Soccer positions are divided in main groups: Goalkeeper (GK) Defenders and Midfielders Forwards. The other hand, you have positions such as wingbacks, centre backs central midfielders wingers and strikers. Find Out Everything Below.
What Are The Positions In Soccer?
Players are grouped into four categories in a soccer roster (or squad). They are:
Goalkeepers
Defenders
Midfielders
Forwards
There are many types of specialist positions in this space, each with slightly different roles and responsibilities. One could argue that soccer positions are always changing and from team to the other they can even be very different, but eventually most position in soccer fit in one of:
Goalkeepers
Full-backs or wingbacks (defenders)
Center backs (defenders)
Central midfielders (midfielders)
Wingers or wide forwards (midfielders/forwards)
Strikers (forwards)
We will look at each of these positions and their different variations below.
Goalkeeper
What they do:
As you know, the main aim of a goalkeeper is to stop their opponents from scoring goals. They do this by either stopping/saving shots from opposition players, reading the game and collecting/breaking up any balls in behind their defenders or catching/punching crosses.
For instance, if a keeper is able to keep the opposition from scoring for entire match — known as clean sheet and in most of major tournaments leagues have awards za najwięce clean sheety w sezonie. That would be termed as the “Golden Glove” in the Premier League.
Yet goalies are requiring more and more to be top-level passers, in addition to – or perhaps even instead of – their shot-stopping ability. The vast majority of modern coaches attempt to practice what we call possession football: the entire team passing around their opposition from one end of the pitch to another, and it all starts with you, GOALKEEPER.
Main Attributes: Save, Catching, Punches Communication Organised Reflexes Agility Anticipation Technique Passing & Kick-offs.
Some well-known players in this position could include Ederson, Allison, Thibaut Courtois, Manuel Neuer Oliver Kahn Iker Casillas Peter Schmeichel Gianluigi Buffon Gordon Banks Lev Yashin.
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Right-back/Left-Back
What they do: This is a position in defense, where the player plays on either side of the wingbacks. They help out the other defenders with stopping any attacking players from making chances or scoring goals for their team. Sometimes known as fullbacks, they play either side of the pitch at right-back or left-back and typically enjoy one-on-one match-ups against wingers/forwards from the opposition; simultaneously however, WBs should be outlets on ball possession whilst providing offensive support to forwards.
Full-back is a position, traditionally one of the most unglamorous roles on offer to young footballers but has evolved significantly in recent decades, with some modern full-backs seen as key creative players for their team.
Wingbacks do a similar job to full-backs… but with more attacking intent: they help their forwards and midfield support players, making them such an important asset because of the amount of pressure creation on offer. Whereas previously, wingbacks would generally be seen higher up the pitch than full-backs, many of the best modern day full backs – Trent Alexander Arnold and Kyle Walker to name just two examples – frequently have as much defensive work asked of them at times with responsibilities extending right across their respective flanks or even into midfield spaces. Key
Skills: Tackling, positioning, tactical awareness, interceptions, passing crossing speed and stamina dribbling communication versatility
Some of the big names in this position: Trent Alexander Arnold Kyler Walker Achraf Hakimi Dani Carvajal Dani Alves Phillip Lahm Roberto Carlos Javier Zanetti Ashley Cole Cafu Nilton Santos
What is a center-back Center – back ( also known as Central defender or Centre half) The positioning of two to four players in front of the goalkeeper whose responsibility is to prevent an opposition player from scoring and creating goal-scoring opportunities.
As a rule they will play together, one or both of them are organizing the substruction, ‘marking’ marks against other attacking players adversaries (as there is no offside coverage and so can be immediately stopped) with their own attackers as to win superiority in autoplayers on defensive utritsils.
Center halves are oftentimes the largest, most physically strong players on the field and take advantage of this trait to ruin play at both ends. They are central pieces and due to that fact the role of center-back can change depending on what their team needs tactically as well as how they fit into a teams’ tactics.
For instance, someone like John Stones (Man City) is thought of as a ball-playing centre-back; he can get on the ball and pick out a killer pass to start an attack. Whereas, for example Giorgio Chiellini (Juventus) is revered for his aggression, tenacity and no nonsense defending which are type of skills more commonly associated with center-backs.
Key Skills:
Tackling, positioning, tactical awareness, blocking/interceptions passing strength communication leadership heading jumping anticipation
Notable players at this location include:
Those are: Bobby Moore, Franz Beckenbauer, Ronald KoemanPaolo Maldini Fabio Cannavaro John Terry Vincent Kompany Carles Puyol Gerard Piqué Sergio RamosVirgil van Dijk
Center Midfield
What they do:
Central midfield offers one of the most varied and complex tactical tasks in football. Central midfielders are typically either one or a combinations of the following:
Hold or Defensive Mid.
The role of a defensive midfielder is to shield their centre backs, breaking up opposition attacks and forming the transition from defence to attack. They are also tasked with providing the first point of attack and so will have great pass quality.
Box-to-box
Box-to-Box It should come as no surprise that they are the best all-rounders capable of just about anything on a football field with responsibilities at both ends. They have the ability to impact every area of a match, from making important tackles in their own half to scoring goals and setting up strikers due to an effective mix of physicality, work rate and technical play.
Number 8
Much like your box-to-box midfielder, number 8s posses excellent all-rounder abilities but are more inclined towards dictating the play and tempo of a match as well as constructing their teams attack.
Center forward (playmaker or offensive midfielder)
Sometimes referred to as attacking midfielders, or “number tens”, playmakers are players whose role is it try and generate opportunities in the final third of the field by either scoring themselves or assisting a teammate. Bankers AccountIt really is set up between midfield and attacking participants. Great touch, vision and passing are needed as well for these players alongside clinical shooting.
