The First Touch: Why It Separates Good Players from Great Ones (And Drills to Improve Your First-Touch)
If you're trying to improve your first touch in soccer, the first thing to understand is that it's not just about your feet. Andrea Pirlo once said: "Football is played with your head. Your feet are just the tools." Nowhere is that more true than with your first touch. It's about knowing where you want the ball to go before it even arrives, and making it go there. The best players in the world go beyond just controlling the ball withe their first touch, they use it to setup whatever action they want to do next.
Ian Wright, one of the Premier League's all-time top scorers, once described watching Dennis Bergkamp receive a 40-yard pass: "One touch. We're talking about a ball that has just travelled 40 yards in the air and he's killed it dead. I knew that if I got the ball over in his general direction there's a chance he'll do something I haven't even thought of."
That's what a great first touch looks like at the highest level. But it's not something you're born with. It's a skill built through thousands of intentional repetitions, and it's the skill I work on with every single player I coach, regardless of age or level. It is, in my opinion, the most important technical skill in football. And in this post I'm going to break down the different types of first touch, explain when to use each one, and show you drills to improve yours.
Key Takeaways
First touch is the single most important technical skill in football. It determines everything that follows
A good first touch gives you time. A bad first touch takes it away
There are different types of first touch for different game situations, and knowing which one to use matters as much as being able to execute it
The best first touches in the world aren't reactive. The player has already decided where the ball is going before it arrives
First touch is highly trainable. The six video drills in this post can be done with a teammate, a ball, and a few cones.
Why First Touch Matters More Than Any Other Skill in Soccer
Let's think about what happens when a player has a poor first touch. The ball arrives. Their touch is heavy, or it bounces off them awkwardly, or it sits under their feet instead of moving into space. Now the defender who was 2m away is on top of them. They're under pressure. They panic. They play a rushed pass that goes nowhere, or they lose the ball entirely.
From the outside it looks like a decision-making problem. It looks like they made a bad pass or got caught in possession. But the root cause is the first touch and everything after it was simply a consequence.
Now let's think about what happens when a player has a good first touch. The ball arrives. Their touch moves it exactly where they want it, away from pressure, into space, or set perfectly for a pass or shot. That one touch has bought them an extra second, something that is extremely valuable at higher levels. This extra second is the difference between being in control and being under pressure and, consequently, the difference between seeing the pass and missing it.
This is why first touch is the foundation of the game. It doesn't matter how good your passing is if your first touch puts you under pressure before you can pass. It doesn't matter how quick you are if your touch bounces off you to a defender every time you receive it. It doesn't matter how good your vision is if you're staring at your feet trying to get the ball under control instead of looking up at the pitch.
As I covered in my post on what academy scouts look for, technical ability under pressure is consistently rated as the number one attribute scouts prioritise. First touch IS that ability. It's the thing that makes a player look composed when everyone around them is panicking. It's the reason some players seem to have more time on the ball than others. They don't. They just don't waste it fighting their first touch.
One thing I notice a lot is players using their first touch solely to get the ball under control, with no direction or purpose. This usually means they aren't confident enough in their ability to control the ball in a specific direction, so they're just focused on not losing it. Here's how I explain it to my players: when the ball is being passed to you, every opposition player nearby is watching it travel to where you're standing. That's the spot they're moving towards. They have momentum heading to you. If you control the ball right where you're standing, you're keeping it in exactly the spot they're already closing down. But if your first touch shifts the ball away from that spot, even just a metre or two, you move out of the line of their momentum, away from their pressure, and suddenly you have time. I had a player who was getting closed down every time they received the ball for exactly this reason. We spent three weeks working on their directional first touch and suddenly they looked like a completely different player. Nothing else changed. Just their touch.
The Types of First Touch (And When to Use Each One)
This is where most coaching content falls short, talking about first touch as if it's one thing. In reality, there are many different types of first touch for different situations, and knowing which one to use is just as important as being able to do it. The best players read the situation before the ball arrives (scan, scan, scan!) and have already decided what type of touch they're going to take.
The Cushion Touch (Killing the Ball). The ball arrives with pace or from height and you need to take the speed off it before doing anything else. Soft feet are the key here. Relax the ankle and let your foot give as the ball arrives, almost like you're catching it. You can cushion with the inside, outside, or sole of your foot, your thigh, or your chest. The surface changes but the principle stays the same: absorb the ball, don't block it.
The Touch Into Space. Instead of killing the ball at your feet, you direct it into the space you want to move into. One touch and you're already on the move, away from the defender, into open ground. The key here is scanning before you receive, because you can't touch into space if you don't know where the space is.
The Touch on the Turn. You receive with your back to goal or a defender behind you, and your first touch spins you so you're now facing forward. One of the hardest first touches to execute well and one of the most valuable, especially for midfielders and forwards. The key is your body shape before the ball arrives. If you've already set yourself at a slight angle rather than completely square, you can take the touch across your body and spin out in one movement.
The Touch to Set Up a Pass or Shot. Your first touch puts the ball in the perfect position for whatever comes next. For a pass, that means setting it slightly ahead of your standing foot on the side you want to pass from. For a shot, it means pushing it into your shooting line, out of your feet, so you can strike cleanly. The mistake young players make here is killing the ball at their feet and then needing a second touch to adjust before they can pass or shoot. That extra touch is time wasted.
The Touch Under Pressure (Shielding). A defender is right on you. You can't play forward, you can't turn. Your first touch needs to protect the ball by moving it away from the defender while keeping your body between them and the ball. This touch is as much about your body as your feet. Feel where the defender is using your arm or body, and move the ball to the side they can't reach.
