Leeds coach Jesse Marsch said before the Games that national team football “almost a different sport.” Based on the data of the first round, this view cannot be completely signed, by several measures the World Cup has been very close to the soccer of the TOP5 series.
One example is the average height of the defensive line, which has been higher in Qatar than previous tournaments. It even became a topic of conversation after Saudi Arabia left Argentina out a record 10 times.
The height of the defensive line is important for defense and choices regarding the team’s press, but also for the balance of attacking and starting the counter-press.
We have seen interesting high-pressing teams, such as Canada or the USA. Germany and especially Spain press from above, but are excellent at starting a counter-press after a loss. The key in this position is that they also keep the gaps between the lines relatively small in the depth direction when attacking, and of course the players – e.g. of the full-backs – with positioning, so that the spaces between the lines are better under control.
The above-mentioned Saudi Arabia is an example of a team that organizes its play in a high block, and not in itself a high press. The length of Saudi Arabia’s block in the Argentina match was only 19 meters on average.
Often, teams dribble the line when the opponent has a chance to pass to the back. Saudi Arabia did not want to increase the distance between the lines, but played purely offside and succeeded in doing so.
Organizing a high-quality high block is not the easiest task. They have benefited from the long preparation time and playing many times in the same club team.
High line risk or not?
– The goal conceded by Germany in the match against Japan is a good example of an action where the cooperation of the defensive line fails. Recognizing the situation on the ball is weak and wrong choices are made in the bottom line in relation to other players – when to keep the line high and when to drop, Miika Nuutinen list of observations.
In football, anything is a risk if done poorly. The high line is nothing more or less than that. Often a high line or opening with short passes against a high press is considered a risk. This is not really based on data.
In the Premier League, the relationship between the high line and counterattack shots allowed has been studied and the conclusion has been reached that teams playing with a high line actually allow fewer counterattack shots to the opponent.
Teams playing on a high line can control the spaces between the lines better and start the press more easily. In this case, the team with the ball is forced to play a longer pass towards the back of the net due to a disadvantageous situation and, as a rule, without success.
– We can be deeper and still make the same mistakes. It’s all about running and being able to put the opponent under real pressure. It doesn’t matter if we stand 10 meters above or below half court. What matters is that we are able to put more pressure on the opponent’s ball player, Germany’s head coach Hansi Flick has stated of the high line.
What is important about the height of the defensive line?
The picture shows the average height of the Spanish and German defensive line in the tournament. The blue area is the average of the other teams. The graphic shows that both of them are clearly playing on a higher than average line. This choice is primarily related to winning the ball by pressing – in this case, the height of the line is important because it can reduce the defendable spaces of the upper lines.
The clips below show why Spain has used the high line and, as a rule, succeeded and benefited from it. The action has been more or less built into the DNA of both teams, in which case the opponent has not been too important, but the same action has been tried repeatedly.
– Spain also holds the line high and tried to start the press immediately. Costa Rica plays on the wing, where they have a two-on-one situation against Alba. The bottom line is able to slide all the way to the side because Sergio Busquets protects the bottom line, Nuutinen opens.
– Correspondingly, the team recognizes well the situation when the ball is closed (press on the ball), so the team pumps up uniformly, and correspondingly, situations where the ball is open (no press on the ball), so the team dribbles and prioritizes the clearance.
– In this clip, the same principles of operations of the Spanish lines as in the previous one are clearly visible. Closed ball actions and open ball situations. The aim is to keep the line high and constantly pressurize the ball. The spaces between the lines also remain close, which also benefits the team in depth, when the midfield line is already close to the defensive line and is able to control the balls coming between the lines.