What Is Man Marking? (And How Does It Compare To Zonal)
In recent years, the number of regular football supporters that feel confident talking about tactics in detail has grown significantly. From being introduced to more complex strategies like gegenpressing by pioneering coaches like Jurgen Klopp, to growing awareness about the purpose tactical innovations like the inverted full-back, to building knowledge about why coaches so value specific roles such as the left-sided ball-playing centre back, the tactical depth of the discussions taking place between fans these days is greater than ever.
It's no surprise, then, that plenty of football lovers have strong opinions about a key defensive area of the game: marking. Every single football match ever played has been shaped in a profound way by marking structures — it's one of the most fundamental tactical ideas in football. In this article we're going to be comparing two distinct forms of defensive marking: zonal marking and man to man marking. We'll explain what each system involves and we'll explore the strengths and weaknesses of both zonal marking and man marking in football, with a particular focus on the latter.
What Is Man Marking?
In football, marking is an essential part of defending. Marking involves tracking opposition players either from close range or from a distance, in order to keep an eye on their movements and limit the threat they pose as much as possible. Any properly-structured defensive line will be set up by their coach to mark the opposition players in a specific way.
Man marking is all about closely tracking your opposite number on the field, typically staying within a yard or two of them, allowing you to quickly make a tackle, interception, or block as soon as the ball heads in their direction.
For a central defensive midfielder, man marking can be used to limit the space given to the opposition Number 10 or playmaker, reducing the impact they can have on the game. Man marking is about suffocating the opposition, using an intense marking system to cut out dangers and stop your opponents from receiving and keeping hold of the ball.
It's worth noting that like several other phrases used in the football world (like 'man on', 'linesman', or 'man of the match'), man marking is a gendered term that speaks to the historic exclusion of women from the game. In the future, people may move away from this phrase, but at this point it remains a highly relevant term that is still widely used across the game, so understanding its typical usage is crucial.
When association football was first formalised in the Victorian age, man to man marking was all the rage, with individual battles dominating play and few teams using a passing game that fully exploited the space available across the pitch. For many decades, this kind of individualised defending was the norm, and the prevalence of the W-M formation amongst most European teams meant that it made sense for managers to match up against their opponents and mark 'man to man'.
It wasn't until well into the 20th century, and the development of other formations, that coaches started to develop forms of defending structured more around space and positioning, and man marking began decreasing in popularity.
What Is Zonal Marking?
The development of zonal marking can be traced back to one of the most pioneering coaches of the 1950s, Fluminese's Zeze Moreira. His Brazilian outfit caused serious problems both for domestic opponents and teams who travelled from abroad such as Arsenal, with these sides finding it difficult to track Fluminese's players due to Moreira's more fluid, space-orientated approach to marking.
He understood the pitch as being split into different zones, and as long as each zone was covered by an appropriate number of players who knew their specific jobs, defensive solidity could be achieved without a man-to-man approach. As the years rolled on, this approach became more common.
Arrigo Sacchi's legendary Milan teams of the late 1980s and early 1990s were coached to decide their position based on four key reference points, rather than simply chasing their direct opponent. These reference points were the ball, the opposition, teammates, and open space, and with this wider view his players worked as a more cohesive unit shifting in blocks across the pitch. This is zonal marking at its core: the process of marking space on the pitch in order to cover all zones, contain the opposition, and block out potential passing lanes.
In attacking spaces, the marking of zones can also be used to help create opportunities; by cutting out passing options for an opposition goalkeeper or centre-back, forwards can pressure those players into conceding possession in a dangerous area of the pitch. This idea is known as pressing, and most modern teams employ it in one form or another.
All over the world, zonal marking has become the most popular method of defending during open play. However, things are different when it comes to set pieces, with a large number of teams still favouring a man marking approach for the defending of corners, free-kicks, and throw-ins. In the next section of this article, we'll explore why that is by focusing on the key strengths and weaknesses of both marking systems.
What Are The Strengths of Man Marking?
Man marking from set pieces is common because when a team is trying to defend a corner or free kick, they're likely to be contending with far more physically imposing players than usual. Tall, dominant defenders will typically enter the opposition penalty area when a corner or attacking free-kick is about to be taken, and in these instances man marking gives defenders an opportunity to get tight to these players, battle with them, and stop them from winning what would otherwise be an easy header.
Spreading our gaze beyond the penalty area, man-to-marking can also be useful across a 90-minute match and in various periods of open play. For example, when two teams are using the same shape but one manager feels like their players have both the technical and physical capacities to overpower the opposition players in many individual battles (particularly in terms of fitness), going man-to-man can be useful.
Man marking can also be used to boost a team's ability to press the opponents' backline. For example, in out-of-possession phases, iconic former Leeds United coach Marcelo Bielsa would typically set his players up man-to-man, limiting space for the opposition in their deeper areas and aiming to win the ball back quickly once it's played forward. But as the derailing of Bielsa's Premier League adventure with Leeds showed, there are problems with this approach.
What Are The Weaknesses of Man Marking?
Bielsa's Leeds were known for their incredible fitness levels and ability to cover huge distances during games, but for sides without these physical endurance levels it's very difficult to successfully operate a man marking system. Zonal marking is more efficient, because it means players can be more conservative with their running and spend less energy getting up and down the pitch.
In addition, zonal marking allows defensive units to consistently align themselves in a predictable position, rather than adjusting their game too much in line with the opponents' moves. Man marking in football can be unpredictable, because when an opponent moves beyond their usual starting position they become harder to track. Zonal marking is all about reducing this potential for disorganisation.
What Is Hybrid Marking?
Because both zonal and man marking have their strengths and weaknesses, it has become increasingly common for teams to use a mixture of the two approaches known as a 'hybrid marking system'.
From set pieces, for example, it's rare to see a top team using a purely zonal or purely man-to-man structure, with most coaches opting for a hybrid approach that sees them line up several of their tallest, most aerially competitive defenders on the six-yard line, while other defensive 'blockers' mark dangerous opponents, sticking tight to them and attempting to stop them from receiving and winning the ball as it's swung into the box by the corner taker.
Combining zonal and man marking in these situations, if done right, tends to work well. For example, Arsenal have more than earned their place as the Premier League's attacking set piece experts, but a deep dive from The Athletic showed that often the best way to stop the Gunners from converting a corner kick was to use a hybrid marking system.
While "the optimal defensive corner setup depends on the profiles of the players available to you," Porto's scheme of having "two zonal defenders towards the near post, a player near the penalty spot to protect against late runs from outside the box, and two players out to defend the short corner" was a success.
Hybrid systems are also regularly used in other tactical areas of the game. For instance, hybrid pressing can be used higher up the pitch to get the advantages of both zonal pressing and man-to-man pressing structures. As ever, there is a huge amount for coaches to think about when it comes to setting up their teams each week. If you'd like to dive deeper into this area and explore more analysis of the key decisions required for coaches, why not check out our guide to every defensive position in soccer?
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