KIHU spublicationseries,no.40 ISBN (PDF) Technicalandtactical. levels

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1 KIHU spublicationseries,no.40 ISBN (PDF) Technicalandtactical analysisofwomen s footbalinthreediferent levels KIHU ResearchInstituteforOlympicSports Jyväskylä2013

2 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels Henri Lehto 1, Tomi Vänttinen 1, Andrée Jeglertz 2, Marianne Miettinen 2 & Marko Saloranta 2 1 KIHU Research Institute for Olympic Sports 2 Suomen Palloliitto FA of Finland Copyright 2013 KIHU All rights reserved. According to copyright laws reproduction of this publication or any part of it by copying, imprinting, recording or some other way is strongly forbidden without a written permission of publisher. ISBN (PDF) KIHU Research Institute for Olympic Sports, Jyväskylä 2013 Photos on the front cover: Suomen Palloliitto FA of Finland/Jussi Eskola

3 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 2 CONTENTS TIIVISTELMÄ INTRODUCTION METHODS RESULTS/TECHNICAL ANALYSIS BALL IN PLAY BALL POSSESSION/TEAM BALL POSSESSION/PLAYER PASSES RECEIVING DRIBBLES AND 1v1-CHALLENGES INTERCEPTIONS STEALS DUELS OTHER ACTIONS DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE HALVES GOALKEEPERS RESULTS/OFFENSIVE ANALYSIS NUMBER AND TYPE OF OFFENSES OUTCOME OF OFFENSES STARTING AREA OF OFFENSES STARTING SITUATION OF OFFENSES DURATION OF OFFENSES NUMBER OF PASSES IN OFFENSES HOW MANY PLAYERS TOUCHED THE BALL DURING OFFENSES? PLAYER TO GIVE THE FIRST PASS IN OPEN PLAY OFFENSES TYPE OF PENETRATION IN OPEN PLAY OFFENSES PLAYER TO GIVE THE BREAKING PASS IN OPEN PLAY OFFENSES STARTING AREA OF THE LAST PASS IN OPEN PLAY OFFENSES PLAYER TO ATTEMPT FINISHING IN OPEN PLAY OFFENSES

4 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels THE AREA OF FINISHING IN OPEN PLAY OFFENSES TYPE OF FINISHING IN OPEN PLAY OFFENSES NO OF TOUCHES IN FINISHING IN OPEN PLAY OFFENSES DISCUSSION TECHNICAL ANALYSIS OFFENSIVE ANALYSIS MAIN FINDINGS/COACHING POINTS

5 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 4 TIIVISTELMÄ Jalkapallo kehittyy jatkuvasti kaikkialla maailmassa pelaajien taitotason, taktisen osaamisen ja fyysisten ominaisuuksien parantuessa uusien valmennusmenetelmien ansiosta. Tämä tarkoittaa sitä, että suomalaisen jalkapallon toimintatapojen tulisi kehittyä kilpailijamaita nopeammin, jotta pelaajiemme tekninen ja taktinen osaaminen tulevaisuudessa vastaisi kansainvälistä huipputasoa. Tässä kilpailussa analyyttisen tiedon hakeminen, tuottaminen ja päivittäminen ovat tärkeässä osassa, mutta vielä tärkeämpää on osata suodattaa valtavasta määrästä tietoa oleellinen ja soveltaa se käytäntöön. Tämän tutkimuksen tarkoituksena oli analysoida naisten jalkapallon teknisiä ja taktisia ominaispiirteitä kolmella eri tasolla. Tutkimuksella pyrittiin selvittämään millainen on suomalaisen naisjalkapallon taso suhteessa kansainväliseen huipputasoon ja tunnistaa niitä kehityskohteita, joihin suomalaisessa jalkapallovalmennuksessa on erityisesti syytä kiinnittää huomiota. Samalla pyrittiin selvittämään, kuinka kansallisen tason ottelut eroavat teknis-taktisten ominaisuuksien suhteen kansainvälisen tason otteluista. Raportti itsessään on tehty englanniksi, mutta tähän tiivistelmään on pyritty nostamaan muutamia tärkeimpiä löydöksiä tutkimuksesta. Analyysiin valittiin kolme ottelua naisten jalkapallon MM-kisoista 2011, kolme Suomen naisten A-maajoukkueen ottelua vuosilta 2011 ja 2012 sekä kolme kärkijoukkueiden välistä ottelua Naisten Liigasta kaudelta Analyysissa käytettiin kahta erilaista pelianalyysimallia. Teknisessä pelianalyysissa koodattiin kaikki pelaajien otteluissa tekemät tekniset puolustus- ja hyökkäyssuoritukset. Pelin teknisen puolen analyysiä syvennettiin lisäksi taktisella maalitilanneanalyysillä. Maalitilanneanalyysissä analysoitiin hyökkäystilanteet, jotka johtivat maalintekotilanteeseen tai sellaiseen murtautumiseen hyökkäyskolmannekselle, jossa maalitilanne olisi syntynyt mikäli viimeinen syöttö tai ratkaisu olisi onnistunut ("hukattu maalintekotilanne"). Näiden lisäksi jälkimmäinen analyysi sisälsi myös hyökkäyserikoistilanteet. Tuloksista voidaan nostaa esiin muutamia mielenkiintoisia löydöksiä. Ensinnäkin havaittiin, että sekä naisten A-maajoukkueen, että Naisten Liigan pelaajat käyttivät pallollisiin suorituksiinsa enemmän aikaa verrattuna kansainvälisen huipputason pelaajiin. Ero pallonkäsittelynopeudessa oli havaittavissa jo kahden kosketuksen suorituksessa ja kasvoi edelleen, kun pelaajat käyttivät useamman kosketuksen pallollisen suorituksensa aikana. Lisäksi havaittiin, että syöttöjen kovuudessa suomalaispelaajat jäävät jälkeen kansainväliseen huipputasoon verrattuna. Mitä kovempi taso, sitä kovempia olivat myös pelaajien syötöt. Tulosten perusteella onkin selvää, että naispelaajiemme taitoa ja pelikäsitystä tulee kehittää niin, että he kykenevät toimimaan tarvittaessa pallon kanssa nopeasti ja ovat siten valmiita suoriutumaan kansainvälisten otteluiden tempossa. On toki syytä muistaa, että vaikka nopeus pallollisessa suorituksessa ei sinällään ole aina itseisarvo, pelaajan tulee omata riittävät valmiudet toimia pallon kanssa tarvittaessa nopeasti ja tehokkaasti. Pelaajien syöttötaitoa, taktista

