Last updated on February 28th, 2022
You have seen that most players taking a corner kick will either pass or cross the ball. This may make you wonder if it is possible for you to dribble directly from a corner kick!
Here’s a breakdown of what you can and cannot do from a corner kick:
Contents
Can you dribble from a corner kick?
When taking a corner, you are unable to touch the ball for a second time before another player touches it. As such, it is illegal for you to dribble the ball or pass it to yourself from a corner kick.
The laws prevent you from dribbling or passing to yourself
Here is the exact wording from Law 17 of the Laws of the Game:
If, after the ball is in play, the kicker touches the ball again before it has touched another player an indirect free kick is awarded
What this means is that if you are the corner taker, you can only touch the ball once. The ball has to be touched by another player before you can touch it again.
One of the more common scenarios is where you pass the ball to your teammate, and he passes it back to you. You are able to receive the ball, provided you are not offside!
This is why the corner taker will either pass the ball or cross it into the penalty area. He is unable to touch the ball twice, if not this will result in an indirect free kick.
When you want to dribble the ball, you will need to take more than one touch to bring the ball forward.
As such, it is not possible for you to pass the ball to yourself or dribble the ball!
You can dribble the ball if another player has already touched the ball
There is one way where it is possible for you to dribble the ball directly from the corner kick!
There is this rule that is also found in Law 17:
The ball is in play when it is kicked and clearly moves; it does not need to leave the corner area
This means that if your teammate touches the ball after the referee has blown the whistle, the ball is effectively in play.
It also does not need to leave the corner area, so the ball can be left there.
After your teammate has put the ball in play, you are able to take the ball and dribble it immediately!
Again, your teammate can’t be the one to dribble the ball since he would have touched the ball twice.
This was exactly how the New York Red Bulls scored this goal in the Major League Soccer match.
This is a really ingenious way of taking the corner!
However, there is another rule that may make this routine less effective:
Opponents must remain at least 9.15 m (10 yds) from the corner arc until the ball is in play
This means that once the ball is in play, the defenders can rush in to challenge the ball.
If one of the defenders are alert enough to see the trick that you’re playing, he tackle the ball and foil your plan!
The referees need to know the rules well
Another problem that you may face if you want to play this trick is that the referees may not know this rule.
This was seen in the 2008/09 match between Manchester United vs Chelsea. Ronaldo score a goal after Rooney and Giggs played this trick.
However, this goal was disallowed!
You can view a clearer video on this incident from Manchester United’s YouTube channel.
Even though the goal was perfectly legal, it was still disallowed. It is such that this goal did not stand because the referees were unsure of the rules!
Manchester United got some justice in the end as the retaken corner was scored by Vidic.
If you are looking to buy the latest Manchester United merchandise, you can get it from the official Manchester United store.
This shows the importance of communicating your intentions very clearly to the referee. If they are not alert, they would have missed out this important detail where the ball is now in play.
This corner kick routine has many risks involved with it. However, if you are able to pull it off, you will definitely catch your opponent off guard!
Can you dribble from a free kick?
Similar to a corner kick, you are unable to dribble from a free kick. If the free kick taker touches the ball before it has touched another player, this is an offence according to the Laws of the Game, and an indirect free kick will be awarded to the opposing team.
Conclusion
It is not possible for you to pass the ball to yourself or dribble from the corner kick. Another player has to touch the ball before you can take a second touch of the ball.
The only way that you can legally dribble the ball is by doing this corner trick:
- Let your teammate move the ball to bring it in play and leave it in the corner area
- You take over the corner kick and start dribbling the ball
Since the ball is now in play, the rules of the corner kick no longer apply. As such, you will be able to dribble the ball from the corner kick!
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