The first touch, taught slowly

Start with the ankle. Not the foot, not the knee: the ankle. A first touch is decided in the half-second before contact, when the joint either locks or softens. Lock it and the ball runs away. Soften it and the ball sits.

The drill is simple: two players, five metres apart, one ball. Thirty passes each, and the only rule is that the receiving touch must stop the ball dead. Most sessions end before anyone gets to thirty.