6 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 5 osaamista ja pelikäsitystä etenkin ahtaassa tilassa ja prässin alaisena pelattaessa olisi syytä kehittää nousujohteisesti lapsesta alkaen, jotta he kykenevät toimimaan jatkossa paremmin kansainvälisten otteluiden pelitempossa. Naisten Liigassa pelaajien syötöt suuntautuivat muita tasoja useammin eteenpäin, epäonnistuivat useammin, pallonhallintajaksojen pituus/joukkue oli lyhyempi ja yhden pallonhallintajakson aikana annettiin vähemmän syöttöjä kahteen muuhun analysoituun tasoon verrattuna. Lisäksi Naisten Liigassa suurempi osuus syötöistä suunnattiin hyökkäyskolmannekselle ja vähemmän syötöistä pelattiin keskialueella. Lisäksi keskialueelle pelatut syötöt epäonnistuivat Naisten liigassa muita tasoja useammin. Tulokset antavat viitteitä siitä, että Naisten Liigassa (ainakin analysoidut) joukkueet pelaavat/joutuvat pelaamaan suoraviivaisemmin ja kykenevät harvoin pidempiin pallonhallintajaksoihin. Koska myös naisten jalkapallossa pallonhallinnan ja syöttötaidon osuus on tällä hetkellä korostuneessa asemassa kansainvälisellä tasolla, voidaan ilmoille heittää kysymys siitä, kehittääkö kotimaisen sarjamme suoraviivainen pelityyli naispelaajiemme teknistä osaamista ja antaako tämä riittävästi valmiuksia pelaajien kehittymiselle vastaamaan kansainvälisten otteluiden asettamiin haasteisiin. Naisten maajoukkue hallitsi palloa vastustajaansa enemmän kahdessa heikompaa vastustajaa vastaan pelatussa maaottelussa (Valko-Venäjä ja Skotlanti). Huomattavaa on kuitenkin, että suurin osa tästä hallinnasta tapahtui syvällä omalla kenttäpuoliskolla tai keskialueella eikä niinkään hyökkäyskolmanneksella. Etenkin Suomen puolustajien syöttömäärät olivat analysoiduissa maaotteluissa suuria vastustajiin ja muihin tasoihin verrattuna. Pallonhallinnan voittaminen sinällään on hyvä tulos, mutta heikompia vastustajia vastaan palloa tulisi hallita myös syvemmällä vastustajan kenttäpuoliskolla ja toisaalta pallonhallinnalla tulisi päästä myös nykyistä tehokkaammin murtautumis- ja viimeistelyvaiheeseen. Toisaalta taas ottelussa parempaa vastustajaa (Englanti) vastaan, Suomen pallonhallintaosuus oli pienempi ja syötöt onnistuivat huonommin vastustajaan verrattuna. Onkin selvää, että pelaajien taitotasoa tulee entisestään kehittää ja A-maajoukkuepelaajat tarvitsevat jatkuvasti kansainvälisesti tasokkaita otteluita, jotta tekniset ja taktiset suoritukset onnistuvat paremmin myös otteluissa kovempia vastustajia vastaan. Naisten maajoukkueen pelaajilla syöttöjen, haltuunottojen, kuljetusten ja syötönkatkojen määrässä tapahtui selvä pudotus ottelun toisella puoliajalla. Vastustajalla vastaavaa ja yhtä suurta pudotusta suoritusten lukumäärässä ei havaittu. Yleensä palloa enemmän hallitseva joukkue (kuten Suomi 2/3 maaottelusta) ei joudu otteluissa fyysisesti niin kovalle rasitukselle ja täten suoritusten lukumäärän olisi voinut odottaa putoavan enemmän vastustajajoukkueen pelaajilla. Suomen pelaajien fyysisiä ominaisuuksia tulisikin entisestään kehittää, jotta pelisuorituksessa tapahtuvaa laskua voitaisiin vähentää ottelun toisen puoliajan aikana. Viimeaikoina julkaistut

