In association football, channels is the name given to certain areas of the pitch, created by the space between players and groups of players.
There are two types of channels, vertical (between full backs and their closest centre back), and horizontal (between defence, midfield, and attack).
The channels are subjectively described (there is no specific marking of the pitch) as the areas in which wide-playing strikers look to receive the ball, being a vertical strip extending from the halfway line to the goal line, and close to, but not too near the edge of the pitch, just inside the touchline, an area more commonly occupied by a winger. [1]
By receiving the ball in the channel, a striker hopes to confuse the opposing defence, as he is between the full-back and centre-back, and makes them unsure as to who should mark or close down the striker, this thinking time allows the striker more time on the ball, and also distracts the defence from other players who are making runs.
These channels are the areas created between the defence and midfield (usually occupied by that team's defensive midfielder/anchor man, or the opposition's advanced playmaker/deep lying forward), and midfield and attack (usually occupied by that team's advanced playmaker/deep playing forward, or the opposition's defensive midfielder/anchor man). Formations that usually create these channels are the 4–4–2, 5–4–1, 5–3–2. In modern times, formations have been developed to cancel out these channels, examples of these formations include the 4–2–3–1, 4–3–2–1, 4–4–2 diamond.
An example of the use of this is the FC Barcelona team, who use a fluid (meaning the players are free to move around and exchange positions) 4–3–3 formation to use the channels created by the oppositions formation to gain an advantage, e.g. Xavi with the ball in midfield, passing to one of the front three players who start either in the oppositions defensive zone, and drops back towards his midfield, or starting in the oppositions midfield zone, and moves forward. Barcelona's formation, as well as taking advantage of opposition's channels, also looks to cancel out the chance of their own team creating them, with the use of Sergio Busquets as a defensive midfielder, who looks to occupy the space between his back four and midfield three.
Forwards are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role of the forward relies heavily on being able to create space for attack.
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundaries, with mobility and passing ability, they are often referred to as deep-lying midfielders, play-makers, box-to-box midfielders, or holding midfielders. There are also attacking midfielders with limited defensive assignments.
Luis Enrique Martínez García, known as Luis Enrique, is a Spanish football manager and former player.
In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring.
Team tactics as well as individual skills are necessities for playing association football. Football is in theory a very simple game, illustrated by Kevin Keegan's namely assertion that his tactics for winning a match were to "score more goals than the opposition". Tactical prowess within the sport is nevertheless a craftsmanship of its own, and one of the reasons why managers are paid well on the elite level. Well-organised and ready teams are often seen beating teams with more skillful players on paper. Manuals and books generally cover not only individual skills but tactics as well.
In association football, the formation of a team refers to the position players take in relation to each other on a pitch. As association football is a fluid and fast-moving game, a player's position in a formation does not define their role as tightly as that of rugby player, nor are there breaks in play where the players must line up in formation. A player's position in a formation typically defines whether a player has a mostly defensive or attacking role, and whether they tend to play centrally or towards one side of the pitch.
In the sport of association football, each of the 11 players on a team is assigned to a particular position on the field of play. A team is made up of one goalkeeper and ten outfield players who fill various defensive, midfield, and attacking positions depending on the formation deployed. These positions describe both the player's main role and their area of operation on the pitch.
In certain sports, such as football, field hockey, ice hockey, handball, rugby union, lacrosse and rugby league, winger is a position. It refers to positions on the extreme left and right sides of the pitch, or playing field. In American football and Canadian football, the analogous position is the wide receiver. Wingers often try to use pace to exploit extra space available on the flanks that can be made available by their teammates dominating the centre ground. They must be wary however of not crossing the touchline, or sidelines, and going out of play. In sports where the main method of scoring involves attacking a small goal in the centre of the field, a common tactic is to cross the ball to a central teammate.
Diego Pablo Simeone González (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈdjeɣo ˈpaβlo simeˈone]; Italian: [ˈdjɛːɡo simeˈoːne, ˈdjeː-]; born 28 April 1970, nicknamed El Cholo, is an Argentine professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder; he has been the manager of Atlético Madrid since December 2011.
In sports, a starting lineup is an official list of the set of players who will participate in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes or bench players.
Enzo Bearzot was an Italian professional football player and manager. A defender and midfielder, he led the Italy national team to victory in the 1982 FIFA World Cup.
In association football, a playmaker is a player who controls the flow of the team's play, and is often involved in offensively and defensively playing passing moves which lead to goals, through their vision, technique, ball control, creativity and passing ability.
Fernando De Napoli is an Italian former professional footballer, who played either as a central midfielder or as a winger during the 1980s and 1990s. He is best known in club football for being a regular in the Napoli team that won 4 major trophies in 4 seasons between 1986 and 1990. He then joined Milan who won numerous trophies in his two seasons there although he made less than 10 league appearances when at Milan. At international level, he represented Italy at two FIFA World Cups, and at UEFA Euro 1988.
The following are the positions in the Gaelic sports of Gaelic football, hurling and camogie.
Antonio di Gennaro is an Italian former footballer who played as a midfielder.
This list is an alphabetical glossary of Australian rules football terms, jargon and slang. While some of these entries are shared with other sports, Australian rules football has developed a unique and rich terminology.
Squad numbers are used in association football to identify and distinguish players that are on the field. Numbers very soon became a way to also indicate position, with starting players being assigned numbers 1–11, although in the modern game they are often influenced by the players' favourite numbers and other less technical reasons, as well as using "surrogates" for a number that is already in use. However, numbers 1–11 are often still worn by players of the previously associated position.
Tiki-taka or Tiqui-taca is a style of play in Spain's football, characterised by short passing and movement, working the ball through various channels, and maintaining possession. The style is primarily associated with the Spain national team since 2006 by the managers Luis Aragonés and Vicente del Bosque. Tiki-taka methods were eventually embraced by the La Liga club Barcelona from 2009, especially during the era of manager Pep Guardiola; however, Guardiola distanced himself and the club from the style: "I loathe all that passing for the sake of it", stating, "Barça didn't do tiki-taka!", adding, "You have to pass the ball with a clear intention, with the aim of making it into the opposition's goal." Its development and influence goes back to Johan Cruyff's tenure as manager in the early 1990s all the way to the present. The first goal using this game system is considered to be the one scored in the qualifying match for UEFA Euro 2008, played in Aarhus (Denmark) at October 13, 2007, by Sergio Ramos.
Association football was first codified in 1863 in England, although games that involved the kicking of a ball were evident considerably earlier. A large number of football-related terms have since emerged to describe various aspects of the sport and its culture.
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