Influence of Ball Position on Playing Space in Spanish Elite Women's Football Match-Play

Abstract

The aims of this study were to examine the playing area in female football matches according to the position of the ball. We investigated: 1) the space between the two offside lines (the length), 2) the width, 3) the distance from the least advanced defender to the goal line in defensive activity, 4) the distance from the least advanced attacker to her goal line in attacking activity, 5) the distance between the goalkeeper and her nearest attacking team mate, and 6) the distance between the goalkeeper and her nearest defending team mate. With these measurements we were also able to obtain 7) the individual playing area used during female professional football matches. Data were collected during Spanish matches and notated postevent using the Amisco® system. A total of 2756 game situations were coded from four games. The distribution of players was significantly . While there are obvious differences in playing intensity between the men's and women's games, the nature of football competition, in terms of work-rest ratios, and proportion of time spent in highand very-high intensity running is similar between men and women [2-4]. The playing area is also presented as a tactical factor that might influence an athletes' decision-making in football. Therefore, this playing space should be considered when interpreting the real demands of the game [5]. In matches, the offside rule contributes to a reduction of the space among outfield players because teams tend to advance the position of the back four lines, placing 20 players in a reduced area of the pitch [6]. In female football, the distance between the two offside lines varied between 36.16 and 46.88 metres [7]. It is likely that reductions in playing space can impact an athlete's decision-making. Several studies have reported the effect of changing space and time on football match performance [8][9][10][11][12] with factors such as the playing styles, the ability to counter-attack, and distribution of opponents across the field all influencing the space and time available to attacking players. Thus, knowledge of how playing spaces change under different circumstances in a game can provide useful information to coaches who design training tasks to develop game awareness and tactical skills.The playing space is influenced by the location of the ball on the pitch [13]. Different space areas may be expected depending on whether the ball is in one of the six zones of the 11 v 11 pitch. Bangsbo and Peitersen [14] stated that "build up play" (i.e., the construction of attack, beginning with the first attacking options) and preventing finishing phases occurred near to the player's own goal, establishing play and transitioning occurred in the midfield, whereas penetration and finishing took place near the opponent's goal. There are specific technical-tactical skills linked to each phase of play and each part of the pitch. An analysis of the available space in which players have to perform during match-play would appear to be useful for training purposes. From a speci...

Space configuration and numerical relationship during professional soccer matches: a proposal for small-sided games design

“…therefore, players must invade the space to perform a shot to goal. Similarly, previous studies reported that the distance between the defender and goal line changed depending on the ball position [13][14][15]. Additionally, our findings showed that the distance changed depending on the numerical relationship, which is important information to be taken into account in training drills.…”

“…By analysing the space control during a match, many variables have been reported, such as length (the distance between the 2 more distant players, longitudinally, without goalkeepers), width (the distance between the 2 more distant players, laterally, without goalkeepers), the area (formed by the width and length), the numerical relationship (the number of attacking players vs. the number of defending players inside a given area), and individual playing area (IPA) (obtained by dividing the area among the players) [13][14][15].…”

“…the SSG models described in literature usually involve the goalkeeper inside the designed area [1,5,8,12]. However, during a match, there is an additional area between the goal line and the nearest defender, which is associated with the defence behaviour [13,15]. Furthermore, the numerical relationship during a match was reported in the studies by Clemente et al [18] and Vilar et al [19].…”

Análise sequencial de comportamentos ofensivos desempenhados por seleções nacionais de futebol de alto rendimento

“…Tais disputas aumentam a quantidade de contatos físicos, o que pode levar a uma maior ocorrência de faltas e perdas de bola pela linha lateral. Tais inferências estão de acordo com os achados de Zubillaga et al (2013). Eles demonstraram que quando a bola se encontrava nos setores de meio campo, o comprimento do espaço de jogo efetivo diminuía significativamente.…”

Analysis of Small Game Areas of 4vs4 and 7vs7 in Spanish Professional Football

“…The influence of the zone of the pitch as a performance indicator (Reina Gómez & Hernández-Mendo, 2012) was previously analysed in relation to the areas for game situations Zubillaga et al, 2013). Different zones of the pitch depending on the tactical aims and the phases of the game can be considered to show a practical justification of the results of this study (Garganta, 1997;Díaz-Díaz, 2011) During a soccer match, numerous situations and actions directly involve the nearest players to the player in possession of the ball.…”