An Olympic Goal in soccer happens when the ball is kicked directly from the corner kick into the net without any other player touching it. It is very uncommon. The name came from a goal scored by Argentinean Cesáreo Onzari in a game between Argentina and Uruguay (then Olympic Champions). It was the first of this kind and it was named Olympic Goal. This type of coal is so rare that it only happened once in the 19 World Cups, in 1962.
I recently say a very nice one:
However, scoring directly is very hard, but the corner kick can be used as a great weapon for set pieces. When I used to play in college I had the pleasure of being the named corner kick taker on both sides of the field. By studying some of the most successful corner kick takers I came up with my own plan. On the right side I took the corner kicks with my left foot, hitting the ball with the inside of the foot and curling it towards the net. If the corner was on the left I would do the same but hitting the ball with the inside of my right foot. There were 4 different placements I liked to do:
1- On a sunny day I would curl it towards the net. The sun usually hit the goalkeeper in the face and caused confusion and blurriness. The result, more often than not, was a goal, either an own goal or someone pushing the ball into an empty net.
2- Near post on the corner of the Penalty Area (small box or keeper box). If you have a very tall player who's a good header on the team you can curl the ball to the corner of the small box and he can brush the head on the ball hitting it at a 45 (ow wider) degree angle. This is very effective. I have also seen this play with the ball being redirected with a header to the penalty kick mark (P.K.).
3- The far post at the corner of the small box. This is the hardest of all, as if you don’t calculate the height properly the goalkeeper will intercept the ball. I avoid this if the goalkeeper is tall and can jump higher than average.
4- Aim at the penalty kick mark. This is old school because it works. The P.K. mark is not in the Goal Keeper’s regular zone. If they try to go there they may not be able to avoid the traffic to get to the ball and someone may be able to push it to the net.
These tips should give you a good advantage on corner kicks. Remember that this will take a lot of practice. I used to take about 50 corners kicks from each side once a week. It really paid off for me.
A comprehensive study of goals in the English Premier League showed that a full 50% of ALL goals are as a direct result of a "restart", including free kicks and throw-ins.
ReplyDeleteThe Germany National Team has long recognized this and that is why they spend close of 50% of their training before World Cups just on set pieces. While their "open play" may not match the flair of Spain and Brazil, the Germans have proven they make up for that with the discipline and tactics of their set pieces.