moves which pass other defenders.

Full-back: The full-backs take up the holding wide positions and traditionally stayed in defense at all times, until a set-piece.

Wing-back: The wing-back (or attacking full-back) are defenders with heavier emphasis on attack.

Centre midfield: Central midfielders provide a link between defense and attack, fulfilling a number of duties and operating primarily in the middle third of the pitch.

Defensive midfield: A defensive midfielder is a central midfielder who is stationed in front of the defenders to provide more defensive protection, thus "holding back" when the rest of the midfield supports the attack.

Attacking midfield: An attacking midfielder is a midfield player who is positioned in an advanced midfield position, usually between central midfield and the team's forwards, and who has a primarily offensive role.

Wide midfield: Is a midfielder who is stationed to the left or right of central midfield.

Centre forward: A centre forward (main striker) has the key task of scoring goals and for this reason acts as the focal point of the majority of attacking play by a team.

Second striker: They are required to be more "nippy", quick, mobile, and skillful, helping to create goals and scoring opportunities for centre forwards.

Winger: Is an attacking player who is stationed in a wide position near the touchlines.

SPORTS

Soccer | Football

The goalkeepers are the only players allowed to touch the ball with their hands or arms while it is in play and only in their penalty area. Outfield players mostly use their feet to strike or pass the ball, but may also use their head or torso to do so instead. The team that scores the most goals by the end of the match wins.

The Laws of the Game are the codified rules that help define association football. They are the only rules of association football subscribed to by the sport's governing body FIFA.