Line breaks

The full definition of a line break and their different types can be found in FIFA's Football Language here.

Our Technical Study Group have identified Line Breaks as a key theme in the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Costa Rica 2022™ and here, Mónica Vergara discusses what teams can do to bypass opposition defensive lines and create numerical supremacy in dangerous parts of the pitch.

Teams are reducing the distances between their lines and are setting up in well-structured, compact blocks. The team in possession must recognise the total opposition units  and decide where (unit broken) and how to break those lines (direction).

Players must see where the space is, or, where the opportunities are to engage defending players and create gaps in their team structure.

To break lines, a team can play through  the lines, around  the lines or over  the lines. 

In the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup, our TSG recognised some very considered and effective line-breaking play with some teams breaking more lines than others depending on their tactical approach to build-up.

In the group stages of the competition, Netherlands and Spain were the most effective teams at breaking their opponents' forward line because of their desire to build play in this area of the pitch and to play through the thirds of the pitch.

When we explore the player-specific data, it is notable that both of the Netherlands' centre-backs, (4) Samantha van Diemen and (3) Marit Auee, are in the top three players for forward line breaks. This is a clear indication of their intent and approach to build-up play.

It is no coincidence that both of Spain's centre-backs, (3) Ana Tejada and (8) Silvia Lloris, also feature in the top-ten players for forward line breaks. We explore this further in our step-ins section. 

Breaking an opponent's midfield line is key to progressing the ball when attacking because it eliminates more of their players and reduces their capacity to defend. It also presents an opportunity to gain numerical supremacy approaching their defensive line.

Japan were extremely effective in this particular phase of the game during the group stages of the competition, averaging 59 line breaks per 90 minutes. Their intricate passing style and movement made them highly effective at breaking midfield lines.

Seven of the eight teams that progressed to the quarter-finals are in the top ten teams for midfield line breaks. This highlights how important it is to be able to break down defences to progress in the competition. 

Interestingly, Netherlands centre-back, (4) Samantha van Diemen is ranked second for midfield line breaks, in addition to being the top-ranked player for forward line breaks.    

Breaking an opponent's defensive line can create varying levels of danger for the opponent, depending on where their defensive line is at the time of the line break.

For example, if the defensive line is on the edge of their own penalty area when it is broken and an attacker has broken through into a 1v1 situation with the goalkeeper, then it is a critical situation for the defending team.

Defensive line breaks can also occur in the outer channels and result in crosses into the box. Once the defensive line is broken, attacking teams must show efficiency in attempts at goal in order to capitalise on the opportunity they have created.

Despite breaking their opponents' defensive line most often, the USA and Germany failed to progress out of their groups to advance to the quarter-finals. Once again, Brazil, Spain, Japan and Netherlands are prominent in the data representing defensive line breaks.   

The capacity to break the lines of the opponent's defence is crucial if a team is to win matches. In the modern game, where defending teams often drop into compact, narrow, mid and low blocks it is becoming increasingly difficult to break lines. This forces attacking teams to be more creative and thoughtful in progressing their build-up play.