Hudl Statsbomb is the only data provider that collects pressure data at an event level for both teams and players across 140+ leagues and competitions around the globe, providing a consistent database for worldwide scouting and analysis.
Pressure data allows for a deeper understanding of defensive activity but also supplies key additional context around on-ball events, allowing you to assess how players and teams react under pressure.
Here are some quick examples of how this data can be used in both match analysis and recruitment workflows.
Pressure Data in Match Analysis
Understanding Pressing Structures
Pressure data helps determine how and where teams defend with greater precision.
Without it, our understanding of defensive activity would be limited to actions directly related to the ball: blocks, duels, interceptions and tackles. An average team might make around 80 of those actions per match. Add pressure data, and the number of data points almost triples.
That extra information allows you to quickly hone in on a team’s defensive approach. For example, you could look at the percentage of opposition actions that are performed under pressure in each zone of the pitch and compare it to the league average to get an overview of what can be expected from an upcoming opponent.
From there, you could dig deeper to analyze how often those pressured actions lead to a change in possession, and so orient your video analysis towards understanding the pressing structures the team uses in those areas of the pitch and how your game plan could be adapted to overcome them.
The same kind of data could also be used to establish and monitor internal performance indicators around your own defensive approach. Are you pressing with the desired intensity? Is your press effective? Where are the weak points?
Pressure data helps quickly get you those answers.
Identifying Pressing Targets
Every pressure action Statsbomb collects is directly related to an on-ball event, providing key contextual information that allows you to analyze how players react under pressure.
Does their completion rate drop? Do they attempt longer passes? Do they more often turn backward?
This information can be used to identify potential weak links in the buildup play of an opponent. For example, there could be a disparity between how their central defenders react when put under pressure.
Understanding the tendencies of each player can help you structure your press to take advantage. Between data and video, you could even look downstream from the initial passes to understand how often they lead to an indirect possession loss or limit the team’s ability to advance the ball forward as desired.
Pressure Data in Recruitment
Finding Good Stylistic Fits
Pressure data dramatically increases the number of defensive events with which to analyze the zones in which players defend and how effective they are in doing so. In the case of an average central midfielder, it provides a fivefold increase in data points.
Team style and the role assigned to each player must be taken into consideration but this additional information certainly helps produce a shortlist of potentially interesting players much quicker than you’d be able to without it.
For example, you might limit your search to a subset of leagues that meet your budgetary requirements and use pressure data to help identify a young, all-action midfielder capable of covering ground and closing down opponents in the center of the pitch.
It wouldn’t be the only metric you’d lean on, but one that in combination with others would help you create your ideal statistical profile for the position.
Identifying Players who Perform Well Under Pressure
As already discussed, pressure data can also be used to understand how players react under pressure, and help you identify players with a degree of press resistance.
Let’s say you want to pair your all-action midfielder with an experienced and steady performer in the center of the pitch. In the same subset of leagues, you could look for a central midfielder aged 28 or over who frequently progresses the ball to the final third whilst recording an above-average pass completion rate, and who also maintains a similar success percentage under pressure.
Our pressure data is collected on a consistent basis across every competition we cover, so those numbers can be easily benchmarked against current squad members for a more rounded analysis.
Advanced Data That Streamlines Decisions
Pressures are just one of many advanced metrics and models that make Hudl Statsbomb global football’s trusted analytics partner.
From metrics like Pass Footedness and Shot Impact Height to advanced models such as On-Ball Value (OBV), Statsbomb xG and xPass, Statsbomb data provides decision-makers with reliable and actionable insights.
Do you work for a club, league or federation? Want to get a hands-on feel for the value of Hudl Statsbomb data? Get in touch today to request a free trial.
