The football industry is constantly evolving, and with it, the need for advanced metrics that provide a deeper understanding of the game. Over the past decade, the concept of pressure has radically transformed how teams compete globally. Tactical models such as the German school’s gegenpressing or the counter-pressing strategies of dominant teams have made quick ball recovery one of the most effective strategies in modern football. This approach has led teams to seek more precise ways to measure and optimize their ability to apply pressure on opponents and withstand pressure when in possession.
Advanced statistics have proven their ability to respond to every new situation that arises in modern football. Each tactical shift or trend has created the need to develop metrics and visualizations that accurately store and measure which players and teams excel in different aspects of the game. Thanks to these tools, football analysis has transitioned from being a subjective perception to becoming a science backed by objective and verifiable data. This is precisely the spirit of Driblab: providing insights into every second of a match through cutting-edge, precise data, helping clubs and analysts make more informed decisions.
The Importance of On-Ball Pressures
Traditional metrics have allowed us to evaluate pressure in football on a general level, but On-Ball Pressures offer a much more precise level of detail than recoveries or interceptions. Thanks to our tracking data system, clubs and analysts can accurately quantify how and when players are put under pressure while receiving or making a pass, as well as how effective teams are at applying pressure on opponents. This information is crucial to understanding defensive solidity, a team’s ability to recover possession, and a player’s quality in handling and passing the ball under high pressure.
Accuracy and Reliability in Data Collection
Thanks to tracking technology, we at Driblab have been able to develop various models for our Arrigo product. These metrics have been designed with a very high level of accuracy, ensuring that each pressure event is identified and categorized with precision. This eliminates ambiguities in data interpretation and guarantees reliable analysis, which is essential for decision-making in high-performance environments.
Pressure Metrics in Arrigo
A player is considered under pressure when they are in possession of the ball and have at least one opponent in close proximity attempting to recover the ball or restrict their options.
We focus on high-intensity pressure, defined as pressure applied with maximum speed and close proximity to the opponent.
A player’s ability to retain possession under pressure depends not only on their individual skill—such as technique, spatial awareness, and game reading—but also on their team’s playing style. Some key team-related factors include:
- Teammate Proximity: Closer teammates provide more passing options, easing the pressure.
- Availability of Passing Options: More passing options give the player flexibility to evade pressure.
- Team Compactness: A compact team structure facilitates ball retention by enabling quick passes and reducing isolated situations.
To define the Passes Under Pressure metric, we follow these steps:
- Identifying the Pass Giver’s Coordinates: We locate the coordinates of the player making the pass.
- Measuring Defender Distances: We calculate the distance between the pass giver and each defending player.
- Applying the Pressure Threshold: A 2-meter threshold is used to classify pressure situations. If a defender is within this 2-meter radius of the pass giver, the pass is categorized as being Under Pressure.
Example 1: Pass Under Pressure
Example 2: Pass Not Under Pressure
Driblab’s Pressure Metrics
Driblab provides a range of metrics to measure and evaluate both defenders' pressure on the ball and the ball holder’s ability to pass under opponent pressure.
- Pressures (Applied): Pressures exerted on opponents
- On-Ball Pressures: The total number of times a player or team applies pressure on an opponent in possession of the ball.
- Strong On-Ball Pressures: The total number of pressures applied with high intensity.
- Successful On-Ball Pressures: Pressures that result in a turnover or a forced pass by the opponent.
- Successful Strong On-Ball Pressures: High-intensity pressures that lead to an effective turnover.
- On-Ball Pressures Completion Rate: The success rate of total pressures applied.
- Strong On-Ball Pressures Completion Rate: The success rate of high-intensity pressures.
- Pressures (Received): Passes made under pressure.
- Total Passes Under Strong Pressure: The total number of passes made under intense pressure.
- Total Passes Under Light Pressure: The total number of passes made under light pressure.
- Successful Passes Under Strong Pressure: Passes successfully completed despite being under strong pressure.
- Successful Passes Under Light Pressure: Passes successfully completed under lighter pressure.
- Passes Under Strong Pressure Completion Rate: The completion percentage of passes made in strong pressure situations.
- Passes Under Light Pressure Completion Rate: The completion percentage of passes made in light pressure situations.
With the integration of On-Ball Pressures into Arrigo, Driblab provides clubs and analysts with much more advanced tools to measure talent and performance, both individually and collectively, in relation to pressure situations.
More and more clubs are relying on intelligent metrics for decision-making. Having these metrics available allows for more refined filters to determine which players stand out.
If you wantto learn more about these metrics or any of our products, contact us at: www.driblab.com/DEMO
