11 Players On A Football Field, What You Need To Know
11 Players On A Football Field, What You Need To Know. You need to know the positions, number of players and rules for substitution on a football field in order to be successful. The 11 players on a football field are divided into goalkeeper, defenders, midfielders and forwards.
Soccer, or football, is the most followed sport in the world. Every top-level competition in football follows the 11-a-side format. A few cut-down versions like five-a-side and seven-a-side also exist but aren’t quite mainstream.
In a football match, there are two competing teams with 11 players in total on the field at any time, one of which is the goalkeeper.
One other factor for a team’s lineup is that they have players in their dugout or bullpen called bench players.
The number of players a team can bench is related to each competition. Teams must have a minimum of three players on the bench and a maximum of 12 players on their main roster. During a match, teams can replace any player on their field with one from the bench. This is called substitution of an outfield player.
For high school and youth football, it is sometimes allowed to return to the field using a substitution at the same time.
Teams were allowed a maximum of three substitutions in the sport, but that was increased to five recently due to COVID-19. Most of the major tournaments use the five substitution rule for competition.
Even if a team has unused players on the bench, they would need to continue playing with a diminished squad until the end of the match since they’ve run out of substitutes. Injuries and other consequences could also reduce their number of available players.
If one or more players on a team get a red card, they will be unable to field the same 11 players as the rest of their opponents. However, if the team has seven players or less during the match due to suspensions, the match will end in a forfeit.
What are football positions? As for the 11 players on the pitch, they can be broadly divided into four positions – goalkeeper, defenders, midfielders and forwards. The latter three – defenders, midfielders and forwards, can be further divided into multiple positions.
The starting positions for defenders, midfielders and forwards can vary according to the team’s formation. Here are all of the positions and what they do.
A goalkeeper is the last line of defense for a football team. They wear different colored jerseys than the rest of the team and stay in their own box, just inside their goal posts. Goalkeepers are the only players allowed to use their hands when catching a ball and usually do so in front of their own goal post (i.e within their own penalty box). Once they leave this area and aren’t playing as a goalkeeper, they must adhere to all the rules governing outfield players.
Defenders are players who’re responsible for defending their goal from opposition attacks. In modern football, even defensive players will join the offense to start an attack with their team.
Although most organizations have a starting lineup of three to five players for defense, the most common tactic used in modern football has four defenders on the field.
Centre backs are the defenders positioned in front of the goal line. In a four-defender formation, centre backs may have two to three players on the field depending on team setup. Centre backs are usually tall and physically imposing and possess good backgrounds in aerial ability.
Fullbacks play in more of a defensive role while the two players playing on each side are called defenders. They are mostly concerned with stretching the opposition defense, and they often overlap the other defenders to create opportunities for their team to create offense. Wing backs who always stay wide can become great receivers or have good positional sense.
Players who play in the midfield are called in different names depending on their positions. A CM is usually a central player, and their number depends on what formation teams use.
Central midfielders who deal primarily with defending by keeping their back line safe are called central defenders and are really good at pushing forward and tackling.
Central attacking midfielders are players who try to contribute offensively and defend, as well as be useful in the final third of the field.
A winger is a player who plays from out wide and sends in crosses for the forwards to finish. Traditionally, winger stay out wide and look for opportunities to cross.
In recent-day football, the concept of inverted winger also exists. Inverted wingers are considered players who tend to cut in from wide and shoot at goal or assist a team-mate with their more central position. Playing on the right wing or left would be ideal for inverted wingers.
Wingers generally have a high speed and good dribbling ability, with the ability to cross the ball and shoot it effectively.
Even though some forwards have a lot of versatility, they are all great at finishing the ball off, but their main job is ruthless goal scoring.
The position of a center forward, who plays in front of the opposition’s goal and waits for teammates to attack across. Centre forwards usually are physically imposing, both able to effectively head and shoot the ball well. They also hold the ball up by evading pressure from opposing defenders, allowing their team-mates to come running in support.
In certain situations where the centre forward is instructed to drop deep, they are often referred to as False 9. The False9 is an uncommon task but some famous coaches like Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho have utilized it in their plans.
The strikers playing in the forward line are referred to as right forwards or left forwards, depending on their position on the field. Most forwards are fast and can drift outwards or cut back into the defence.