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For this week’s Weekly Football Phrase we explain the phrase ‘to hold the ball up’.- Find out more about this phrase by reading the transcript below and listening to the audio.
- You can also find many more examples of soccer vocabulary by going to our football cliches page here and our huge football glossary here.
- This post also features in our podcast show, along with a main report and our weekly predictions.
Hold the Ball Up
This phrase is most often used in connection with a striker. When a player holds the ball up, he or she receives the ball and shields it from defenders before laying it off (passing it) to a supporting player. Often a lone striker will receive a long ball from defence or midfield and will control the ball and keep it, hold it up, while waiting for the midfield to join him or her. A player who can hold the ball up is useful when a team plays with only one forward and when the opposition sits deep. You can also say to hold up the ball, and to hold the ball.
- Example: While Torres was good at playing on the last defenders shoulder, Drogba was great at holding up the ball and bringing other players into the game.
- Example: A The key is not to lose the ball when you get it. If I can hold the ball, it gives the team a chance to join me in attack. Ia€™ll hold it until the rest of the other players come into play (Ibrahimovich).
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