Anthony Brenner Coaching

One of the most overlooked details in passing and volley technique is heel direction at and just after contact.

If your foot is turned correctly so the passing surface is perpendicular to your target line, allowing your heel to finish slightly in front of your toes is a simple but powerful cue. It helps maintain the proper foot shape through and after contact.

When the heel stays behind or the foot rotates inward, even slightly, the passing surface changes angle. That small change can cause the ball to drift inside your intended target.

This is one of the most common coaching points I make with players of all ages—from 8-year-olds to professional players. It’s a simple reminder, but one that consistently improves accuracy and is clearly present in the technique of elite passers.

Big thanks to for the post and Matty Longstaff for his brilliant technique.

*One final point not mentioned in the reel was, watch how the ball has ZERO spin when it leaves his foot, this is absolutely a perfect outcome. You can’t improve on that!

It’s amazing how simple accurate passing really is, yet it’s one of the least taught skills in the game.

For decades, many players have been told to “watch and copy” or simply repeat passes thousands of times and hope accuracy develops. But passing is a skill with very specific mechanics.

The formula is simple and it’s the same for an 8 yr old and my 20 yr old pros:

• Step straight to the ball (not at an angle)• Travel through the middle of the ball• Keep your foot moving exactly parallel to the ground• Continue on that same line through your follow-through

My favorite coaching cue:

“Take your ankle to your target.”

When the ankle bone stays on line, the ball stays on line. The moment the foot leaves that line, the ball is far more likely to drift left or right as seen in the video.

Passing isn’t complicated. Precision comes from understanding the details.

When working on whipped or curled shots, the angle of your follow-through directly influences the height, arc, and trajectory of the ball.

A very simple way to think about it:The angle your foot travels at and after contact often mirrors the angle the ball travels in flight. One is just shorter, the other is longer.

If your shot is consistently rising higher than you want, slightly lower the height of your follow-through.If your shot is staying too low, slightly increase the height of your follow-through.

They are directly proportional to one another.

In this clip, notice how the angle of his foot after contact and the angle of the ball flight are almost identical.

***Important note; there are many other things within the mechanics and the technique that influence this, but I just wanted to isolate one digestible thing that you can control to help your final product.

People overcomplicate the knuckleball. It’s actually much simpler than most think. As you’ll see in this video, if your foot can travel in a perfectly straight line through the center of the ball and exit out the other side, the ball will knuckle. If your leg swings upward or your foot angle changes, the chances drop dramatically. The wild part? Your foot only needs to travel straight for the width of the ball… roughly 10 inches. I spent less than 10 minutes with this player, and he was already hitting absolute knuckled bangers. Simplicity + precision.

This one tiny adjustment can completely change your shot power.

Today we worked on how knee position at contact changes everything.

The direction your knee faces affects:
⚽ where the ball contacts your foot
⚽ the path of your swing
⚽ which muscle groups create the force

Most players unknowingly rely too much on the adductors or inside of their leg which possesses far less power AND increases risk of injury.

A subtle roll of the knee changes the mechanics, recruits the quadriceps more effectively, and creates a far more explosive strike.

The difference at the highest level is almost always in the details.

The high level & quality of technique this 8yr old is building is incredibly impressive. Keep an eye out!!

This post is about subtle, seemingly insignificant things that are contributing to your touch not being perfect. I can’t tell you how many college players were unaware of these things. 👀⚽ The player in this video is a future D1 player—and she was unaware too. 🎓🔥

Technical mastery comes in the mindfulness of one thing at a time—and nothing more. 🧘‍♂️✨

If your foot is moving forward towards the ball at the same time the ball is already moving forward… guess what? The ball is going to bounce away further. 🚀 That’s not bad technique—it’s physics at work.

The key is learning to control the timing of your contact and the movement of your body so you can absorb or redirect the ball instead of sending it flying. 🧠⚡

Think less about “stopping” the ball and more about working with its energy. That’s where true control lives. 👣