When you take a look at the average group of kids playing soccer in a schoolyard or maybe on the grassy area by the playground, you will notice that almost everyone is running after the ball trying to make a shot.  There is a lot of hollering and hooting, and sometimes even the goalie will get in on the action.  While this makes for a great afternoon of fun, it is in a way somewhat removed from the professional world of soccer.  After all, while it may look like half the team is in hot pursuit of the soccer ball, it is actually only a small number of defined players who are actually pursuing the ball while the others are busily trying to get into position.

With this in mind, it is not surprising that the basics of passing and moving the soccer ball are so much more intricate than meets the eye, and it is the experienced coach who will be able to not only coordinate the game play on the field, but also anticipate the opponent’s steps and will work with his different team players to put everyone in position to obtain, hold, and net the ball.

To this end, there are several positions that have been defined throughout game play, and it is by virtue of these positions that the ball is moved and passed.

Strikers are the main goal scorers for a soccer team.  They are sometimes also referred to as centers. They are charged with the responsibility of obtaining the ball, either keeping it for a bit to allow other team mates to get into position, or simply to take a shot at the goal with the hopes of scoring for their team. Since these players are so close to the opposing team’s goal, it is not surprising that they are also the most attacked by the opposing team. For this reason, coaches have come up with the idea of including two and sometimes three strikers in a game. Some of which are simply acting as decoys, while one is the dedicated center player who will attempt the winning shots.

Helping the strikers are the midfielders.  These players are not so much attempting to shoot a goal as they are trying to keep their team in possession of the ball until the strikers are in the right position to attempt a goal shot. In addition to the foregoing, these players are also charged with the responsibility of gaining possession of the ball from the opposing players. Sometimes a midfielder’s position is not as clear-cut as it sounds on paper. They do appear to play the gambit from defensive play to openly offensive play, even though their main concentration is that of maintaining ball dominance.

Last but certainly not least are the defenders.  These defending players are behind the midfielder, and in a way they seek to lend support to the goalie, and thus defend the goal from the opposing players.  Probably the most glaring mistakes ever to be seen in a game are the times when defenders get caught up in the moment of the game and pursue the ball as well rather than staying behind and guarding the goal. While this is rare in professional soccer, it does happen once in a while and perhaps for this reason it sticks out as being so anti-conventional when observed on a television screen. Interestingly, this is sometimes also the position played by the taller players who are not on the roster as strikers.  Simply put, these tall players’ job is to deflect any potential headers from opposing player by headers of their own. Probably the most important player of the defense team is the sweeper who is in charge of getting the ball away from the team’s own goal area if the opposing team was able to break through the defense.  You will see that thee players have strong kicking talent and are able to propel the ball over great distances away from the goal and even into the opposing team’s goal box!

As you can see, there is so much more to soccer than meets the eye!  Strategy is a big part of the game, and it is only the untrained observer who believes that it is a game where every man runs for himself.

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