A player’s role specification refers to how his tactical role enables him to perform positional responsibilities.
The main aspects of role specifications are responsibility classifications, responsibility specialism levels and responsibility focus levels.
Responsibility Classifications
A player’s responsibility classifications are categories that can be used to group positional responsibilities according to the extent to which his tactical role enables him to perform them effectively.
Positional responsibilities can be grouped into responsibility classifications according to a player’s tactical role as follows:
- Designated responsibilities – positional responsibilities for which the tactical role includes at least one key role type and does not include any conflicting or adverse role types.
- Specialist responsibilities – designated responsibilities for which the tactical role includes at least one supplementary role type or, alternatively, an additional key role type.
- Supported responsibilities – positional responsibilities for which the tactical role does not include any conflicting or adverse role types but also does not include any key role types.
- Supplementary responsibilities – supported responsibilities for which the tactical role includes at least one supplementary role type.
- Weak-designated responsibilities – positional responsibilities for which the tactical role includes at least one key role type and does not include any conflicting role types, but does include at least one adverse role type.
- Weak-supported responsibilities – positional responsibilities for which the tactical role does not include any conflicting role types but also does not include any key role types and does include at least one adverse role type.
- Non-contributive responsibilities – positional responsibilities for which the tactical role includes at least one conflicting role type.
Responsibility Specialism Levels
A player’s responsibility specialism level for a particular positional responsibility refers to the extent to which the player’s tactical role enables him to specialise in the positional responsibility.
A player’s responsibility specialism level for a positional responsibility depends on the number and nature of the positional responsibility’s designated and supplementary role types that are included in his tactical role. The more that are included and the more they contribute to the performance of the positional responsibility, the higher the responsibility specialism level is.
Responsibility Focus Levels
A player’s responsibility focus level for a particular positional responsibility refers to the extent to which the player’s tactical role enables him to focus on using playing methods that directly relate to the tactical risk level associated with the positional responsibility.
For each positional responsibility, a player can have a higher responsibility focus, a lower responsibility focus or a versatile responsibility focus.
A player’s responsibility focus level for a positional responsibility depends on how his tactical instructions regarding the use of attacking mentality or defensive mentality playing methods compare to the responsibility mentality playing method of the positional responsibility.
Higher Responsibility Focus
A higher responsibility focus for a positional responsibility enables a player to focus to a greater extent on using playing methods that directly relate to the associated tactical risk level. It therefore enables a player to focus more on performing the positional responsibility concerned, along with similar tactical risk positional responsibilities.
A tactical role gives a player a higher responsibility focus for a positional responsibility if it instructs him to use the responsibility mentality playing method to a greater extent.
Therefore, a tactical role that instructs a player to use a high risk mentality to a greater extent gives him a higher responsibility focus for all higher risk positional responsibilities (a more attacking focus), while one that instructs a player to use a low risk mentality to a greater extent gives him a higher responsibility focus for all lower risk positional responsibilities (a more defensive focus).
Build-up Play
A player who is instructed to use a high risk mentality to a greater extent, and so has a higher responsibility focus for higher risk attacking phase positional responsibilities, is more likely to be involved in the later stages of build-up play, even if he is instructed to perform some lower risk attacking phase positional responsibilities to a greater extent.
A player who is instructed to use a low risk mentality to a greater extent, and so has a higher responsibility focus for lower risk attacking phase positional responsibilities, is more likely to be involved in the earlier stages of build-up play, even if he is instructed to perform some higher risk attacking phase positional responsibilities to a greater extent.
Lower Responsibility Focus
A lower responsibility focus for a positional responsibility enables a player to focus to a lesser extent on using playing methods that directly relate to the associated tactical risk level. It therefore enables a player to focus more on performing opposing tactical risk positional responsibilities, while still performing the positional responsibility concerned if he is instructed to do so.
A tactical role gives a player a lower responsibility focus for a positional responsibility if it instructs him to use the responsibility mentality playing method to a lesser extent.
Therefore, a tactical role that instructs a player to use a high risk mentality to a greater extent gives him a lower responsibility focus for all lower risk positional responsibilities (a more attacking focus), while one that instructs a player to use a low risk mentality to a greater extent gives him a lower responsibility focus for all higher risk positional responsibilities (a more defensive focus).
Versatile Responsibility Focus
A versatile responsibility focus for a positional responsibility enables a player to focus to a moderate extent on using playing methods that directly relate to the associated tactical risk level. It therefore enables a player to alternate his focus more between performing opposing tactical risk positional responsibilities.
A tactical role gives a player a versatile responsibility focus for a positional responsibility if it instructs him to use a balance between the responsibility mentality playing method and its opposing playing method.
A tactical role that instructs a player to use a balance between a high risk mentality and a low risk mentality gives him a versatile responsibility focus for all higher and lower risk positional responsibilities (a versatile focus).
