A Bridge in Soccer -Alex

A Bridge in Soccer AlexStarting the “Game” Andrés Iniesta, a midfielder for Barcelona swervedsharply, and Sergio Ramos, the defender for Real Madrid fellto the ground. After all, even the greatest defenders couldn’tfight the law of inertia. So, he shot. A few moments later, thesame person, Iniesta, sprinted to the goal just in time toblock a shot with a header. The stadium went wild. Who wasthis person? He was a midfielder, one of the most importantpeople on the pitch. A midfielder has to be great ateverything, unlike a striker, a defender, or goalkeeper. Hehas to know how to defend (tackle) a person and shoot. Butbeing one is hard. Read on to find out whether you have whatit takes to be a midfielder.Vitality of Midfielders What would the soccer field be without midfielders?Chaos! Midfielder’s vitality to the game is unmatched by anyother position. Midfielders are the bridge between thedefensive line and the offensive line. They connect the two,and are the only ones who do both offense and defense insoccer. You have to know how to properly tackle someoneand how to score. You have to play with your teammates andmake a good pass. It’s a crucial position. In fact, about 43%of the ball control on each team comes from the midfield.Criteria for a Defensive Midfield

Defensively, you need to be able to tackle, push thelimits, and be able to intercept and steal a ball from anyother player of the other team. Like defenders, you must know how to tackle a player in a one vs one situation. By tackle, it means to steal or boot away the ball from another player, not literally tackle. Along with that, you have to know about defensive shape and structure. You need to play in your position well enough to block, intercept, and steal balls or passes. You shouldn’t let athrough ball, a ball that passes through your defense withoutbeing off sides, through your line of midfield. You cannot, inany circumstance, be afraid to use your body against otherplayers. You have to push and protect the ball with any partof your body. Also, you have to push the limits. To be a gooddefender/ defensive midfielder, you have to push the limitsof the rules in soccer. Each and every referee calls differentideas of fouls and off sides, so you have to test him/her.Once, I was a defender playing against a really strong team.They had people who were absolutely unafraid to bend andeven break the rules of soccer. I had stolen the ball from aperson from the other team, so he pushed me from behind.That, in pretty much every sport, would be a foul, but thereferee never said a word about it. You should never hesitateif you think you have fouled someone. Only when the refereeblows the whistle should you stop. This sounds immoral, butthe other team will gain an easy goal when you stop in yourtracks.

Criteria for an Offensive Midfielders Of course, offense is just as important, if not more so,than defense. Offense is how you win games, after all. To be asuccessful midfielder, you have to have a whole bunch ofqualities. For one, you have to have great stamina. Themidfield is the most tiring position throughout soccer. Thesoccer pitch is, according to FIFA standards, about 90 to 120meters long, and if you’re a starter, you run that distanceconstantly throughout the 90-minute game with only a 15-minute rest in the middle (each half is 45 minutes long). Asyou can imagine, you have to do that. You cannot abandonyour post in soccer, so you must have endurance. If you donot recover or support the offense, any player could tell thata failed offense or defense would be your fault. Even if you do have that criteria, you must have more.You must have vision. Soccer is a team sport with elevenplayers a team. Without the ability to see where yourteammates and opponents are, your almost literally lost.With vision, however, would allow you to make and create awinning play starting with a great pass that starts acounterattack that was so quick-paced that within a blink,there was a goal. As you can imagine, that ability is needed inall positions, but especially with center midfield. The centermidfielder is the man with the plan. He or she usually startsany plan for a goal with a great pass. Lastly, you have to be able to shoot. Obviously, that ishow you score in soccer. That does not mean you have to usea knuckleball or curve, but just to shoot when you get thechance. A window can close very quickly if wind comes alongand blows the shutters. With a CLANG, the window has nouse anymore. There is a similar situation of that in soccer.You must play really quickly and make decisions rapidly, fora wrong move, a mistake, could end up with a disaster foryour team. You must shoot when you can. In soccer, it is veryrare to get a chance to score, so don’t waste it! As long as you

can kick a ball with power and accuracy, you may be able tobe a great midfielder. You also have to be great at teamwork. You have to beable to create one-twos, a situation where two players givethe ball back and forth to each other. You also have to playwell with your team and really know them. You have to knowtheir strengths and weaknesses and bring out their strengthsso the team plays at its best level.Overtime There you have it. Midfield is important in all ways. Itis a bridge between defense and offense, and can be the mostinfluentialposition on thefield, the positionthat decides thedifferencebetween a winand a lose. That’swhy midfield ishard, you need tobe a well-rounded playerwith stamina,vision...etc. However, if you train hard and work hard, you’llfind yourself on the soccer pitch, starting a counter-attack,scoring a goal, and tackling someone. Then, you’ll see thatit’s entertaining and exciting. Have fun!Image Citing:https://pixabay.com/p-1477681/?no_redirecthttps://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5215/5432614970_5ac0da5091_b.jpg