The term ‘Space-Eater’ was coined by someone on Twitter —or X as it's called these days— and it's a pretty cool and apt appellation for midfielders that are mentally and physically built to thrive in and dominate large spaces.
‘Space-eater’ midfielders are the tall, broad-shouldered and long-limbed midfielders with lots of stamina that help them to carry out actions over long[er] periods of the game without significantly losing efficacy. They are tenacious and proficient duellers with high levels of work-rate and a strong[usually] predilection for ball-carrying over long distances.
These attributes grant them;
• Extensive ground coverage, by virtue of their long strides which help them cover ground rapidly and their endurance which allows them to move around readily and effortlessly in large zones or spaces.
• Wide tackling range and large duelling domains that create suffocating presences, from their wide torsos and long limbs.
• Springiness in the first steps, as a result of their powerful cores and strong quads.
• Ground power which allows them to maintain their duelling postures under pressure, also a consequence of strong quads, powerful cores and long limbs.
Some players that belong to this class of Midfielders are Amadou Onana, Declan Rice, Jude Bellingham, Mats Wieffer, Matheus Nunes etc.
The pith of this article is a look into the various ways by which this midfield profile affects the potentiality of progression in and out-of-possession but first, let’s talk about progression.
💊 PROGRESSION.
Progression simply means the advancement of the ball from areas of the pitch closer to the in-possession team’s goal to areas closer to the out-of-possession team’s goal. In a football game, the tactical approach of the in-possession team is designed with the intention to progress or advance the ball into the third, then the penalty box and finally, into the goalpost of the opponent whilst the tactical approach of the out-of-possession team is set up precisely to prevent that progression.
The advancement of the ball can occur through the centre or through the flanks, via long passes or short passes, in quick sequences of play or in more patient sequences. The degree of reliance on any method of progression is mostly dependent on the team’s principles of play but also on the spaces afforded by the opponent[s].
When a team in-possession assumes any of its attacking forms in open play[form in deep build-up / advanced build-up / counter-attacks], we can regard the structure as a ladder 🪜 on which the ball advances up the pitch, with each line of attack being a rung of the ladder.
Now, regardless of the route, speed and method of progression, there are two overarching types of progression based on the position or movement of the ball on the attacking ladder.
1. Rungal Progression — “Rungal” is a term I coined from ‘rung’, to describe the type of progression achieved by the movement of the ball up the ladder of attack, from a lower rung to a higher one. This can be achieved via an action[Pass or Carry] that breaks the opponent’s lines of defence.
2. Territorial Progression — This type of progression involves movement of the ball on the same rung/line via a lateral forward pass to a player on the same line or a carry that does not break the opponent's lines but nonetheless gets the ball closer to the opponent’s goal.
The scope can also be extended from a single progressive action[a pass or carry] to a sequence of three progressive actions. *I’ve picked 3 actions per sequence because the ball can be progressed from the 1st rung/line of attack to the last one in 3 actions.*
If a progressive sequence ends with the ball on a higher line, rungal progression is achieved.
If the ball is progressed but with the sequence terminating on the same rung, territorial progression is achieved.
Next, let’s see how these progression types are inhered in the tactical approaches or schemes in and out-of-possession.
💊 RELEVANCE TO TACTICAL APPROACH.
The tactical approach of the out-of-possession team is determined by how much of both progression types the team looks to prevent. For the in-possession team, the relative amount of each progression type is determined by the tactical approach.
• OUT-OF-POSSESSION.
High-Press — When a team presses or engages high[i.e. with the first line of defence close to the opponent’s box], the aim is to prevent any territorial progression by suffocating the space and time the opponent players have on the ball. This approach, however, comes with an increased risk of the opponent achieving rungal progression, due to the tradeoff of compactness for increased pitch coverage and the consequent large spaces that appear within the structure.
Mid/Low-Block — A team settling into a block without engaging[closing down] the opponent means a complete focus on preventing rungal progression at the expense of territorial progression, based on the fact that it is safer to have the ball in front of the block than within or behind it. The team allows the opponent to progress up to an area of the pitch where a compact block that closes pass lanes into their higher lines of attack is set up. The block can be set up with the first line of defence positioned just above or in the upper half of the center circle[mid-block] or positioned below or in the lower half of the center circle[low-block], depending on how much territory the team is willing to acquiesce.