7 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 6 uutiset testitulosten paranemisista antavat tosin viitteitä siitä, että kehitystä tällä saralla on tapahtunut. Sekä naisten A-maajoukkueen, että Naisten Liigan joukkueiden pääsääntöinen murtautumistapa analysoiduissa otteluissa oli keskitykset laidoilta, kun taas MM-kisojen otteluissa murtauduttiin enemmän myös kentän keskisektoreilta lyhyemmillä murtavilla syötöillä. Naisten A- maajoukkueen ja Naisten liigan otteluissa myös suurempi osuus viimeisistä syötöistä lähti kentän laita-alueilta ja pienempi osuus viimeisistä syötöistä kentän keskeltä, ns. parhaalta sektorilta verrattuna A-maajoukkueen vastustajiin ja MM-kisojen otteluihin. Selvää on, että joukkueiden tulisi omata kyky murtautua hyökkäystilanteisiin eri tavoin ja edelleen suomalaispelaajien taitoa ja joukkueiden pelitapaa tulisi nousujohteisesti kehittää, jotta nykyjalkapallolle tyypilliset murtautumiset keskeltä onnistuisivat myös entistä paremmin. Kaikkinensa tulokset antavat viitteitä siitä, että Suomi onnistui A-maajoukkuetasolla kohtuullisesti heikompia vastustajia vastaan, mutta pelaajien teknisiä ominaisuuksia ja taktisia seikkoja pitää edelleen kehittää, jotta ero kansainväliseen huipputasoon kaventuisi. Naisten liigan kärjessäkin olevat joukkueet ovat puolestaan analysoitujen teknisten ja taktisten muuttujien osalta jäljessä maaotteluiden ja kansainvälisen tason vaatimuksista ja tällä saralla vaaditaan edelleen kovaa työtä, jotta Naisten liigasta kehittyisi jatkossa entistä enemmän ja entistä paremmin kansainvälisten otteluiden vaatimuksiin soveltuvia pelaajia ja Naisten Liiga itsessään myös kehittyisi.

8 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 7 1 INTRODUCTION Finland women s national team has gained a delightful success in the past few years in football and will play in Women s Euro-tournament for the third time in a row in Sweden in It is obvious, that in order to achieve this high level in European football, things have to be and have been done in a correct way in Finnish women s football in the past years. However, as the game constantly evolves and develops and the technical, tactical and physical requirements placed on players change, it is important to get and update relevant information about the requirements of the game and the level of Finnish football in order to develop the level of the game in Finland and the Finnish players. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the technical and tactical aspects of women s football in three different levels. World Cup matches were analyzed to get information about the absolute top level in women s football. Furthermore, national team matches played by Finnish women s national team as well as Finnish league matches were analyzed in order to clarify the technical and tactical aspects of women s football in Finland. Also, one of the main purposes was to create an objective review about the level of Finnish football and to point out some key aspects which should be improved and to which coaches and players could concentrate on during training sessions.

9 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 8 2 METHODS All the results presented in this report are based on two different match analysis models developed in KIHU Research Institute for Olympic Sports during the past three decades. In the first model, all the technical actions of the players (i.e. passes, receives, dribbles, interceptions, steals etc.) were analyzed by watching and analyzing the match videos second by second. In the second model, offensive analysis was carried out. For the offensive analysis, the offenses which lead to a clear scoring opportunity and all the offensive set pieces were analyzed. Furthermore, those offenses where the attacking team was able to penetrate into attacking third and which could have led to a scoring chance with better final actions were analyzed (e.g. poor final pass in the offensive third). Both of the methods used included mainly objective variables in the analysis. Also the few subjective variables which were used can be considered reliable as the analyzer was familiar with the topic and experienced coach and analyzer of football matches. In total of 9 matches were analyzed from 3 three different levels. Three matches were from Women s World Cup 2011, 3 from national team matches played by Finnish national team and 3 from Finnish league. The matches from World Cup and Finnish league were selected so, that those included the top teams of that level. (Table 1). Matches were analyzed with Dartfish TeamPro 5.5.-analysis programme. The match video was played second by second and the analyzed events tagged using tagging panel created into analysis programme (see figure 1). In the technical analysis for example, different offensive and defensive actions were tagged during one game. Only the 90 minutes normal time was analyzed for this study and thus, the extra times played in the two World Cup matches were excluded from the study. The matches were selected by the national team head coach of team Finland, one of the members of the study group. In this paper there is first a more detailed description about each of the analyzed variable and their definition in the analysis model. Then the results have been presented in tables or figures. For the tables and figures, each of the levels has been given a different color. The results from World Cup-level have been presented in red, the results from the national team matches played between Finland and their opponents in green and the results from the Finnish League matches in blue. Furthermore, Finland has been compared to their opponents (SCO, BLR & ENG) in the tables and figures by presenting values also for Finland (FIN) and opponent (OPP). The values of team Finland have been presented with light blue color and the opponent s values in grey. Thus, the total value of national team matches presented in green is the average of both Finland and their opponents.

10 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 9 Of the analyzed national teams, USA is currently ranked no. 1 in the world, Germany no. 2, Japan no. 3 and Sweden no. 6 according to the FIFA ranking. Finland is currently ranked in 19 th place and their opponents in 8 th (ENG), 23 rd (SCO) and 38 th place (BLR). (FIFA/Coca- Cola Women s World Ranking, updated , In the chapters, only the values of outfield players have been presented and the goalkeepers excluded because of the different requirements in that given position. There is a separate chapter where the different values have been presented for goalkeepers also. In the final chapter there is a discussion where the most relevant results have been discussed and conclusions made about the results. Table 1. Analyzed matches. Level Match Date Result World Cup (WC) SWE-USA (2-0) GER-JPN a.e.t (0-0) JPN-USA PSO (2-2 a.e.t, ) National team matches FIN-SCO (0-0) BLR-FIN (1-1) FIN-ENG (1-1) Finnish League (FL) HJK-Åland United (0-2) HJK-PK (2-0) PK-35-HJK (1-0)

11 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 10 Figure 1. Tagging panel and analysis programme (Dartfish 5.5.).

