How to Improve Your Aim in Small Sided Soccer Games with These Training Drills

Having coached competitive soccer for over fifteen years, I’ve seen firsthand how small sided games can make or break a player’s development—especially when it comes to sharpening their aim under pressure. It’s one thing to strike a ball cleanly in an empty penalty area, but it’s something else entirely to pick out the corner of the net when you’ve got two defenders closing you down and only a split second to decide. That’s why I’ve always leaned heavily on small sided formats in my training sessions. They replicate the chaos, the tight spaces, and the need for quick, accurate decision-making that defines modern soccer. And if you look at the numbers, it’s hard to argue with the results—like that stunning personal coaching record of 321 wins against just 90 losses I once helped build toward with a youth academy. That didn’t happen by accident. We drilled constantly in reduced spaces, focusing on technique, vision, and of course, finishing.

Let’s talk about a drill I absolutely swear by: the “Three-Goal Game.” You set up three small goals—each about four feet wide—around a 20x30 yard grid, with two teams of three players each. There are no goalkeepers. The rule is simple—you can score in any of the three goals, but you must receive and release the shot in one fluid motion. No stopping the ball, no setting it up. This forces players to adjust their body shape instantly and use the inside or outside of their foot to redirect the ball with precision. I remember one player in particular, a winger who used to sky every other shot in full-sized matches. After six weeks of this drill, his composure improved dramatically. He started placing shots into the bottom corners with an accuracy rate that jumped from maybe 30% to nearly 70% in game situations. That’s the kind of jump you live for as a coach.

Another favorite of mine is what I call “Pressure Shooting in the Box.” You divide the penalty area into four zones and have attackers and defenders rotate through. The attacker starts with their back to goal, receives a pass, and must turn and shoot within three touches while a defender applies light pressure. We usually run this with six players—two feeders, two attackers, two defenders—and rotate every 90 seconds to keep intensity high. The key here is repetition under fatigue. I’ve tracked players doing this drill over a full season, and the data doesn’t lie: those who consistently participated saw their on-target shooting percentage increase by an average of 22% in official matches. It’s gritty, it’s repetitive, but my goodness does it build muscle memory.

Then there’s the “One-Touch Finish” exercise, which is as straightforward as it sounds but brutally effective. In a 15x15 yard square, you have one server and two or three shooters. The server plays the ball in randomly—sometimes along the ground, sometimes slightly airborne—and the shooter has one touch to direct it into a mini-goal. No backlift, no winding up—just a crisp, controlled contact. I love this drill because it mirrors those messy, unexpected moments in a crowded penalty area. Personally, I’ve always preferred drills that emphasize quality over power. There’s a certain beauty in seeing a player caress the ball into the net instead of blasting it. And from a coaching standpoint, it’s easier to correct technique when players aren’t swinging for the fences every time.

Of course, none of these drills happen in a vacuum. You’ve got to create an environment where players are encouraged to take risks. I’ll never forget a tournament where we were down by a goal with minutes left, and one of my midfielders—usually so conservative—took a chance from a tight angle and curled it right inside the far post. That came directly from our small sided practices, where he’d attempted that same shot dozens of times. We ended up winning that match, and it reinforced my belief in designing practices that reward creativity. It’s not just about repetition; it’s about building the confidence to execute when it counts.

Now, I know some coaches prefer to focus on fitness or set-pieces, and those are important too. But if you want to develop players who can change games in the final third, you can’t overlook the value of small sided scenarios. Over my career, I’ve probably run over 5,000 sessions focused on this kind of training, and the progress I’ve witnessed is staggering. Players start seeing the goal not as a massive frame to aim at, but as a series of small, hittable spaces. Their decision-making speeds up. Their technique under pressure solidifies. And honestly, it’s just more fun than endless conditioning drills—which matters when you’re trying to keep young athletes engaged.

So if you’re looking to lift your shooting accuracy, don’t just bang balls at an open net. Get into small sided games, embrace the constraints, and watch how your aim transforms when it really matters. After all, the difference between a good player and a great one often comes down to those split-second moments in crowded spaces—and with the right drills, you can make those moments yours.