Mid-Press — A mid-press is a direct engagement of the in-possession team from the center of the pitch. It is sort of a compromise between pressing high and defending in a block as a mid-press involves applying pressure on the in-possession team at reduced risk of rungal progression compared to that of a high-press; a result of the shorter distances between the lines of defence.
• IN-POSSESSION.
For teams that want to get the ball forward and attack spaces within and behind their opponents as quickly as possible, more of their progressive actions and sequences will be geared towards achieving rungal progression. These are the teams that frequently direct long aerial passes to the players in the higher rungs of attack with the aim to quickly create 1v1 situations with the opponents' full-backs or goalkeepers, or to win knockdowns and bounces to then attack quickly the spaces behind. In these teams, the primary orchestrators of play usually register high numbers of progressive passes e.g. Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joshua Kimmich & Bruno Fernandes for Liverpool, Bayern Munich[under Nagelsmann] and Man. United respectively.
In contrast, teams that place more emphasis on incremental progression, compactness in-possession and territorial dominance have more of their progressive actions and sequences aimed towards territorial progression, at least until the final third. The main orchestrators in these teams usually have relatively lower progressive pass numbers for the high volume of passes they make e.g. Oleksandr Zinchenko & Rodrigo Hernandez for Arsenal and City respectively.
💊 TRENDS & TURNOVERS.
There has been a steady uprise in the incidence of high turnovers in the past few seasons, primarily due to the increasing potency and variability of out-of-possession schemes.
Teams started to ‘kick it long’ less and instead progressed incrementally more, in order to gain and dominate territory, arrive in the final third in propitious conditions and to maintain compactness in-possession for easier localised combination plays and better counter-pressing. To repress these in-possession advantages, out-of-possession schemes are also improving; blocks are getting compacter, pressing schemes more coordinated and efficacious, both meaning that there are less spaces to be exploited.
Now, in order to create spaces, teams like Brighton use their deep build-up form[structure + behaviors within the structure] to attract high-presses — in which the defending team willingly decompacts — and quickly exploit the spaces that open up as a result of the opponent’s decompaction. Also, the increasingly organized and compact blocks have incentivized teams to attack quickly the spaces that appear in transition moments, instead of consolidating possession.
Games with higher intensities and increased number of turnovers are the consequences of this chain reaction.
To navigate through and thrive in these games, players with either broad or high physical capacities are imperative. Going man-to-man in a press[mid or high] sans dominant duellers in your backline that can defend the yards of space behind is suicide. Likewise, pressing high and opening up spaces within the structure without midfielders that can defend those spaces is detrimental. Not having forwards who are either pacey or strong and can attack spaces that open up in transition moments will make a blunt or inefficient attack etc etc. These trends therefore cause an increase in the sporting and economic value of these player profiles.
Next, let’s zoom in on the ways by which one of those player profiles — the space-eater midfielders — can influence the possibility of both progression types in the tactical approaches and forms of the team in and out-of-possession.
💊 IMPACT OF SPACE-EATERS ON PROGRESSION POTENTIALITY.
• OUT-OF-POSSESSION.
High-Press — We already established the fact that when a team assumes this defensive form, the opposition’s chances of achieving rungal progression increases due to the large spaces within. But with the presence of space-eaters that can cover those large spaces, the risk is reduced and the potency of the high-press scheme is insured.
The physical capacities of space-eaters can be leveraged either by stationing them high and funneling the opponent’s play into the zone[s] they man or by stationing them deeper where they can pick up free runners and also control loose balls.
Their wide tackling radius and large duelling domain help them dominate duels, intercept passes and tackle proficiently when engaging higher while their extensive ground coverage allows them to easily patrol the large spaces behind the higher lines of pressure.
Block-Defending — When defending in a block, it is usually safer for the block to be composed of 3 lines of defence so as to ensure vertical compactness and reduce the spaces within the block. Hence, nominal structures like the 4-4-2, 5-3-2, 4-3-3, 5-4-1 etc. are most common.
With space-eaters, however, the team can afford a less compact block with 4 lines, in structures like the 4-1-4-1, 4-2-3-1, 5-2-1-2 etc. that allow the team to engage the in-possession team higher up the pitch than when in a 3-line block, whilst maintaining the same depth of the last line of defence. This means that the team can focus slightly less on preventing rungal progression and more on denying the in-possession team territory.
This is due to the ability of the midfielder[s] to quickly shift laterally to cover the spaces in front of the last line of defence.
Their superior physicality also helps to assure the block’s security as they can tackle better, reach loose balls faster and intercept passes better.
