Scouting the EFL Championship: Fullbacks
Fullbacks, is this the position on the football pitch that has undergone the biggest change in recent times? In terms of what we have come to expect from a fullback? (I’m not really looking for an answer to this question, I just couldn’t think of a better way to start this piece).
Indeed, fullbacks have certainly evolved from back in the day when they would rarely cross the halfway line. The modern fullback is expected to contribute as an attacking outlet as well as execute their defensive duties.
In this piece, we are going to analyse three fullbacks who have played in the EFL Championship this season. I’ve picked out these three players based on certain stats as I will explain throughout.
So, what have we come to expect from fullbacks generally?
Defensive Duties:
Marking: Often responsible for marking opposing wingers or wide attackers to prevent them from making dangerous runs or crosses into the penalty area.
Tackling: Must be adept at timing tackles to dispossess opponents and regain possession for their team.
Positioning: Fullbacks need to maintain a good defensive position, staying between the opposing attackers and their own goal to deny space and opportunities.
Supporting Duties:
Covering: They provide cover for the central defenders, helping to defend against through balls or runs from opposition forwards.
Blocking: They often block crosses and shots by getting into the passing lanes or closing down attackers quickly.
Attacking Phase:
Overlapping Runs: Fullbacks frequently make overlapping runs down the flanks to provide width and create attacking options for their team. This involves advancing into the opponent's half to receive passes from midfielders or wingers.
Inverted Runs: Some fullbacks will make inverted runs into midfield to create central overloads or to fill space vacated by advancing midfielders.
Crossing: Once in an advanced position, fullbacks deliver crosses into the penalty area to create scoring opportunities for their teammates, particularly for strikers and attacking midfielders.
Passing: Fullbacks are involved in building attacks from the back, often playing short passes to midfielders or switching the play to the opposite flank to exploit space.
Transitions:
Attacking Transitions: When possession is won, fullbacks may initiate quick counterattacks by quickly moving the ball forward or providing support to attacking players.
Defensive Transitions: In moments of turnover, fullbacks must quickly regain their defensive positions to prevent opponents from exploiting the space behind them.
Milan van Ewijk - Coventry City
The first player we are going to look at in this piece is Coventry City’s right back, Milan van Ewijk. The 23-year-old lines up at fullback or wingback depending on which tactical system his team are deploying.
The pizza chart above allows us to generate an overall picture of van Ewijk’s game within the context of Coventry’s tactics and compare him to fellow fullbacks in the EFL Championship.
The 23-year-old has contributed five assists this season and as we can see from the chart, this places him in the 86th percentile for this metric. We can also see that he ranks highly in terms of his progressive carries suggesting he can drive the play forward and create attacking opportunities for his team.
Furthermore, van Ewijk performs above average in terms of his tackles and interceptions compared to his counterparts suggesting he provides some very important defensive solidarity.
Although we can clearly see that he does perform poorly regarding aerial duels therefore it may be possible for opponents to target this via long passes into the channel.
Overall, he is an excellent fullback who looks to be a very progressive player going forward but also provides a defensive base for his team.
Leif Davis - Ipswich Town
Leif Davis was one of Ipswich Town’s standout performers in their promotion season. The 24-year-old racked up an incredible 18 assists from left back for Kieran McKenna’s side throughout the 2023/24 campaign.
Of course, looking at the pizza chart, it is no surprise to see how well he ranks in terms of assists and expected assists. Additionally, he ranks highly in terms of crosses, perhaps where most of the said assists occurred from and key passes which are passes leading to shots.
Davis primarily lined up as the left fullback in a 4-2-3-1 system with Omari Hutchinson or Jeremy Sarmiento in front of him. Hutchinson and Sarmiento naturally drifted infield which created vast space for the former Leeds man to attack down the flank.
His percentile ranking for pass completion is rather low suggesting he is much more of a ball carrier than a passer, this is further supported by his above-average ranking for progressive carries.
Interestingly Davis ranks quite low in terms of his defensive actions such as tackles, interceptions and ball recoveries. This could suggest that he is more of an attacking force than he is defensively, something that will be interesting to watch play out in the Premier League. It is worth noting that Ipswich conceded 1.24 goals per 90 last season.
Sam McCallum - Norwich City
The final player in this piece is Sam McCallum, who at the time of writing is currently linked with a move to Sheffield United.
The pizza chart shows us how well he performed for Norwich in terms of his defensive actions. We can see he is in the highest percentile for interceptions compared to his peers and not far behind in terms of his aerial duels won.
His pass completion is also quite low suggesting he may lack accuracy or perhaps he tries lower percentage passes that don’t always come to fruition. However, his progressive passes and key passes percentile rankings are impressive and suggest that when he does get the ball, he looks to be positive with it and can create shooting opportunities for his teammates.
Additionally, McCallum ranks quite highly in terms of crosses but this does not translate into assists suggesting there may be an accuracy issue in addition to forwards not hitting the target.
Overall he is a very solid defender who offers something in attack making him an interesting prospect for the newly relegated Sheffield United.
Conclusion:
This piece has investigated three fullbacks who stood out in the EFL Championship during 2023/24. Leif Davis is naturally the biggest name on this list considering his performances were integral to Ipswich’s promotion. However, both McCallum and van Ewijk are wonderful players with a lot to offer in all phases of play.
It will be very interesting to follow these players over the coming season and compare their performances once again in the future.