La Croqueta: Soccer technique, drills and fixes

La croqueta is a two-touch move: you push the ball sideways across your body with the inside of one foot, then push it forward with the inside of the other foot, so your body weight slides with it and you slip past a defender or between two. It is associated with Andrés Iniesta, who took it from his childhood hero Michael Laudrup. Laudrup's own point about it: it exists to set you up for the next pass, not to look nice.

Approach

Dribble at the defender with the ball under close control and your head up. As you arrive, set the ball between your feet, feet about shoulder-width apart, with the ball slightly nearer your stronger foot.

relaxed, not rigid; ball sitting between your feet.

Slow down as you get close to draw the defender in. Watch their feet. You want them to commit or lunge, or two defenders to close in with a gap between them.

patient. You are baiting the tackle.

Shift it across

As they commit, push the ball sideways across your body with the inside of your stronger foot. It is a push, not a pass, and it goes sideways, not forward. Do it as quickly as you can while keeping control, and let your body weight shift with the ball.

a short sideways slide, the ball never leaves your feet.

As the ball arrives at your other foot, push it forward with the inside of that foot in almost the same movement. The two touches make one L shape: across, then forward past the defender.

two touches that feel like one.

Burst past

Accelerate straight away into the space you just opened. Keep your head up and pick the next action: pass, shot or keep dribbling.

slow in, fast out.

Feel it

Slow, then sudden. The defender reaches for where the ball was, and it has already slid across and gone forward past them. Both touches are soft pushes with the inside of the foot, your weight travels with the ball, and your eyes are up before you burst.

Fix-its

Defender pokes it away You shifted too early or too slowly. Slow down first, wait for them to commit or lunge, then make the transfer quick.
First touch goes forward into the defender The first touch has to go sideways across your body. Only the second touch goes forward.
Ball runs away from you You are kicking it. Push both touches with the inside of the foot and keep the ball between your feet.
A pause between the two touches Meet the ball with the second foot as it arrives, in almost the same movement. Practise slowly, then speed up.
You open the gap but don't get through No change of pace. The move only buys you space; accelerate into it straight away with your head up.

Drill

Standing still: shift the ball slowly from the inside of one foot to the inside of the other, then gradually speed up while keeping control. Work both directions.
Cone lines: stand between two cones, ball at your feet, and move left and right along the line doing the croqueta each way. A 10 to 15 minute block alongside your other dribbling moves.
Cone slalom: dribble through a line of cones and croqueta past each one, then accelerate for a few steps after the last cone.
Meet in the middle: two players on cones 15 m apart dribble toward each other and croqueta around each other in the middle. Do it with both feet leading.
1v1 game: play 1v1s where beating your opponent with the move scores, working on when to slow down and when to shift.

By position

Most useful for players who receive in tight spaces and get closed down quickly, such as central and attacking midfielders and wingers, especially when two defenders squeeze you at once. For defenders and holding midfielders it is a way to escape pressure, but the simple pass is usually the better choice.

Sources

Last checked 2026-10-31.