How to improve your soccer shooting?

Are you a soccer fan who wonders how to make every shot count? If you never shoot, you'll never score. But how do you dare and, above all, how do you aim? Here are a few tips to help you get your shot into the net!

Tips to improve your soccer shots

Observe the goalkeeper's position: has he left any space for you to exploit?

Train yourself to be reactive and make quick decisions. The longer you wait before taking a shot, the more space you leave for your opponents to counter you. You must learn to determine and apply the technique best suited to the situation.

Training to improve your striking technique

There's no miracle here: practice makes perfect. A shot from the side may be more accurate, but a ball with a good trajectory will have more power to hit the net.

How do you get there? Here are a few important tips:

• Place your foot correctly before shooting the soccer ball.

• Keep your head down and your eyes riveted on the ball as you kick. You need to be as focused as possible on the moment. Keep your body well above the ball.

• Don't give in to panic, the stress of the match and the fans. Keep your composure so you can control your movements and aim accurately.

Shooting techniques for scoring soccer goals

• Shoot across the width of the pitch, rather than high up: you're more likely to get a deflection that will hurt the goalkeeper.

• Shoot low: it's harder for goalkeepers to hit shots from the ground, because they have to dive or kneel. It's easier for them to jump to stop a ball at their height, but much more costly to crouch on the ground.

• Shoot across the goalkeeper: it's harder for them to hold on to these shots, and means they could divert the ball back into the path of another striker.

How to score goals every time?

Have you ever wondered whether there's a strategic point to aim for in a soccer goal? A place where the ball will go in almost every time? According to one study, balls shot into the top left-hand corner of the net are the most effective.

Well, there may be no ideal spot, but a recent study looked at where shot goals most often entered the net .

Here are the results:

• Top left: 8
• Centered at top: 4
• Top right: 5%.

As you can see, shooting high means you have a fairly low percentage of points.

• Middle left: 7
• Center of middle: 8
• Middle right: 6

Although you're more likely to score if you shoot in the middle rather than up top, the odds aren't always better.

• Bottom left: 22
• Bottom center: 21
• Bottom right: 19

Maximize your chances of scoring by aiming at the right spot

62% of goals were scored on the ground. This makes sense, as it's very difficult for goalkeepers, especially tall ones, to get on the ground. It's much easier and more natural for them to jump.

What's more, if you look at the statistics, 67% of goals were scored in the corners versus 33% in the middle. If you combine the two statistics and shoot towards the bottom corner, you should have a much higher success rate in scoring goals.

As with any soccer technique, you need to practice if you want to improve your shooting performance. Fortunately, the techniques used for shooting are similar to those used for passing. So you can develop two essential soccer techniques at the same time.

But the most important thing is to try, in other words, if you see the goal: shoot!

This last piece of advice is the most important: you miss 100% of your shots if you never try. That's why you have to learn to seize every opportunity. The only way these tips can help you become a better player is by putting them into practice on the pitch.