The more comfortable you become with each one, the more options you have every time you receive the ball in a game.
Soccer Training Drills to Improve Your First Touch
Here are six drills I use regularly with my players. They progress from simple and controlled to complex and game-like. You'll need a teammate, a ball, and a few flat disc cones.
Four touch types carry through the first three drills. Practise each one separately before mixing them:
Inside of the foot, touching laterally across your body (pass back with the other foot)
Outside of the foot, touching to the outside (pass back with the same foot)
Sole of the foot, rolling across your body (pass back with the opposite foot)
Inside touch, sole roll across with the other foot, then pass with the foot that took the original touch
And there are plenty more types of first touches you might like to practice. For example, we often do a lot of work with back foot touches – you may choose to incorporate those into these drills too.
For all of these: start slow, get the technique clean, then build speed. Aim for 30 seconds or 10-15 clean reps of each touch type. Focus on making every touch intentional and repeatable.
Drill 1: Small Gate Touch and Pass
Two flat discs forming a gate, about one big step apart. Teammate feeds through the gate, you touch to one side and pass back on the outside. Move back to the middle and go the other way. Once you're comfortable with all four touch types, label them 1-4 and have your teammate call out numbers while you're moving (do at least two or three of the same touch type before calling the next number otherwise it gets messy), forcing you to switch touch type on the spot. See how long you can go without a mistake.
Drill 2: Double Gate Progression
Two gates side by side with the inner cones touching. Same four touch types, but now you start by bounce passing on the outside, receive through the first gate, touch across to the second gate, play through it, bounce on the outside, and come back the other way. I like to do three up-and-backs per round.
Drill 3: Triangle Movement
Three cones in a triangle, each about three steps apart. Teammate a couple metres from the base. Run around the top cone, touch across the back of a bottom cone, pass, and loop back around the top to do the other side. Version two: come to the inside of the bottom cone instead of the outside, reversing the direction of your touch. Mix touch types freely once you're confident (see in the second part of the video we are using all 4 of our touch variations from above).
Drill 4: First-Touch Square
Four cones in a square, each a different colour (or you can label them 1-4 if you don’t have different coloured cones). Bounce passes with your teammate at the front. Start by just going from one cone to the other. I like two full rounds, rest, two more rounds. Then, make it so when they call a colour, move to that cone, touch around the back of it, pass, and get back to the front (keep playing bounce passes until they call the next colour). Make it competitive: one point per successful touch around a cone, see who can get the most before a mistake. Start with the square a bit bigger and tighten it as you get comfortable.
Drill 5: Colour Gate Touch & Pass
Three different-coloured gates side by side, with two mini goals (or targets) labelled "1" and "2" behind them. Teammate calls a colour and a number, then passes. Your job is to direct your ball through the correct gate and pass into the correct target. You can start by focusing on just controlling the ball you’re your first touch, but try to progress to moving the ball through the gate with your first touch alone (as you see in part 1 of the video). Then progress to aerial deliveries (part 2 of the video), practising bring the ball under control out of the air before directing it through the gates.
Flip it so the player has their back to the gates (part 3 of the video below). Now you're working on opening out. The key detail: open your body to the correct side each time (so you can see both the passer and the gate). Even for the middle gate, think about which target you're aiming for and open up that way. Scan as you turn to see which way you need to open up towards. Even in a cone drill, practise checking what's behind you. For this third part (part 3 of the video), you’ll see in the video both taking two touches to get through the gates (touch to control and touch to drive through, see ball 1 and 2) and doing it in one touch (see ball 3-5).
As you’ll see below, I typically like to do 5 ball per round.
Drill 6: Touch, Pass & Move
Three cones in a line at the front, then a triangle of three cones behind them (see video for the setup). This drill chains together bounces at the front line, touches around each cone of the triangle, and passes through different channels, all with scanning while you move. Go one way through the pattern, then straight back the other way before resting. Play with the size of the setup and the distance of your teammate. Further away means firmer passes and a harder test of your touch. This one is meant to feel more free and game-like, so mix your touch types naturally rather than sticking to one.
Your First Touch Is Your First Decision
I want to leave you with this thought. Your first touch is not just a technical skill. It is your first decision every single time you receive the ball. Where you touch it, how hard, which surface, which direction. All of that is a decision, and the best players make that decision before the ball even reaches them.
If you're watching football on TV, pay attention to the players who always seem to have time. Watch their first touch. Watch how they've already scanned, already set their body, already decided where the ball is going. This is a skill they have built through thousands of purposeful repetitions.
I offer a free trial session so you can see what focused, individual first touch development looks like. Get in touch to book yours, or visit cdprivatesoccercoaching.com.au to learn more.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Your first touch determines everything that happens next. A good touch gives you time, space, and options. A poor touch puts you under pressure before you've even started. It is the single most referenced technical attribute by scouts and coaches at every level.
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Wall work is the most effective solo method. Stand a few metres from a wall, pass the ball against it, and control the return with one touch. Vary the surface (inside, outside, sole, thigh, chest), the power, and the direction of your touch. Practise with intent, deciding before each rep what type of touch you're going to take. The drills in this post revolve around working with a teammate/coach but you can practice the same touches with a ball and a wall.
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A good first touch controls the ball. A great first touch controls the ball AND sets up the next action, whether that's a pass, a shot, a turn, or a move into space. The difference is that a great first touch involves a decision made before the ball arrives, not a reaction after it gets there.
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Yes. In a game you won't always have the luxury of choosing which foot receives the ball. Being comfortable with both feet doubles your options and makes you far harder to defend against. Start with your stronger foot to build the technique, then gradually increase the reps on your weaker foot.