Corner Kicks in Soccer

The corner kick is one of the few ways that a ball is returned to play. This special kick in the game of soccer ( football) occurs when the ball goes out of bounds past the goal line after being touched last by a defensive player for the side that it goes out on. In other words, when the defense kicks the ball out of bounds on the back line on their own side in order to get it out of play. When this occurs, the offensive team gets the ball again, but they get it at the corner. What follows is a very unique and strategic part of the game of soccer.

The Corner Kick

Corner kicks are considered extremely useful offensive starting points. The person kicking the corner kick has a lot of options to choose from. They can kick the ball short to a teammate to start over the play, shoot for goal, or kick the ball into the goal box so that a teammate can head it into the goal.

Kicking the Ball Short

Kicking the ball short is a more conservative choice used by teams who are trying to mix up their offensive play and not give the ball away too quickly. Players can group together and gain more support with this strategy or kick the ball into the goal box from a slightly closer position for more accuracy. When a team is winning, this can be a great way to use up some of the time without losing the ball and still possibly setting up an offensive play.

Shooting for Goal

Shooting for goal from a corner is completely legal, though very difficult. The easiest place to score to is the far upper right corner so the keeper knows to watch out for it. In the professional level, few goals are scored as direct shots from a corner, but corner kicks do have good goal statistics from heading. In lower levels of play, scoring from corner kicks does occur but it takes a special skill. Many players have the ability to bend the ball which makes the tight angle easier to beat.

Passing and Heading

The goals scored by corner kicks are most often by kicking the ball high into the goal box and having a teammate head the ball into the back of the net. This quick redirection of the ball makes it extremely difficult for the keeper to react fast enough to stop a goal. The difficulty lies in learning how to kick it accurately enough that your teammates can properly redirect the ball. Defensive players try to keep the goals from happening by heading the ball away or keeping the players back without fouling them.

Corner kicks are one of the most practiced plays in soccer because they can be big game changers. The team defending during a corner kick can often benefit from a counter-attack situation when getting the ball because so many offensive players move forward for a corner kick. When one or two offensive players counter-attacks after a corner kick they were defending, they meet a defense that is unprepared and can often score an easy goal. Without corner kicks, soccer would be a less exciting and epic game.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corner_kick