What is a full back in football?
What is the full back position in football?
Full backs are the outermost defenders in a back four, stationed to the right and left of the centre backs. Their first duty is to handle the opposing winger: showing them toward the touchline, away from goal, and defending the wide channel where crosses are born.
When the ball is on the far side of the pitch, the full back tucks inside to protect the back post and keep the defensive line connected. The position constantly balances two relationships: the centre back on the inside and the winger playing ahead.
Right back vs left back: what separates them?
The two roles mirror each other, and the real distinction comes from the player's stronger foot. A left-footed left back crosses naturally from the outside lane, while a right-footer playing on the left tends to cut infield and look for a pass instead of a cross.
Coaches often set the two flanks asymmetrically: one full back attacks freely while the other stays conservative. The team gains width on one side without giving up its insurance against fast breaks on the other.
How the full back role changed in modern football
As wingers moved infield to shoot and combine, the job of providing width passed largely to the full backs. An overlapping full back pushes the opposing defence deeper, opens space in midfield and can finish a match with more crosses than any winger on the pitch.
The newest evolution is the inverted full back, who steps into midfield in possession, adding a passing option and standing guard against fast transitions. The cost never changes: the flank they leave behind stays open to a quick break.
This term in Shutli
When full backs push forward the pitch widens and the attacking load rises, but the space they leave behind is an invitation. Shutli's live Tempo panel shows the spells when a team loads its pressure through the flanks, and if the Momentum graph swings the other way in the same minutes, the space behind an advanced full back is probably being punished.