12 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 11 3 RESULTS/TECHNICAL ANALYSIS 3.1 BALL IN PLAY Ball in play was counted as a time, when the ball was actively in play during the 90 minutes plus additional time given by the referee. Thus, all the breaks (i.e. time the players took to take a corner/free kick etc.) as well as the time when the ball was out of the pitch were excluded from the total value. On average, the ball was in play in total of minutes during the matches. The total duration of ball in play was shortest in the Finnish League and decreased in the second half in World Cup level and national team matches but increased in Finnish League matches (Table 2). At once, the ball was in play on average from 25 to 30 seconds. The duration was shortest in the Finnish League matches and longest in the national team matches. (Table 3.) Table 2. The total time the ball was in play during the matches in the three different levels. Level Ball in play tot. 1.half 2.half (min:s) (min:s) (min:s) World Cup (WC) 57 min 37 s 29 min 3 s 28 min 33 s National team matches 58 min 5 s 29 min 28 s 28 min 38 s Finnish League (FL) 55 min 59 s 27 min 23 s 28 min 37 s Table 3. The average time the ball was in play at once during the matches in the three different levels. Level Ball in play avg. 1.half 2.half (s) (s) (s) World Cup (WC) 27 s 29 s 26 s National team matches 30 s 31 s 28 s Finnish League (FL) 25 s 25 s 25 s 3.2 BALL POSSESSION/TEAM Whenever the ball was in play, it was in possession of either of the two teams. The possession changed from one team to another when the ball was won by the other team by successful interception/steal or the ball went out of the play and the other team continued the play after this. The distribution of ball possession in percentages in the analyzed matches has been presented in table 4. The average number of total number of ball possessions/team/match was around

13 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels in World Cup and Finnish national team matches, but a lot higher in the Finnish League (189). (Table 5.) Table 4. Ball possession in percentages in the analyzed matches Match Ball possession (%) SWE-USA 48% - 52% GER-JPN 52% - 48% USA-JPN 51% - 49% FIN-SCO 58% - 42% BLR-FIN 45% - 55% FIN-ENG 39% - 61% HJK-Åland United 60% - 40% HJK-PK-35 51% - 49% PK-35-HJK 49% - 51% Table 5. Total number of ball possessions/team/match. Level No. of ball possessions/team World Cup (WC) 155 National team matches (NT) 151 FIN 147 OPP. 155 Finnish League (FL) 189 The total number of ball possessions/team/match was much higher in the Finnish League because the average duration of one possession was shorter when compared to two other levels. On average, the teams in the Finnish League were able to keep the ball in possession for 9 seconds at once, whereas in the other two levels one possession lasted for seconds. Finnish national team was able to keep the ball in possession for a longer duration when compared to their opponents in the analyzed national team matches. (Table 6.) Table 6. Average duration of one ball possession/team Level World Cup (WC) National team matches (NT) FIN OPP Finnish League (FL) Average duration of one ball possession (s) 11.3 s 11.8 s 12.5 s 11.2 s 9.0 s

14 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 13 There weren t any remarkable differences between the levels in the area where the possessions started. Almost half of the team s possessions started in the midfield in all of the analyzed levels. Only 12-14% of the possessions started in the offensive third of the pitch. (Figure 2.) Offensive third OFFENSIVE 3rd WC: 13% NT: 12% FIN: 12% OPP: 12% FL: 14% WC: 5% NT: 4% FIN: 4% OPP: 4% FL: 5% WC: 1% NT: 1% FIN: 1% OPP: 1% FL: 1% WC: 7% NT: 7% FIN: 7% OPP: 7% FL: 8% MIDFIELD WC: 47% NT: 48% FIN: 47% OPP: 47% FL: 46% WC: 19% NT: 17% FIN: 17% OPP: 16% FL: 18% WC: 9% NT: 13% FIN: 13% OPP: 13% FL: 10% WC: 19% NT: 18% FIN: 17% OPP: 18% FL: 18% DEFENSIVE 3rd WC: 41% NT: 41% FIN: 42% OPP: 41% FL: 40% WC: 11% NT: 9% FIN: 11% OPP: 8% FL: 12% WC: 21% NT: 24% FIN: 24% OPP: 24% FL: 18% WC: 9% NT: 8% FIN: 7% OPP: 9% FL: 10% Defensive third Figure 2. The area in which the possession started. WC=World Cup level, NT=National team matches, FL=Finnish League, FIN= Finland, OPP=Opponents of Finland

15 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels BALL POSSESSION/PLAYER On the graphs presented from now on, goalkeepers have been excluded from the values. There is a separate paragraph at the end of this paper, where the values for goalkeepers have been presented in few of the analyzed variables. Offensive ball action was described as an action where the player deliberately tried to play the ball with offensive actions, either with one touch or multiple touches (i.e. pass, receive+pass, receive+dribble+pass etc.). On average, the outfield players had about 40 offensive ball actions/match (figure 3). The number of ball actions/player was lower in the Finnish league when compared to two other levels. Finnish national team players had more ball actions than their opponents in the analyzed national team matches. Average duration of one offensive ball action was about seconds and no differences were observed between the levels (Figure 4). During the ball actions the players used on average two touches in each of the analyzed levels (Figure 5) No. of offensive ball actions/player World Cup National team matches Finnish League Finland Opponents Figure 3. Average number of offensive ball actions/player in the analyzed levels.

