The vignette of Aston Villa’s back four, heads tilted towards the assistant referee with one arm raised, is common.
Trapping opposition attackers offside has become Villa’s fisherman’s net. It catches plenty of victims and is critical to the team’s function under Unai Emery.
Since Emery took over, Villa have caught the opposition offside 163 times. For context, the next-highest figure is Liverpool with 93 offsides. Remarkably, that number includes a total of 58 already this season — the highest per-game average (4.8) of any team in Europe’s ‘big five’ leagues.
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Going the other way, Villa have been offside themselves just 12 times this season, the second lowest behind Manchester City (seven). This can be attributed to the assortment of attackers who prefer the ball to feet and Emery’s in-possession framework.
What makes Villa’s defensive structure so distinctive, regardless of the frequency with which they provoke offsides, is that their metrics are not directly related to a high line. Instead, Emery deploys his defenders subtly. Their average offside height — essentially the distance from their own goal when the flag is raised — is 44.5 metres, which is the sixth-lowest in the Premier League.
But more pertinently, their average defensive line is the seventh lowest (39.2 metres) — this suggests that while Villa’s offside traps are more regular and successful than any other side, Emery’s team generally defend deeper. The crucial difference, though, is how adept they are in springing up to catch opponents offside.
Typically, letting runners go is against defensive convention. The hard and fast rule centres on “tracking your man”, unconcerned with the space left but rather the immediate danger of the attacker. However, under Emery, defenders have been drilled to either hold their positions or step up.
Although Villa do not necessarily defend high, they do time their offside traps very well. Here against Luton Town, Ezri Konsa has already stepped up to the halfway line, provoking an offside before the pass is even played.
The most fitting example came in the previous game when Fulham were driving towards Villa’s back line, with Carlos Vinicius making a run in behind. Konsa, who can see both the ball and the striker, halts his momentum. This causes Vinicius to run into an offside position.
Note the awkward body shape Konsa ends up in when checking his backpedalling.
The introduction of the VAR system has contributed to Emery adopting the scheme. Margins can be tight and offside calls can be difficult to judge at first glance. VARs, however, have weighted marginal offsides in the defenders’ favour. It is partly why Emery continues to endorse the VAR system despite its imperfections.
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Emery’s fingerprints on Villa’s defensive setup were obvious from the outset. In his first 14 games, Villa provoked 63 offsides, and in only two of those games — against Arsenal and Manchester City — did the opposition win more.
“When the boss came in and we started doing the defensive line, it was weird,” said Konsa. “With the previous managers, we’ve never had to do that and they never wanted us to do that. We’re not 100 per cent there yet. We’re still making mistakes but that’s normal when you’re trying to play a high line and, regardless if it’s onside or offside, we just have to run back as quick as we can.”
As Villa’s quickest recovering defender, Konsa is integral to Villa’s defensive line, especially in the absence of long-standing partner Tyrone Mings. Now working alongside Pau Torres, who is not as mobile, the onus is on Konsa as Villa’s defensive leader, with communication key to the timing of offside traps.
In the second half at Stamford Bridge, Villa maintained their defensive line, despite a speed disadvantage against Chelsea’s front players. Not having pressure on the ball puts a greater emphasis on the back four staying in line and potentially relying on the digital margins of the VAR. Below is a tight offside call that goes in Villa’s favour.
Although the passage below ends up being flagged with three Nottingham Forest players standing in offside positions, goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez raced out to sweep up the ball over the top.
Martinez ranks in the top one per cent of goalkeepers from Europe’s top five domestic leagues for defensive actions outside his penalty area (2.86 per 90 minutes) over the past year. Villa depend on the Argentina international to sweep up any overhit balls, putting the responsibility back on the opposition passer to time their weight of pass to near perfection.
There has only been one game this season — the 3-1 victory against Crystal Palace — where the other team won more offsides than Villa, something that highlights the growing understanding between Torres and Konsa. Within the back four, the centre-backs dictate the depth of the line, often cajoling the full-backs higher — who have the advantage of looking across the line — or rushing out to press their direct winger.
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Within the first 15 seconds of Villa’s 6-1 thrashing of Brighton & Hove Albion, a pass is played towards a tight area on the pitch, encouraging Villa to quickly condense the space. This is the trigger for Konsa and Torres to push up, with Matty Cash and Lucas Digne taking their lead. It catches Solly March, left clearly offside, unaware.
Even when there is no pressure on the player on the ball — again at odds with defenders’ orthodoxy which is usually to drop off — Villa’s back line steps up. Note Cash, Konsa and Torres are all side on, with their momentum braced on their front leg. This enables them to step up at the same time Lewis Dunk makes contact with his pass.
Recognising the triggers of when to squeeze high, maintain the defensive line or, rarely in Villa’s case, drop off, is fundamental in achieving the consistency Emery wants. This comes through hours of drilling an out-of-possession shape on the training ground, using walkthroughs and creating specific game-related scenarios in which Emery can then explain where he wants his players at any given time. It requires meticulous detail in explaining such triggers.
Triggers centre on anticipation. They can include recognising when an opposing player has their back to Villa’s goal, when a pass goes backwards, when there is pressure on the ball or after a heavy touch. All of which are examples of the attacking side presenting an opportunity to regain possession.
For instance, here Brighton pass backwards with March facing towards his own goal. This creates the trigger for Villa to get immediate pressure on him, with the back line, which includes John McGinn dropping into right-back, squeezing up outside of the 18-yard box. It leaves three Brighton players in offside positions.
Villa tend to leave the 18-yard box vacant when possible. The area is used as a barometer in gauging the defensive line’s depth, ensuring no team-mate is left inside the box and playing opposing attackers onside.
As with every tactical scheme, there are pitfalls. Villa’s steadfast line depends on a synchronised back four. When the timings go awry, they present opposing attackers with high-quality, one-on-one chances. Additionally, the trap can be susceptible to movements from deep, due to untracked players staying onside because they have a longer distance to run.
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Fulham’s goal exposed the blindspot, with left-back Antonee Robinson sprinting behind Cash and Konsa. Although there was no pressure on the passer Harry Wilson, the body shape of Villa’s back line was too square, meaning they had to pivot 180 degrees to change direction. For Emery, it is paramount his defenders are in a side-on, boxer-like pose that allows them to be nimble in stepping up or turning quickly to chase any pass over the top.
To caveat, Emery will contest Villa’s defensive line conserves energy and is efficient in managing the current workload. The offside trap does shorten the distance between Villa’s furthest outfield player and defence, offering compactness and less distance to cover in midfield. A tighter structure also condenses the space between the lines.
Villa’s penchant for raising the flag is becoming well-known among opposition sides, who are all trying to hatch an effective counteractive plan. But one year into Emery’s project, the margins between success and failure still overwhelmingly fall on the side of Villa’s head coach.
GO DEEPER
A game of risk and reward: The art of playing a high line
(Top photo via Getty Images)