The drag back is a sole-of-the-foot turn: you put your sole on top of the ball, pull it back the way you came, and go the other way. It is a simple way to make a 180-degree turn when a defender closes you down or blocks your path, and it is one of the first turns young players are taught.
Set up
Dribble with the ball close to your feet and your head up, so you see the defender coming before you have to turn.
Ball close, eyes up.
Start braking a step early. Shorten your stride and bend your knees so you can stop your momentum without lunging.
Low and loaded before the ball stops.
Plant your standing foot beside the ball, pointing the way you are running, with your chest up over it.
Weight on the standing leg, not tipping forward.
Drag
Put the sole of your dragging foot on top of the ball to stop it, then pull it straight back the way you came.
As the ball rolls back, turn your body with it, toward the side of the foot you dragged with (right foot, turn right).
Hips and ball turn together.
Keep your body between the defender and the ball as you turn.
You are the wall.
Take the ball away with your next touch, usually with the other foot, and accelerate straight out of the turn.
Turn, then burn.
Lift your head as soon as you have turned so you can see where the space is.
Feel it
A good drag back feels like one movement: brake, sole on, pull, turn, go. The ball stays under control right next to you, your chest stays up over your standing leg, and you are already speeding up before the defender has adjusted.
Fix-its
- You stumble or pitch forward as you stop Brake earlier with shorter steps and bend your knees. Keep your chest up and a little back over the standing leg rather than leaning over the ball.
- The drag is slow, so the defender stays with you Keep the ball close before you turn so the sole is on it in one quick reach, and drag in one movement.
- The ball runs away behind you Pull it back a shorter distance and turn with it, so your next touch arrives before it rolls away.
- You turn but don't change pace Plan the exit before you drag. Your first touch after the turn should push the ball into space and you should sprint after it.
- You turn into the defender or lose sight of them Turn toward the side of the dragging foot and keep your body between the defender and the ball, then get your head up.
Drill
- Walk-through: with the ball still, plant beside it, sole on, pull back, turn and take it away. Do it with both feet before you add speed.
- Line runs: dribble along a pitch line using the inside, outside and sole. When you meet a teammate coming the other way, drag back and return along the line with your head up.
- Gate turns: in an area of about 20 x 30 yards with small gates, dribble through a gate, drag back and come back through the same gate, then find a different gate. Switch feet each round.
- Gate turns with a burst: same set-up, but sprint for two or three touches after every turn. Then shrink the gates.
- Passive then live defender: a defender steps toward you as you approach; drag back as they close and accelerate away. Start passive, then let them try to win it.
Sources
- The FA Boot Room, Graeme Carrick — How using the sole of the foot can benefit players (2020)
- The FA — Futsal for Schools resource cards (2019)
- FIFA — Futsal Coaching Manual (section 4.3 Running with the ball)
- FIFA Training Centre — Newcastle U-9s: finding a way forward
- SoccerHelp (David and Kay Huddleston) — Soccer Turns
- Cesar Cambisaca — Drag Back clinic session (Sport Session Planner, 2013)
- Tasha Flynn — Hotshots Week 2: Turning (drag back) (Sport Session Planner)
- Dos'Santos, Thomas, Comfort & Jones — Training interventions on change of direction biomechanics and ACL loading: a scoping review, Sports Medicine (2019)
Last checked 2026-10-25.