Between Phases/Forms — In open and settled play between both boxes, a team can either defend with a block[passive defence of the spaces within and behind the block] or with a press[direct engagement in order to regain possession in front of the block].
When modulating between both defensive forms, the team temporarily loses cohesion and the spaces within are easier to attack.
In an Aggressive Modulation[Block → Press], the spaces are being opened and although the pressure being applied makes it difficult for the player with the ball to play a forward pass, it is nonetheless a vulnerable period for the out-of-possession team.
In a Passive Modulation[Press → Block], the spaces are being closed but retracting pressure makes it easier for the player with the ball to play a forward pass into the spaces.
The ability of space-eaters to quickly move into and guard those usually exploitable spaces helps to reduce the interval of vulnerability and limit the chances of the in-possession team progressing rungally.
Box Play — One of football’s universal equations or guarantees is ‘increased height and span in the box = increased ability to defend the box’, with other factors being constant. In both open play and set-piece situations, the presence of physically-imposing players who can win aerial duels, intercept passes and block shots in the box is very important. Space-eaters are one of those player profiles that help the team defend better in the box and cause the effects of less shots-on-goal and more defensive rebounds.
Defensive Transitions — Space-eaters can improve the ability of the team to control transitions, helping to sustain pressure through their ball-winning capacities or quelling counter-attacks by preventing progression into dangerous areas through their extensive ground coverage.
• IN-POSSESSION.
Deep Build-up — One of the aims of playing out from the back is to move the out-of-possession team into less valuable spaces in order to create and gain entry into the more valuable spaces.
Commiting more players[6+ players] to the build-up unit can take opening up spaces to a whole new level and this is one of the key principles of teams like Brighton and Aston Villa. The goal is to forcefully decompact the out-of-possession team by pulling most of their players forward whilst pinning the others back, resulting in the creation and possible exploitation of large spaces behind the lines of pressure.
The presence of space-eaters in the team improves the feasibility of this strategy as they can help the team access those large spaces through their ability to powerfully carry the ball against pressure into the spaces or by their ability to quickly reach and bring bounces or loose balls under control, helping the team to penetrate the OOP team’s last line of defence or to at least, achieve either rungal or territorial progression.
Advanced Build-up — Basically, a space-eater can improve progression in advanced build-up with the abilities to carry the ball over long distances and to powerfully resist pressure when carrying or dribbling.
This means that the spaces that open up when the OOP team is modulating between forms become more exploitable. Also, the ability of the team to break down blocks improves as a result of the added artifice of powerful and incisive dribbling provided by the space-eater[s].
Box Play — The same advantages of having extra physicality in the box when defending also apply when attacking the opponent’s box — more shots on goal, more attacking rebounds.
Attacking Transitions — Again, the long-distance-carrying ability of space-eaters can help the team progress the ball quickly upon regaining possession. Also, their ability to withstand pressure makes them effective pressure valves that can hold on to the ball till the entire team is better set up to either counter-attack or to consolidate possession in the preferred attacking structure.
💊 The CODA!
¶ The prevalent meta in football makes having space-eater midfielders imperative. Top teams are apprised of and align their recruitments with this fact. Some have 1, some have 2 and some are greedy, hoarding 4 of the best in that class of players.
Disparately, as usual, Manchester United’s recruitment approach is evident of a blatant shrug off of trends, with the consequence being a team devoid of a single space-eater midfielder. The closest to that profile is Scott ‘the Scot’ McTominay who IMO falls short in terms of springiness and ball-carrying ability.
¶ Trends aside, in a game-model like Erik ten Hag’s that employs pressing schemes that puts the players in 1v1s and defensive blocks that involve man-marking in the center, the importance of space-eaters that can help the team dominate those 1v1s is even more accentuated.
Lacking this profile has contributed its part to our relatively poor defensive performances.
ten Hag’s willingness to indulge quick forward transits in-possession and end-to-end games also increases the need for this profile.
Moral of the story is that Manchester United desperately need to acquire this player profile.
¶ Summarily, Space-eater midfielders are one of the most valuable profiles in football at this moment and will remain so for the foreseeable future, at least until the wheel of football spins again. This is because of the pervasive trends in football but also because they bolster the effectiveness of and permit variability of schemes or approaches in and out-of-possession.
Kindly share the article if you enjoyed reading and learnt something from it. Till next time👋.
Love,
Silva♥️.
