The language of scouting

Tactical roles

Position tells you where a player starts. Role describes the responsibility they take on.

43 canonical definitions · Authorised player examples where available

Goalkeeper

Marshal →
Goalkeeper whose defining value is command of the penalty area, line organisation, set-piece authority, and emotional control. The Marshal gives the defence structure and calm before anything else.
Sweeper Keeper →
Plays a high line, sweeps behind the defence, and reads danger before it develops.
Distributor →
Distribution specialist who starts attacks from the back with pinpoint passing under pressure.
Shotstopper →
Traditional shot-stopper who dominates the six-yard box with reflexes, agility, and physical presence.

Centrale →
Commanding centre-back who leads by example, wins aerial battles, and organises the backline.
Progressor →
Centre-back whose primary possession value is advancing the ball beyond the first line of pressure through vertical passing, diagonal switches, disguised passes, carries into midfield, or stepping forward to create an overload.
Stopper →
Aggressive front stopper who wins duels, presses high, and physically dominates attackers.
Sweeper →
Last man who reads the game two moves ahead and covers space behind the defensive line.
Colossus →
Physically dominant centre-back who wins everything in the air and imposes through sheer presence.

Fullback →
Gets forward to support attacks, delivers crosses, and provides width in the final third.
Wing-back →
IS the width — covers the entire flank in both phases with pace, dribbling, and tireless running.
Auxiliary Centre-Back →
Wide defender who plays as a full-back on paper but behaves like an extra centre-back in possession or defensive transition. The Auxiliary Centre-Back protects the far post, stabilises rest defence, and frees others to attack.
Invertido →
Inverted full-back who tucks inside into midfield to create overloads and control possession.

Regista →
Deep-lying playmaker who dictates tempo from a withdrawn position with vision and precise passing.
Pivote →
The midfield brain — organizes shape, reads everything, and controls tempo through intelligence.
Anchor →
Positional sentinel who screens the back line, reads danger, and covers space.
Volante →
High-energy destroyer-DM who mows down attacks at the source — disrupts aggressively, wins the ball, and drives forward after the regain. More confrontational and less positional than the Anchor.
Segundo Volante →
High-energy DM who drives forward with the ball and arrives to score from deep positions.

Playmaker →
Runs the game with vision and range — the orchestrator who sees passes others cannot.
Metodista →
Metronome who controls the rhythm of play with short, intelligent passing.
Mezzala →
Engine-first half-space specialist who arrives late in dangerous positions between the lines.
Tuttocampista →
Instinctive all-action midfielder who covers every blade of grass — tackles, drives, scores, and never stops. More explosive and less considered than the Carrilero.
Ball Winner →
Engine-driven midfielder who wins the ball back with intensity and keeps the team ticking.
Carrilero →
Considered midfielder who patrols the channel in narrow midfields, making disciplined judgment calls about when to hold and when to go. Cover-first, engine-second.

Touchline Winger →
Wide midfielder who stretches the pitch, receives near the sideline, beats the full-back, and supplies crosses or cutbacks. More service-oriented than goal-oriented.
Tornante →
The returner — wide midfielder who covers the full flank in both phases with selfless discipline.
False Winger →
Starts wide but drifts inside intelligently, reading the game to create overloads and find space.
Wide Playmaker →
Wide midfielder who creates from a starting position near the flank, manipulating passing angles, combining with the full-back, and delivering from wide or half-wide zones.

Trequartista →
Free-roaming number 10 who creates magic in the final third with dribbling, vision, and imagination.
Enganche →
The hook — a classic playmaker who sees everything and threads passes others can't imagine.
Incursore →
The raider — an AM who reads space and arrives in the box with timing, converting half-chances.
Mediapunta →
The half-point — a mobile, intelligent 10 who links play through short combinations and positional intelligence.
Shadow Striker →
Attacking midfielder who times runs from deeper positions to arrive in the box as a second-wave runner. Finishes underneath the line rather than pinning it.

Inverted Winger →
Wide attacker who cuts inside onto their stronger foot to shoot or create.
Advanced Winger →
High wide attacker who pins the opposition full-back, attacks the box, carries in transition, and creates or scores from advanced zones.
Half-Space Creator →
Advanced wide attacker who starts outside but creates from inside channels, receiving between the lines, slipping passes into runners, and combining near the box.
Wide Target Forward →
Physical wide forward who holds up the ball and wins aerial duels from wide positions.

Prima Punta →
The first striker — clinical finishing combined with aerial ability and box instinct.
Falso Nove →
False nine who drops deep to create, pulling centre-backs out of position and opening space.
Spearhead →
Leads the press from the front with relentless work rate, setting the tempo for the whole team.
Target Forward →
Target striker who holds up the ball, wins aerial duels, and brings teammates into play.
Seconda Punta →
Second striker who plays off the main forward — creative, intelligent, links midfield to attack.
Vertical Forward →
Pace-based striker who runs in behind the defence and ghosts past the defensive line.