16 No of touches Duration (s) Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels Average duration of one offensive ball action (s) World Cup National team matches Finnish league Finland Opponents Figure 4. Average duration of one offensive ball action in the analyzed levels No. of touches used/one offensive ball action World Cup National team matches Finnish League Finland Opponents Figure 5. Average number of touches used in one offensive ball action/player in the analyzed levels.

17 3 % 5 % 17 % 23 % 33 % 36 % 36 % 46 % 6 % 4 % 5 % 1 21 % 2 37 % 34 % 34 % 41 % 37 % 48 % Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 16 In the Finnish League, players played higher proportion of their offensive ball actions with one touch when compared to the two other levels. In other words this means that they either tried to pass the ball with one touch or lost the ball in the receiving more often (see the results for passes and receiving for more information). No other remarkable differences were observed between the levels. (Figure 6.) or 4 5 or over No. of touches in offensive ball actions World Cup National team matches Finnish league or 4 5 or over No. of touches in offensive ball actions Finland Opponent Figure 6. Distribution of number of used touches in offensive ball actions in the analyzed levels.

18 Duration (s) Duration (s) Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 17 When the duration of ball actions were analyzed according to the number of touches used, it was noted that the players in the World Cup level were faster with the ball when 2-5 touches were used during the ball action. The Finnish league players used more time with the ball than the players in the other two levels no matter how many touches were used. (Figure 7) No. of touches in offensive ball actions World Cup National team matches Finnish league No. of touches in offensive ball actions Finland Opponents Figure 7. Duration of ball action/number of touches uses in the analyzed levels.

19 Difference in duration compared to World Cup players (s) Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 18 Figure 8 presents more clearly the finding, according to which it was noted that the Finnish players used more time with the ball than the World Cup-level players. Both the national team level players and the Finnish League players used on average seconds more time for their ball actions with two or three touches and almost 0.4 seconds more time for their ball actions with four touches when compared to world class players in the World Cup. (Figure 8.) 0.4 How much more time Finnish players used with the ball when compared to World Cup-level players? No. of touches Finnish national team players Finnish league players Figure 8. Difference in Finnish players in duration of ball actions in different number of touches used when compared to World Cup-level players (x-axis).

20 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 19 Central midfielders had the highest number of ball actions in the World Cup-level, central defenders in the analyzed national team matches and wide midfielders in the Finnish League matches. When Finland was compared to their opponents in the national team matches, it can be noted that especially Finland s central defenders had a lot more ball actions than the opponents but the central midfielders a few less. (Figure 9.) Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards No. of offensive ball actions World Cup National team matches Finnish league Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards No. of offensive ball actions Finland Opponents Figure 9. Number of offensive ball actions in the different positions in the analyzed levels.

21 Duration (s) Duration (s) Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 20 The average duration of one ball action was the shortest in central midfielders and the longest in wide midfielders in all of the analyzed level. Finnish central defenders spent less and wide midfielders more time with the ball during one ball action in the analyzed national team matches. (Figure 10.) Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards Average duration of ball actions World Cup National team matches Finnish league Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards Average duration of ball actions Finland Opponents Figure 10. Average duration of offensive ball action in the different positions in the analyzed levels.

22 No of touches No of touches Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 21 Wide midfielders used on average a bit more touches than the players on other positions during the offensive ball actions. Finnish central defenders and midfielders used less touches during the ball actions in the national team matches than the players in the same positions in the opponent teams. (Figure 11.) Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards Average no. of touches in ball actions World Cup National team matches Finnish league Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards Average no. of touches in ball actions Finland Opponents Figure 11. Average number of touches during offensive ball actions in the different positions in the analyzed levels.

23 Duration (s) Duration (s) Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 22 When the players used two touches for their ball actions, it was noted that especially Finnish defenders in the league and in the national team as well as wide midfielders and forwards were slower with the ball than the World Cup-level players. When the Finnish national team players were compared to their opponents, all other than central midfielders were slower with the ball with two touches. (Figure 12.) Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards Average duration of ball actions with 2 touches World Cup National team matches Finnish league Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards Average duration of ball actions with 2 touches FIN OPP. Figure 12 Average duration of ball actions with 2 touches in the different positions in the analyzed levels.

24 Duration (s) Duration (s) Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 23 When the players used three touches for their ball actions, especially Finnish wide defenders in the league and in the national team as well as wide midfielders were slower with the ball than the World Cup-level players. When the Finnish national team players were compared to their opponents, all other than central defenders and forwards were slower with the ball with three touches. (Figure 13.) Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards Average duration of ball actions with 3 touches World Cup National team matches Finnish league Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Average duration of ball actions with 3 touches Forwards Finland Opponents Figure 13. Average duration of ball actions with 3 touches in the different positions in the analyzed levels.

25 Faster Slower Difference in duration (s) Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 24 When we compare the Finnish national team players to World Cup players more closely according to the time spent with the ball, we can see that the Finnish central defenders were slower than the world class players, no matter how many touches were used. Also wide midfielders were slower with the ball with 2-4 touches and central midfielders and forwards with 4 touches. (Figure 14.) How much more time Finnish national team players used with the ball when compared to World Cup-level players? Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards 1 touch 2 touches 3 touches 4 touches Figure 14. Difference in duration (s) of ball actions in different number of ball touches in Finnish national team players compared to World Cup players (positive value = Finnish players slower, negative value = Finnish players faster).

