The 10 Most Creative Skills Every Footballer Needs To Learn

Top 10 Skill Moves All Footballers Must Learn

One of the most exciting things in football is watching a player that can waltz through a team and destroy defenders with skills, all whilst making it look easy.

Especially in the game now, tight and compact defences are getting more and more common, and one of the best ways to break these down is through skills that open these defences.

It's why wingers are often regarded as some of the most influential and most valuable players in a side and the more skills they possess and can pull off the better more often than not they are known as the best; think of Neymar or Ronaldinho, for example.

But if nothing else, it makes you an incredible player to watch, and you'll always be a fan favourite if you can get fans out of their seats. With all that said, what are the best and most important skills that all footballers should learn?

10) The Elastico

It's not exclusive to Brazilians, but the elastico is typically a move that gets associated with the big flair players like Neymar and Ronaldinho.

To pull it off well, the player needs top-tier agility and ball control to properly stay in control during the move and to effectively get past the defender.

The skill is done by a player moving the ball in one direction with the outside of the foot before snapping it back in the other direction with the inside of the same foot.

The elastico from Rivellino 🇧🇷😮‍💨#FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/sy0YpLIE6o

— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) July 6, 2024

9) The Stepover

The stepover is perhaps one of the most common and most frequently used skills but is also one of the most difficult to absolutely nail.

When done right, it provides the ultimate deception to defenders and can look incredibly smooth; in a lot of ways, it's similar to the elastico in that the aim is to bait the defender into going one way before quickly shifting to another.

To do this skill, throw one leg around the ball as though you're circling it, and as soon as the defender has shifted their feet, knock the ball in the other direction to carry it past them.

Bro!!!! This is Neymar regen. You can’t tell me otherwise. He is the Spanish Neymar.

That leg over was too beautiful. Pure orgasm watching this😩😩😩pic.twitter.com/UOP3nflFRO

— DesmundOris (@Desmund_Oris) January 28, 2026

8) The Cruyff Turn

You wouldn't win any prizes for assuming that Dutch iconic footballer Johan Cruyff is highly involved in this skill; in fact, he was the one who pioneered it in the 1974 World Cup against Sweden.

The Cruyff turn is mainly centred around being a dummy move but varies from some of the others in the list in that it sends the attacker in a 180-degree motion rather than following a feint.

To perform this skill, you have to shape up as though you're about to shoot or pass before dragging the ball behind the back of your standing leg.

On this day in 1974:

The Cruyff Turn is born… pic.twitter.com/c4x34PqHKr

— When Football Was Better (@FootballInT80s) June 19, 2025

7) The Roulette

Some call it the Marseille turn; others might call it the Zidane turn, but to most it's known as a roulette, and it's one of the silkiest skills in the game when pulled off properly.

Its main usage is as a way to navigate through tight spaces and shield the ball in the process; it's vital to have close control and a low centre of gravity to pull this off effectively.

To do the roulette, you need the ball in front of you and put your inside foot on top of the ball and roll it back slightly, then spin your body and roll the ball with the outside foot in the direction you're turning.

3 - Zinedine Zidane 🇫🇷 avec ses roulette 🔄 pic.twitter.com/boDrGK12Jq

— MOHAMED🇸🇳 (@Big_Mz064) August 14, 2025

6) La Croqueta

Another skill that is associated with one particular footballer is the La Croqueta and one of the greatest Spanish midfielders of all time, Andres Iniesta.

La Croqueta is in fact named after the Spanish snack of a croquette due to its similar nature to a chef tossing batter from one hand to another to make it; on a pitch, the skill is all about quickly shifting the ball from one foot to another to escape tight situations.

In premise the skill is simple; just shift the ball from one foot to another. However, it's important to do it at speed to be effective with it and have solid ball control to move it away from the defender.

Don Andres Iniesta and the la croqueta. A match made in heaven pic.twitter.com/QwaRrtXFUV https://t.co/diEBZfTr6G

— Radman (@Radmanx23) June 6, 2023

5) The Trivela

The trivela is mainly used as a form of pass or shot but is still highly skilful and looks sublime when a player pulls it off.

You'll have seen players do this very often when watching football, but it was pioneered and made the most famous by Portuguese winger Ricardo Quaresma.

The skill is perhaps the easiest in principle to do, as it's literally just kicking the ball with the outside of the foot, but nailing it to get proper accuracy and power is an entirely different thing.

Sturridge's trivela in the 2016 final 💫#UEL pic.twitter.com/69nwiUthKP

— UEFA Europa League (@EuropaLeague) February 4, 2026

4) The Rabona

You don't really see a rabona on a football pitch very often, mainly because it's one of the toughest things to pull off effectively, but it does have its uses.

Mainly it can be used when a shot with a weaker foot isn't ideal, but sometimes it is purely to showboat, and who can blame players when it looks so good if you pull it off?

To perform a Rabona, you need to wrap your stronger leg behind your other leg to kick the ball; the focus needs to be on the connection with the ball for it to be effective.

rabona cross. been there done that pic.twitter.com/8EG2I9eQ4A https://t.co/7Tu4ZPmcRh

— T (@Talhaa10_) February 8, 2026

3) The Rainbow Flick

One of the strangely controversial skills that can be hugely effective is the rainbow flick; many readers may remember Neymar having a penchant for pulling this one off and getting a lot of backlash for doing so.

It's controversial for the fact that it's known as a major display of showboating and can humiliate the defender if they get sold by it; that said, it can be highly useful for escaping narrow spaces.

To pull off a rainbow flick, which is one of the more complicated moves, with both feet at the sides of the ball, use one leg to roll the ball up the back of your standing leg; whilst it's in the air, use the standing leg to flick it up over your head and that of the defender.

Neymar with a Rainbow flick in training 🪄pic.twitter.com/6Fcz5Xzbid

— Ney (@Neycromancer) January 14, 2025

2) The Body Feint

The body feint is factually the easiest move on this list to pull off; however, it can also be one of the most effective.

It can be used to try and bypass a defender like a stepover, but more often it is used to evade pressure when you have a player running at you for the ball. Sergio Busquets was the absolute master of this skill and made it look absolutely effortless.

To perform a body feint,, simply lean your body in one direction to appear as though you're going to move one way before going the other with the ball; when used at speed, it can very effectively move you away from pressure.

Toni Kroos’ signature touch and body feint to beat a press 😮‍💨

It works every single time 😂😂pic.twitter.com/0LuCFIfpUZ https://t.co/UCQcq3AdMU

— ℂ𝕆𝕃L𝕀ℕ𝕊 🙂 (@_col_lins) November 13, 2025

1) The Ronaldo Chop

Just like the Cruyff turn, there's zero prize for assuming who helped pioneer this skill; it was unsurprisingly Cristiano Ronaldo, and he has helped push this as one of the most effective ways of shifting the ball from a defender.

Its beauty is that it both looks beautiful when pulled off cleanly and is incredibly effective and is mainly effective when you have a defender running alongside you.

To pull off a Ronaldo chop, simply push the ball with the inside of your foot that's further from the ball behind the back of your leading foot to re-angle the run; when done quickly, it will catch the defender off guard and leave a free run at goal very often.

He was good that they name the skills after him “Ronaldo chop” pic.twitter.com/ccjpVI7XGn

— OLA⌛️ (@A_kinola02) June 5, 2025