Four of the eleven goals scored on the first evening of the league phase UEFA Women’s Champions League Scored by full-backs – that’s an impressive 36%.
The very large spaces that City and Bayern’s full-backs exploited in Unterhaching – as shown by the goals from Gwinn and Wamser and Kerstin Casparij’s involvement in City’s opening goal – provided plenty of material for UEFA’s match analysis department.
Not only did both teams benefit from the full-backs moving far forward; It was primarily their different approaches that deserved attention.
Bayern with Gwinn on the right
Bayern’s right-back Gwinn underlined her offensive strength with her 50th goal for the club. She had previously set up an opportunity for her teammate Klara Bühl, and the following video shows how Bayern’s playing structure – a core of two central defenders, two central midfielders and four free players in front – enabled her to do this.
“Gwinn was the winger on the right, while Bühl coordinated her movements with left-back Franziska Kett,” noted UEFA technical observer Martin Sjögren. “Bayern were compact in defense and controlled the central areas when in possession, which enabled them to break through centrally and then move outwards.”
Initially, the two pairs of full-backs were deployed in areas that suited José Barcala’s team, meaning City were rarely able to advance with the ball out of the defense. However, as the graphic shows, the picture changed after the break, initiated by Beth Mead’s goal.
City takes the long route
The second video shows how the guests managed to use their full-backs more through a closed passing game. This prevented the hosts from applying the same sustained pressure; Mead’s goal came from one such game scene.
This is made possible by Casperij’s run and cross pass, who makes the crucial difference by both recognizing a teammate who is moving inwards and assessing the developing situation and playing the ball high and wide. This outstanding game overview is consistent with City coach Andrée Jeglertz’s pre-game comments about his team’s problem-solving ability.
Final qualities
The third video illustrates the composure and technique of the two dangerous full-backs. Voted Player of the Match, Gwinn finished like a striker: after creating width and moving up as her winger moved inside, she lifted the ball over the goalkeeper. Wamser’s subsequent equalizer at the near post was based on anticipating the movement of the running back defender.
Coach reflection: Maximize the offensive power of the full-backs
UEFA Technical Observer Lluís Cortés recommends giving players solutions rather than prescribing fixed movements and encourages full-backs to adapt their positioning and decisions by:
- Recognize the movements of your teammates; adjust the positioning accordingly
- Recognize the opponent’s movements; understand the available spaces that need to be used
- Recognize solutions on the ball; Making decisions about whether to pass the ball to your feet, into open space or retain possession of the ball.