26 Faster Slower Difference in duration (s) Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 25 In the Finnish league, the players were slower with the ball in all positions and with almost every number of touches when compared to world class level players playing in the analyzed World Cup matches. The difference tended to increase when more touches were used. For example, the wide defenders were almost 0.8 seconds slower when 4 touches were used. (Figure 15.) 0.9 How much more time Finnish league players used with the ball when compared to World Cup-level players? Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards 1 touch 2 touches 3 touches 4 touches Figure 15. Difference in duration (s) of ball actions in different number of ball touches in Finnish league players compared to World Cup players (positive value = Finnish players slower, negative value = Finnish players faster).

27 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels PASSES In the analysis, successful pass was defined as a pass which reached the player it was targeted to. Unsuccessful pass was tagged to analysis when the ball went out of the pitch or the opponent team was able to make an interception before the targeted player received the ball. The number of passes/team, excluding goalkeepers, was on average 335 in the analyzed matches. The number of passes was the highest in the national team matches played between Finland and their opponents and the lowest in the Finnish League. As Finland had higher percentage of ball possession in two of the three analyzed national team matches (see table 4), also the total number of passes was higher when compared to opponents. However, it can be noted that against the best of their opponents, England, the number of passes was remarkably lower when compared to opponent ( ) No. of passes/match/team World Cup National team matches Finnish league Finland Opponents Figure 16. Number of passes/match/team in the analyzed levels.

28 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 27 The percentage of successful passes was highest in the national team matches. In the Finnish league the percentage of successful passes was a lot lower than in the two other levels. Finland and opponent succeeded similarly in their passes when all the matches were combined. However, against England, Finland s success in the passes was remarkably lower (61% vs. 83%) % 79 % 68 % 79 % 79 % Percentage of successful passes World Cup National team matches Finnish league Finland Opponents Figure 17. The percentage of successful passes in the analyzed levels.

29 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 28 In the World Cup and Finnish league, central midfielders had more passes than the players in the other positions. In the analyzed national team matches central defenders were the most active passers with 50 passes/match/player. This can be explained especially by the number of passes by Finnish central defenders. In the analyzed national team matches the Finnish defenders passed the ball almost two times as much as the central defenders in the opponent team. In all the other positions Finland didn t differ from their opponents in the number of passes/player. (Figure 18.) Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards No. of passes/match/player World Cup National team matches Finnish league Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards No. of passes/match/player Finland Opponents Figure 18. Number of passes in the different positions in the analyzed levels.

30 83 % 8 81 % 76 % 69 % 67 % 83 % 8 82 % 8 64 % 62 % 68 % 81 % 83 % 77 % 69 % 8 78 % 73 % 69 % 82 % 76 % 74 % 74 % Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 29 The percentage of successful passes was generally the highest in defenders and central midfielders and the lowest in the wide midfielders. However, when compared to two other levels, it can be noted that the percentage of successful passes in defenders and central midfielders was a lot lower in the Finnish League. The wide midfielders in the Finnish national team succeeded in their passes better than their counterparts in the opponent team. In contrast, the percentage was a lot lower for Finnish forwards when compared to opponents. (Figure 19.) Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards Percentage of successful passes World Cup National team matches Finnish league Central defenders Wide defenders Central midfielders Wide midfielders Forwards Percentage of successful passes Finland Opponents Figure 19. Percentage of successful passes in the different positions in the analyzed levels.

31 % of all 32 % 3 27 % 34 % 4 38 % % of all 31 % 28 % 32 % 28 % 29 % 37 % 36 % 36 % 42 % Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 30 The distribution of length of passes did not differ remarkably between the levels. On average, one third of the passes were short and one third long passes. In the Finnish League there was a little more of short passes than in the two other levels. Finnish national team had less short passes and more long passes than their opponents in the analyzed national team matches. (Figure 20.) m m over 20 m Length of passes World Cup National team matches Finnish league m m over 20 m Length of passes Finland Opponents Figure 20. The distribution of length of passes in the analyzed levels.

32 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 31 In table 7, the distribution of length of the passes has been presented for different playing positions. Defenders had more long passes, whereas offensive players (wide midfielders and forwards) used a lot of short passes as highlighted with yellow color. In the Finnish league, central midfielders and forwards had more long passes (over 20 m) when compared to two other levels. In the national team level, Finnish central defenders passed more long passes than their counterparts in the opponent team and World Cup level. (Table 7.) Table 7. The distribution of length of passes in different positions in the analyzed levels. Position CD WD CM WM F Level <10m 10-20m >20m <10m 10-20m >20m <10m 10-20m >20m <10m 10-20m >20m <10m 10-20m >20m WC 22% 32% 46% 28% 35% 37% 40% 33% 27% 47% 30% 23% 64% 24% 12% NT 15% 38% 47% 31% 40% 29% 39% 39% 22% 51% 30% 19% 60% 27% 13% FIN 13% 37% 51% 24% 47% 28% 38% 44% 18% 53% 30% 17% 62% 25% 13% OPP. 18% 41% 42% 38% 33% 29% 41% 34% 25% 50% 30% 20% 59% 28% 12% FL 21 % 29% 50% 36% 30% 34% 40% 31% 29% 54% 27% 19% 58% 24% 18% CD= central defender, WD= wide defender, CM=central midfielder, WD= wide midfielder, F= forward

33 62 % 65 % 83 % 87 % 89 % 82 % 47 % 62 % 63 % 72 % 83 % 85 % 8 82 % 86 % Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 32 In general, the shorter the pass, the higher the percentage of successful passes. In the Finnish League the short passes succeeded almost as well as in the other two levels, but there were remarkable differences in the success of the longer passes in favor of the two top levels. Less than half of the long passes succeeded in the Finnish League. Also, the opponents of Finnish national team succeeded better in their long passes when compared to Finnish players. (Figure 21.) m m over 20 m Percentage of successful passes World Cup National team matches Finnish league m m over 20 m Percentage of successful passes Finland Opponents Figure 21. Percentage of successful passes according to length of the pass in the analyzed levels.