We know that central midfielders must adapt, and they might need to fulfil numerous responsibilities over the course of only ninety minutes. Jude Bellingham I think previously wore the number 22, which signals to being able to play as a four (holding midfielder), eight (box-to-box) or ten(status=messiPostExecute). It factors into why this is such a critical position and how important it is to be somewhat of an all-around player here.
Key Skills:
Passing Awareness Vision Dribbling Control Tackling Interceptions Pressing Shooting Stamina Tactical awareness Communication Leadership Versatility Technique Playmaking
Well known cult players in these positions:-
Nasir Bellingham, İlkay Gündoğan, Kevin De Bruyne, Pedri, Luka Modrić، Xavi، Andrés Iniesta ، Andrea Pirlo ، Clarence Seedorf//Paul Scholes //اللعبBaolodone Zidane/Bobby Charlton/Lothar Matthäus
Wingers Or Wide Forwards
What they do:
Wingers (also called wide forward) are attacking players who play on the flanks. They Look to make goals and score those balls for their team. A traditional midfielder sat on the left wing in a midfield four, nowadays few coaches play with 4-3-3 formation using two wingers and only one central attacker.
Wingers are usually the fastest and most skillful dribblers in the team, they often face one on ones against their opposition full-back multiple times throughout a match.
Wingers either attempt to beat defenders and cross balls into the post for a teammate or they cut inside, take shots on goal or play passes centrally. Another two that need extreme close control, attacking qualities and quickness.
Key Skills:
Speed, attacking movement and dribbling techniques. Ball control: passing precision and crossing deliverance goalscoring ability tactical discipline technical expertise (team play)
Notable Players at this Position
Garrincha Lionel Messi Vinicius Junior Mohamed Salah Gareth Bale Neymar Rivaldo Arjen Robben Ryan Giggs Stanley Matthews George Best
Striker Or Center-forward
What they do:
Striker (also known as the ‘number nine’ position): Strikers are tasked with scoring goals for their team. They typically play in central areas (so they are also called center-forwards) and serve as the goal-scoring axis on a team.
Strikers go up against central defenders meaning they need to possess very good athletic characteristics. They must have the physicality to shield themselves from defenders and keep hold of the ball while their team advances, or they need pace in order to race beyond back-twos. Some of the best strikers in football history have managed to accomplish this regularly.
Great forwards can be a game-changer for their club. After all, goals win games. The most talented strikers are capable of pulling the team out of a difficult situation through one moment on top or magnificent completion. This is also the reason that in soccer you pay more money to strikers than any other position.
Key Skills:
Finishing, technique, balance-positioning-control-awareness-mentality-composure-perception of the game-passing pressure-physical attributes.
Big name players for this Role:
Cristiano Ronaldo, Erling Haaland, Harry Kane WildcardsGerd Müller, Pelé and a number of players who have only scored more this centuryAlan Shearer (Source: Wikimedia Commons)Samuel Eto’o David Villa Classic NinesRonaldoNazárioAlfredo Di Stéfano Robert…
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Soccer Player Formations
Also, Formations are important too. Innovations in formations, tactics and player roles evolve every season, but it is always up to the coach to figure out how best their team can work. There are no rules as to where players can be on the field, or what they can do. If they and the coach want that, fine.
In soccer, persons are usually organized in formations by the coach or manager of the staff and instructed where to spend almost all of their time about the pitch – what roles they should have within group. In the modern game three conventional formations are most common:
4-4-2
4-5-1
4-3-3
4-3-2-1
4-1-3-2
5-4-1
4-1-2-1-2 diamond
3-5-2
3-5-2 soccer formation
Every formation has its advantages and disadvantages, so a coach may prefer the players on strict discipline in that position or allow them to be more free with their own style. The player must also play the role of a student and understand what his/her coach wants to happen on paper, before translating it into actual matches.
Soccer Position Numbers
As a general rule, all soccer players wear numbers on the back of their jerseys and many times each one has some relation to his or her position in said pitch. In the past, players had to wear suitable numbers relating their place in team and ‘squad number’ was above 11.
But in this, the age of modern-day superstardom, it has become par for the course for some high-profile names to take a number from outside those that… Brazilian legend number 99 also wore Ronaldo Nazário because the favorite number, when he moved to AC Milan and all his former variant t-shirts of different names were already taken.
But, most commonly, the soccer positions by number are:
Goalkeeper
Right-back
Left-back
Center-back
Center-back
Central defensive/holding midfielder
Right winger/forward
Central/box-to-box midfielder
Striker
Playmaker/attacking midfielder
Left winger/forward
Also Read: Ten Hilarious Football Jokes to Get You Laughing
Soccer Position Abbreviations
Instead of typing the full name out, you can use two- or three-letter abbreviations for every soccer field position. You will know this if you have ever played soccer management simulators or built your own football team online then
The full list of abbreviations are:
Goalkeeper – GK
Center-back – CB
Right full-back – RB
Left full-back – LB
Right wing-back – RWB
Left wing-back – LWB
Central defensive/holding midfield – CDM
Center midfield – CM
Attacking midfielders – AM
Right winger/forward – RW
Left winger/forward – LW
Center forward – CF
Striker – ST
Soccer Positions Summary
That is everything you need to know about the soccer positions and numbers world in extensive detail. But do keep in mind that soccer number positions are only hypothetical. A player that is used to playing generally in a certain part of the field, or loves wearing this number, can be allowed into a different area on attack as well defense and even see it through multiple positions within same outing.
But as the game grows and coaches get more creative in their ways to beat other teams, traditional positions are slowly beginning going away. As players are played again in a more advanced manner, this leads to star strikers pressing high up the pitch & putting shifts defensively just like they do attacking wise b4 full-backs become there team’s leading creative outlet Positions are just a guide. Every coach, every player and every organization is different.
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