The V-push is a two-touch ball-mastery move: push the ball out and across with one foot, then roll it back with the sole of the same foot, so the ball's path draws a V. No coaching manual we found names a "V-push"; FIFA's ball-mastery session uses the same push-out, roll-back pattern, and each step below comes from sourced coaching on those two touches. The camera reads your push-then-pull rhythm and plant-leg balance, not the ball.
Set up
Move with the ball close to your feet, head up and eyes forward so you can see where the space is.
Relaxed, not stiff.
Bend your standing leg, stay on the balls of your feet, and keep your upper body slightly forward.
Light on your feet.
V
Push the ball out and across with the inside of your working foot. Touch the side of the ball through its centre, not with the whole inside of the foot, and keep the touch small enough that the same foot can reach it again.
Short, soft push.
Put the sole of the same foot on top of the ball and roll it back toward you. Your standing leg stays level with the ball and bent. Don't lean back.
Out, then back.
Look up between the touches, not only at the ball.
Eyes up.
As soon as space opens, drive the ball into it. If a defender is close, keep your body between them and the ball, with the ball on the foot farthest from them.
Roll back, then go.
Learn it with both feet and with both surfaces for the push: FIFA's version pushes with the outside of the foot before the sole roll-back.
Feel it
Two light touches with one foot, the ball never far from you, and your body loose rather than rigid. The sole lets you keep the ball close and change direction quickly, so the roll-back should leave you ready to move off straight away.
Fix-its
- Leaning back on the roll-back Keep the standing leg bent and level with the ball, and your chest slightly forward as the sole comes on.
- Push too big, so the foot can't reach the ball to roll it back Make the push smaller. Close control comes first: touch the side of the ball at its centre, not with the whole foot.
- Eyes glued to the ball Look up between the push and the pull so you can see the space and the defender.
- Stiff and slow between touches Relax your posture and stay on the balls of your feet with your legs bent.
- Stopping after the roll-back Treat the pull as the start of the next action: drive into the space as soon as it appears.
Drill
- Walk-through: standing, push out with the inside, roll back with the sole of the same foot. Slow, both feet.
- FIFA ball mastery: in a 15x15m area, dribble and do the move on the move. Push out with one surface, roll back with the sole of the same foot, then repeat on the other foot. Do it with the inside and the outside.
- Sole-touch rule: in a small-sided game, touch the ball with your sole before every pass.
- FIFA keep-your-ball game: everyone dribbles in a 15x15m area for one minute, protecting their own ball while trying to knock others out. Use the roll-back to pull the ball away from a challenge. Shrink the area to make it harder.
Sources
- FIFA Training Centre — Mastering ball control (session plan)
- easy2coach — Dutch turn with short passing combination (exercise)
- England Football Learning — How using the sole of the foot can benefit players (2023)
- The FA — Futsal for Schools resource cards (2019)
Last checked 2026-10-26.