34 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 33 In table 8, the percentages of successful passes according to the length of the passes has been presented for different playing positions. In the Finnish League, the success in the long passes was a lot worse in all positions when compared to two other levels. Furthermore, in the national team matches, Finnish wide defenders and forwards succeeded in their long passes a lot worse when compared to their opponents counterparts. Also, Finnish central midfielders short passes reached the target less often when compared to opponent s central midfielders.(table 8.) Table 8. The percentage of successful passes according to the length of passes in different positions in the analyzed levels. Position CD WD CM WM F Level <10m 10-20m >20m <10m 10-20m >20m <10m 10-20m >20m <10m 10-20m >20m <10m 10-20m >20m WC 88% 91% 71% 91% 84% 60% 83% 84% 63% 78% 70% 46% 80% 70% 66% NT 91% 96% 71% 91% 91% 53% 88% 84% 66% 78% 75% 55% 81% 67% 51% FIN 92% 96% 72% 92% 94% 45% 84% 85% 66% 78% 83% 59% 77% 62% 32% OPP. 89% 94% 70% 91% 86% 61% 92% 82% 66% 78% 67% 52% 85% 71% 71% FL 84% 78% 47% 77% 71% 39% 81% 70% 51% 79% 79% 42% 84% 78% 47% CD= central defender, WD= wide defender, CM=central midfielder, WD= wide midfielder, F= forward

35 % of all 31 % 28 % 26 % 24 % 43 % 48 % % of all 24 % 2 25 % 21 % 33 % 3 47 % 45 % 55 % Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 34 In general, about half of the passes were directed forward. In the Finnish League, the percentage of passes forward was higher when compared to two other levels. Finland played more passes sideways and back when compared to their opponents in the national team matches. (Figure 22.) Forward Sideways Back Direction of passes World Cup National team matches Finnish league Forward Sideways Back Direction of passes Finland Opponents Figure 22. The distribution of direction of passes in the analyzed levels.

36 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 35 In table 9, the distribution of direction of the passes has been presented for different playing positions. In the Finnish league, all the players, but especially central and wide defenders and central midfielders tried to play the ball forward more than in the other two levels. In the national team matches, Finnish central defenders passed the ball less often forward and more sideways when compared to their counterparts in the opponent teams. (Table 9.) Table 9.The distribution of direction of passes in different positions in the analyzed levels. Position CD WD CM WM F Level Forw. Sidew. Back Forw. Sidew. Back Forw. Sidew. Back Forw. Sidew. Back Forw. Sidew. Back WC 54% 37% 9% 64% 23% 14% 44% 28% 27% 39% 40% 21% 28% 38% 34% NT 50% 42% 8% 54% 19% 27% 43% 31% 26% 40% 25% 36% 31% 30% 39% FIN 43% 49% 9% 53% 19% 29% 43% 29% 28% 36% 22% 41% 36% 22% 43% OPP. 63% 29% 8% 56% 19% 25% 44% 32% 24% 43% 27% 30% 27% 37% 35% FL 69% 16% 15% 73% 15% 12% 54% 29% 17% 45% 22% 32% 34% 37% 30% CD= central defender, WD= wide defender, CM=central midfielder, WD= wide midfielder, F= forward

37 59 % 65 % 94 % 92 % 94 % 95 % 51 % 59 % 61 % 82 % 9 93 % 93 % 94 % 92 % Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 36 The success of passes sideways and back were, not surprisingly, much better than in the passes forward. In the Finnish League, only half of the passes forward were successful and the success was lower when compared to two other levels. Also, Finnish national team players succeeded in their passes forward less often than their opponents. (Figure 23.) Forward Sideways Back Percentage of successful passes World Cup National team matches Finnish league Forward Sideways Back Percentage of successful passes Finland Opponents Figure 23. Percentage of successful passes according to direction of pass in the analyzed levels.

38 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 37 In table 10, the percentages of successful passes according to direction of the pass have been presented for different playing positions. In the Finnish league, central and wide defenders failed in their passes forward more often than in the other levels. In contrast, the success of passes forward was higher in wide midfielders and forwards. Finnish central defenders and forwards did not succeed in their passes forward as well as their counterparts in the opponent teams, but the success was higher in midfielders. (Table 10.) Table 10. Percentages of successful passes according to direction of the passes the analyzed levels. Position CD WD CM WM F Level Forw. Sidew. Back Forw. Sidew. Back Forw. Sidew. Back Forw. Sidew. Back Forw. Sidew. Back WC 66% 98% 100% 66% 94% 98% 56% 92% 93% 49% 78% 89% 47% 86% 89% NT 69% 98% 100% 64% 99% 99% 66% 91% 96% 49% 85% 91% 44% 86% 88% FIN 64% 97% 100% 62% 98% 100% 68% 87% 95% 54% 89% 89% 28% 92% 87% OPP. 74% 98% 100% 65% 100% 98% 64% 95% 97% 44% 82% 94% 64% 83% 89% FL 50% 89% 98% 51% 90% 97% 55% 81% 92% 52% 77% 88% 51% 82% 90% CD= central defender, WD= wide defender, CM=central midfielder, WD= wide midfielder, F= forward

