Learning to redirect a ball toward the goal off a cross is a difficult, yet crucial task. "A soccer player needs to be proficient at finishing off crosses from different heights with all parts of his body," Sampson says. "You have to be able to handle the ball at every level. You have to redirect balls that are waist-high with a volley or side volley. With ones that are chest high, you probably need to collect the ball with one touch, and then finish. Eye-level balls must be redirected toward the goal with the head."

Simple: Stand inside the six-yard line. Redirect balls toward the goal as a teammate crosses them to you from the right and left.

Complex: Have a teammate cross the ball to you at ground-, waist-, chest- and eye-levels. redirect the ball appropriately, depending on the height of the cross. Bump the degree of difficulty by increasing the distance from the goal from 6 to 12, 18 and then 24 yards.