Forwards, also known as attackers and strikers, are the players on a team in association football who play nearest to the opposing team's goal, and are therefore principally responsible for scoring goals. This very advanced position and its limited defensive responsibilities mean forwards normally score more goals than other players; accordingly, they are often among the best-known and most expensive players in their teams.
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Forwards, also known as attackers and strikers, are the players on a team in association football who play nearest to the opposing team's goal, and are therefore principally responsible for scoring goals. This very advanced position and its limited defensive responsibilities mean forwards normally score more goals than other players; accordingly, they are often among the best-known and most expensive players in their teams.
Modern team formations usually include one to three forwards; two is most common. Coaches typically field one striker who plays in an advanced position (the centre forward), and another attacking forward who plays somewhat deeper and assists in making goals as well as scoring (the second striker).
Centre forward
The centre forward is often a tall player, typically known as a target man, who is used to win long balls or receive passes and "hold up" the ball as team-mates advance, to help team-mates score by providing a pass ('through ball' into the box), or to score himself; the latter variation usually requiring quicker pace. Some forwards operate on the wings of the field and work their way goalward.
Second striker
Deep-lying forwards have a long history in the game, but the terminology to describe them has varied over the years. Originally such players were termed inside forwards, or deep-lying centre forwards. More recently, two more variations of this old type of player have developed: the second or support or auxiliary striker and, in what is arguably a distinct position unto its own, being neither midfield nor attack, the Number 10, or playmaker, an advanced as opposed to a deep-lying playmaker.
The second striker position is a loosely-defined and often misapplied one somewhere between the out-and-out striker, whether he is a target-man or more of a poacher, and the Number 10 or Trequartista, while possibly showing some of the characteristics of both. In fact, a coined term, the "nine-and-a-half", has been an attempt to define the position. Conceivably, a Number 10 can alternate as a second-striker provided that he is also a prolific goalscorer, otherwise a striker who can both score and create opportunities for a less versatile centre forward is more suited. This has been true of a natural trequartista like Roberto Baggio who seldom played in a team formation which permitted him the creative license to play as a number 10 and so he adapted himself to the second-striker role. A second- or support-striker does not tend to get as involved in the orchestration of attacks, nor bring as many other players into play as the Number 10 since they do not have the range of vision, nor the burden of responsibility that the latter, around whom the team's game is built, possess. Accordingly, neither do they have as much responsibility for inventing the game.
