Finishing Skills with Tolu AROKODARE

Goal-scoring breakdown through five of Tolu Arokodare's 2024-2025 season catalogue

Goal-scoring is the most valuable asset in football and it entails multiple skills:

• SEPARATION: Find space

• PREPARATION: Create separation to shoot

• SHOOTING: (1) Accuracy & (2) Connection & (3) Timing

Specific skills like using the defender as a shield or gate, coördination and balance can be placed under those three main skills.

To accurately scale goal-scorers across international leagues, goal or xG sheets should contextualize the actual analysis of a player’s skillset.

This framework will be applied on five of Tolu Arokodare’s Jupiler Pro League goals.

Goal 1: Royal Antwerp (1:1)

Starting position on the break is between the centre-backs, because if the attack is fast, you can be put in behind after exploding from the near-side centre-back.

That’s not the case, so Tolu looks for the blindside of the far-side CB. Matchups are about being a pain in the backside. Not letting your opponent know where you are, being stronger, having gamesmanship, are all contributing factors.

This movement pulls the centre-back away from the penalty spot which is what you want to defend.

Good strikers smell blood; be alive when the ball is about to be put in. Tolu has opened the zone he wants to attack: the front zone.

Slight change of speed and direction

Cross can’t be put in. What I work on with strikers is to have consecutive attacks in finishing drills to teach how and where to reposition, to mentally not check out of the attack but also find the new best zone to attack.

Find the blindside again and open the front zone, literally ask for the cross “because I’m stronger anyways”.

The backwards step to either (a) have the blindside advantage or (b) make the defender open up and lose his speed to attack the cross, that’s how you create shots off crosses

Explode into space, push off the furthest foot

Now in front of the defender

How good is your connection with the ball? Flicked header because the goalkeeper Senne Lammens is off his line.

Goal 2: Union Saint-Gilloise (1:2)

Strikers who create something from nothing in the channel are valuable; either near the halfway-line to draw a foul or create a chance in the box. The latter suggests the attacker is powerful to use strength at speed.

Just like “technique” is used as a false broad term for more specific skills, speed of execution is misinterpreted.

Speed of execution is how quickly you can execute movements without losing speed or balance. This also entails heading down the ball in your running path without losing speed.

Football has seen some strikers at the absolute top level who can head it down, keep speed and still have their steps perfectly work out to release an accurate and powerful shot.

The steps don’t perfectly match, but Tolu manages to release a shot nonetheless:

• Accurate: under the goalkeeper’s arm

• Connection: outside foot/toe poke with strong connection to beat the goalkeeper

• Timing: early to catch out the goalkeeper

Shot goes through the legs because it is early; perfect accuracy would be between the left side of the goalkeeper and the far post.

This is the framework to recognize good shooters, no matter how unorthodox it looks.

Goal 3: KAA Gent (2:0)

Arokodare is uncannily good at getting on the end of long balls, and chesting them down.

The usual coaching point when shielding the ball is to be diagonal to your opponent, and have your arm out to keep them at distance. If your timing is right on these long balls to only search contact at the last second, you can get away with being square like Tolu is.

At the end of the day the skill is also to not shift your balance too much either way - don’t lean forward to get bundled over (hey Antony), don’t lean into your opponent and fall on your bottom (hey Rasmus).

(1) Two-footed leap, arch your back and flex your pectoralis muscles to “cushion” the ball onto your chest and keep it near instead of bouncing away - (2) land on one foot to be faster - right foot allows you to push off, land the left foot and (3) play the ball on your second step. That’s the quickest way to play with your strong foot. “Get the bounce out” and hit the ball from above to not make it a hot potato. (5) Push off the (furthest/) left leg to be in front of your defender and attack the space in behind

I find that an excellent through ball because you often see passes into feet or onto the run, but less so passes that set up the shot directly.

Near foot touch into his path, hasn’t really got the stiff arm to hold his defender off. That’s the paradox of development - why would a striker like Tolu ever have to hold off an opponent with his arms when he’s that strong. A little more on that on the post linked below.

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Good players have always been good problem-solvers, though. Torunarigha has put him off balance (and Arokodare is actually running around the imaginary training cone), how can you still get a shot off?

Outside of the foot poke: accurate, early and with good connection to catch out the goalkeeper.

Goal 4: Union Saint-Gilloise (1:0)

Location: Blindside

Move before the ball is hit, can be swung in here: Tolu grabs Burgess and darts in front to the first post

These split-second seperate good strikers from relentless strikers, the front zone can only be attacked if you’ve got separation from your opponent. The ball wasn’t swung in on the first or second touch, so Tolu blocks his movement by planting his left foot and switches to Burgess’ blindside again

Cross is still put in low

Ball is cleared, reposition!

Chipped pass onto the underlapping runner, ideal situation to look for the blindside …

… and dart into the front zone before the ball is hit.

And this is shooting quality; planting the support leg in line with the ball, under your shoulders, how quickly can you swing your leg and get the right connection

Tolu connects very well with the ball off either feet.

Goal 5: Club Brugge (0:1)

Plant the feet under the shoulders and be strong in the quadriceps. There’s different schools to teaching holdup-play;

☁️✨CLOUD 9: Mohamed Kader Meïté

some coach strikers to receive side-on, arm across your opponent; while some coaches put the emphasis on backing into the defender with one or two elbows over the defender’s arms to “be in control” and then roll the defender with your touch.

That’s something I learned from discussing with a former Jupiler Pro League head coach at an academy. Ask questions!

Arokodare shakes off Ordonez before his touch, has to readjust for his left foot stuck in the quicksand

There’s an audience for calling footballers “technical”, make sure to account for the footballers that can move the ball the quickest, especially when having to readjust.

Right foot touch to prepare the quick left-footed pass

Move and attack the blindside

Stay right on the edge

Alive before it is hit

Technique is also feeling where balls will land and adjusting footwork to make the right connection

These volleys are a trademark.

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Tolu AROKODARE is a good goalscorer because

• He smells which space to attack, and knows how to open that space

• His timing to attack crosses with either foot or head is top-level

• The ability to connect with the ball on the first touch is great (not for the nets)

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For more readings on strikers, have a look at:

The framework on finishing is inspired by Harry Brooks. You can follow his work on Instagram.