39 Duration (s) Duration (s) Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 38 Figure 24 presents the duration of the successful passes (= the speed of the pass) according to the length of the passes. The duration was analyzed as the time from the moment when the ball left the foot of the passer to the moment the ball reached the player receiving the ball. Clear trend can be seen: the higher the level, the shorter the duration (=more powerful the pass) in all passes. However, as the exact length of the pass couldn t be analyzed in this study, the values should be reviewed critically and merely as trends and estimations. (Figure 24.) m 6-10 m m m over 30 m Duration of passes (from player to player) World Cup National team matches Finnish league m 6-10 m m m over 30 m Duration of passes (from player to player) Finland Opponents Figure 24. The duration of successful passes according to different lengths in the analyzed levels.

40 73 % 72 % 71 % 83 % 86 % 8 84 % 79 % 81 % 76 % 71 % 64 % 73 % 68 % 71 % 69 % 8 84 % 82 % 82 % 81 % 76 % 75 % 78 % 72 % Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 39 Passes with one touch did not generally succeed as well as the passes with more than one touch. In the Finnish League the percentage of successful passes with one or two touches was a lot worse when compared to two other levels. Finnish national team players succeeded as well as their opponents in passes with one or two touches (Figure 25.) or over Percentage of successful passes World Cup National team matches Finnish league or over Percentage of successful passes FIN OPP. Figure 25. Percentage of successful passes according to number of touches used in the analyzed levels.

41 5 % 1 % 1 % 2 % 2 % 1 % 8 % 16 % 17 % % of all 7 77 % 2 % 1 % 2 % 8 % 6 % 5 % 4 % 2 % 4 % 1 % 16 % 16 % 21 % % of all 7 74 % 68 % Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 40 About 3 out of 4 passes were passed with inside of the foot. In the Finnish League, players used a bit more instep passes as a technique, but no other major differences were observed between the level. (Figure 26.) Inside of the foot Instep Outside of the foot Toekick Head Other Passing technique World Cup National team matches Finnish league Inside of the foot Instep Outside of the foot Toekick Head Other Passing technique Finland Opponents Figure 26. The distribution of technique used in the passes in the analyzed levels.

42 42 % 49 % % 85 % 79 % 73 % 8 87 % % 41 % 49 % 58 % 54 % 48 % 54 % 66 % 68 % 77 % 75 % 72 % 85 % 79 % 79 % 86 % 83 % 8 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 41 In the Finnish league, the percentage of successful passes with inside of the foot and instep was lower when compared to two other levels. No other remarkable differences were observed. (Figure 27.) Inside of the foot Instep Outside of the foot Toekick Head Other Percentage of successfullpasses World Cup National team matches Finnish league Inside of the foot Instep Outside of the foot Toekick Head Other Percentage of successful passes Finland Opponents Figure 27. Percentage of successful passes according to technique used in the passes in the analyzed levels.

43 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 42 In Figure 28, the starting area of the passes has been presented. In general, around 25% of the passes started from the defensive third, 60% from the midfield and 15% from the offensive third. What can be noted is the difference in the areas between Finland and their opponents in the national team matches. Higher proportion of Finland s passes started from their defensive third and less passes from midfield when compared to opponents. Thus, despite Finland had more of the overall possession in two of the three national team matches, the possession occurred deeper in their own half, rather than in the offensive zones. (Figure 28.) In Figure 29, the target area of the passes has been presented. In the Finnish league, more passes were targeted to offensive third and less to midfield and defensive third when compared to two other levels. When Finland is compared to their opponents, it can be noted, that Finland attempted to pass more to defensive third and less to midfield and offensive third than their opponents. (Figure 30.) Figure 30 presents the percentages of successful passes into different areas of the pitch. As expected, the success was the highest in passes to defensive third and the lowest when the pass was targeted to attacking third. In the Finnish league, the percentages of successful passes to midfield were a lot lower when compared to two other levels. In the national team matches, the opponents of Finnish national team succeeded better in their passes to midfield and especially to central section of midfield. (Figure 31.)

44 Technical and tactical analysis of women s football in three different levels 43 Offensive third OFFENSIVE 3rd WC: 13% NT: 10% FIN 9% OPP: 10% FL: 14% WC: 4% NT: 4% FIN: 4% OPP: 5% FL: 5% WC: 3% NT: 2% FIN: 2% OPP: 1% FL: 3% WC: 6% NT: 4% FIN: 3% OPP: 4% FL: 6% MIDFIELD WC: 63% NT: 59% FIN: 55% OPP: 64% FL: 60% WC: 25% NT: 23% FIN: 21% OPP: 25% FL: 22% WC: 16% NT: 16% FIN: 16% OPP: 16% FL: 15% WC: 22% NT: 20% FIN: 18% OPP: 23% FL: 23% DEFENSIVE 3rd WC: 25% NT: 31% FIN: 36% OPP: 27% FL: 25% WC: 8% NT: 11% FIN: 13% OPP: 10% FL: 11% WC: 8% NT: 9% FIN: 10% OPP: 8% FL: 7% WC: 9% NT: 11% FIN: 13% OPP: 9% FL: 7% Defensive third Figure 28. The starting area of the passes.