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Football (Soccer) vocabulary · Positions & Players

Full-back

Meaning in football (soccer), with examples

/ˈfʊl bæk/nounCore term

In football (soccer), full-back means: A defender who plays on the right or left side of the back line, defending against wingers and often joining attacks down the flank.

In Turkish: bek, kenar savunma oyuncusu

How it is used

Teams have a right-back and a left-back. Modern full-backs overlap, cross and sometimes move into midfield as inverted full-backs. When a team plays three centre-backs, the wide players are usually called wing-backs.

Example sentences

  1. Our full-back overlapped and put in a great cross.

  2. We need a left-sided full-back who can defend one-on-one.

Common collocations

  • right-back
  • left-back
  • attacking full-back
  • inverted full-back
  • overlapping full-back
  • defenderA player whose main job is to stop the other team from attacking and scoring, usually playing in the line closest to their own goal.
  • wingerAn attacking player who plays near the touchline on the right or left, using pace and dribbling to beat defenders and create chances.
  • crossA pass from the side of the pitch into the penalty area, aimed at a teammate who can head or shoot. As a verb, to cross means to deliver such a pass.
  • centre-backA defender who plays in the middle of the back line, marking strikers, winning headers and clearing danger from the penalty area.

More terms: Positions & Players

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