How Do I Follow Through Properly When Striking a Soccer Ball?

Allow your kicking leg to continue through contact when striking a soccer ball, using a manageable swing as your starting practice suggestion. Try matching your striking surface and finish to the intended pass or shot, using your coach's cue rather than forcing a finishing pose. For a practical way to examine your follow through, choose a fixed target and notice the contact. Explore the wider setup in how to kick a soccer ball, while The Giro X's Curl Master One offers contact practice between coaching sessions. Treat these exercises as practice suggestions, and discuss your observations with your coach.

What Should My Follow Through Feel Like?

I suggest looking for a comfortable continuation of the kicking leg after contact, with control to prepare for your next action. Follow through means the movement your kicking leg makes after meeting the ball. For stationary ball follow through practice, choose a clear target and a manageable swing. After striking, describe whether your leg continued through contact or whether you deliberately pulled your kicking foot back as your foot reached the ball.

Opinion: I would prioritize clear contact over a dramatic finish because contact gives me a more useful practice question. Instead of trying to copy the height of another player's finishing foot, describe where your foot met the ball and where the ball started traveling. Ask your coach whether your follow through suits the intended strike. I would keep the target unchanged while examining the finish, giving the next practice attempt a familiar destination.

Where Should My Supporting Foot And Kicking Foot Finish?

I would let the landing follow the swing your coach asks you to practice, rather than prescribe the same landing for every strike. The plant foot is the supporting foot while the other foot kicks. For a closer look at the setup, read Where Should I Place My Plant Foot When Striking a Soccer Ball?. During follow through practice, ask your coach to examine the supporting foot alongside your approach and finish, with the intended pass or shot in mind.

For laces shooting practice, try presenting the top of your foot and maintaining the foot shape demonstrated by your coach through contact. In laces shooting practice, a firm ankle cue means trying to keep the intended foot position recognizable as your foot meets the ball. The contact question gets more attention in How Do You Strike A Soccer Ball Cleanly With Your Laces?. I would examine the laces contact before asking the kicking leg to reach a particular finishing height.

Should Every Pass Or Shot Have The Same Finish?

I would practice the finish for the intended pass or shot instead of assigning every strike the same ending. For a controlled ground pass, ask your coach to demonstrate the inside surface of the foot and a suitable continuation. For a driven shot, ask for the corresponding laces contact cue. Keep the practice target fixed while examining the chosen strike, and describe the contact before deciding with your coach whether the follow through needs attention.

For a lofted pass or a shot intended to curve, my suggestion is to agree on the contact task before trying to manufacture a higher finish. Opinion: I would judge a strike by its intended starting direction before judging the height of the follow through. Ask your coach whether your chosen contact and finishing movement fit the intended ball flight. Use your coach's explanation to choose what to observe during the next attempt at the same target.

How Can I Practice Without Stopping My Foot At Contact?

Try letting your kicking leg continue through contact while practicing with a stationary ball and a fixed target on an appropriate soccer field. Use a manageable swing, treating the exercise as a suggestion to discuss with your coach. Pause after striking and describe the contact alongside the ball's starting direction. Keep the same target while considering the follow through, rather than changing the destination whenever contact feels different from the previous attempt.

If contact becomes difficult to describe during stationary ball follow through practice, I would try a slower swing as an observation task, without assuming the change will correct the strike. For girls' and boys' soccer in California, Texas, Florida and New York, I would keep the practice question individual: what has your coach asked you to observe after contact? Describe the stationary ball exercise to your coach, naming the target and whether you deliberately stopped your kicking foot at contact.

How Does Curl Master One Fit Alongside Follow Through Practice?

Use Curl Master One for a defined contact task alongside the field practice you discuss with your coach. Curl Master One spins a standard ball at controlled speeds and provides immediate feedback through the feel of the strike. My suggestion is to agree on a striking surface with your coach, then use Curl Master One home contact practice to examine the feel of contact. Take questions about the full approach and follow through into your next coaching session.

Curl Master One

Spins a standard ball at controlled speeds and provides immediate feedback through the feel of the strike. No app or subscription required.

Opinion: I would get Curl Master One and use its contact feedback to keep my coach's striking cue at the center of home practice. Curl Master One requires no app or subscription, and I would use the feel of contact as something concrete to discuss with a coach. Ask your coach which contact cue should receive attention between sessions. Get Curl Master One, practice the agreed contact task at home, and describe your contact observations when your coach next reviews your full swing.

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Practice contact with Curl Master One, which spins a standard ball at controlled speeds.

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