Deliver an early, driven cross to the back post and finish the arriving run first time. Pick the moment to cross early, whip it beyond the defence, and attack the back post to volley it in.
A winger receives wide and delivers an early driven cross to the back post, a far-side runner times a run to attack it and volley it home, keeper in goal. Cross before reaching the byline to beat the defensive line, and whip it flat and fast to the back post. Rotate crosser, runner, and keeper, and mix early crosses with byline cut-backs.
Waiting for the byline is a habit rather than a rule, and it costs teams a great many chances. A defensive line that has just pushed up to squeeze the play, and has not yet turned and dropped, is at its most vulnerable in the two seconds before it recovers. Cross into that window and the ball travels behind defenders who are still facing the wrong way. Wait for the byline and they will all be goal-side and organised by the time you get there.
The skill is therefore recognition rather than delivery. The cue is visible: the back line stepping forward, the far-side full-back tucked in narrow, and nobody yet turned. A winger looking up at that moment has the picture. A winger with his head down driving for the byline has already missed it.
The delivery has to be driven and flat to work. An early cross that hangs gives the defence exactly the time the early timing was meant to steal, and lets the keeper come across to claim it. Struck firmly, curving away from the goalkeeper towards the back post, it arrives before anyone can adjust.
The back-post runner is what makes it a chance rather than a clearance. Starting wide, almost outside the defensive line, and attacking the space late means arriving at pace from a position the far-side defender cannot watch while also tracking the ball.
The cost worth naming: cross early against a set, dropped defence and you are simply giving the ball away.
Save it to your private drills, then change the animation, adjust positions, swap equipment, or drop it into a session block. Or start from a blank pitch and build your own.