Is Short Really an Advantage in Soccer? 5ch Weighs In: ‘Top Scorers Average 185cm’

Even looking at some of the greatest players of all time—
Pelé was in the low 170s (cm)
Maradona was around 165cm

As long as the ball's on the ground, being shorter might help with close control and a lower center of gravity.
But defenders who can't afford to lose aerial duels definitely need the height.

>>4
There used to be a player named Fabio Cannavaro, you know

Being tall really only helps for GK, CB, and maybe a classic No. 9 striker.

That used to be true, but it's all about physicality these days.

Players with exceptional footwork skills were mostly short guys.
Zidane's about the only exception.

Lukaku misses so many shots, he's kind of a letdown as a forward lol

Mbappé's 180cm

>>13
That guy's a textbook physical elite athlete

I don't picture Puyol or Baresi as being all that tall either

If you're short, your legs are shorter too
That's a disadvantage in reach for us

If you're short, your legs are shorter too
That's a disadvantage in reach to the ball

It's just the laws of physics in this world—being tall lets you hit more powerful shots

Ronaldo isn't really a skill-based player

If I had another 10cm of height, I might've aimed to be a pro goalkeeper

The three guys in OP were short, but they were physically strong, right?
Well, I don't really know much about Pelé, admittedly
But Maradona was like a little boulder

If you go by that logic, the 'Ohtani is the greatest' argument starts looking shaky too

>>25
Even he'd be below average if he played basketball

There used to be a 168cm goalkeeper who played in the World Cup

Messi's probably going to be the last guy who could reach the top while being around 170cm

>>27
Nah, I bet some surprisingly tiny star player will show up eventually

【Top 3 Scorers in Europe's Big 5 Leagues】

Premier League
1st Haaland 27 goals 195cm
2nd Igor Thiago 22 goals 190cm
3rd Semenyo 17 goals 185cm

La Liga
1st Mbappé 25 goals 178cm
2nd Muriqi 23 goals 194cm
3rd Budimir 17 goals 190cm

Serie A
1st Lautaro 17 goals 174cm
2nd Maren 14 goals 178cm
2nd Dovbyk 14 goals 186cm

Bundesliga
1st Kane 36 goals 188cm
2nd Undav 19 goals 179cm
3rd Guirassy 17 goals 187cm

Ligue 1
1st Lepaul 21 goals 181cm
2nd Greenwood 16 goals 181cm
2nd Panichelli 16 goals 190cm

Average height of these 15 players: approx. 185cm

>>28
Taller than I expected, honestly
Guess goal-scoring forwards really do need height after all

At this rate Kawasaki Frontale's gonna be the best team in the world (joke about a mid-table J.League club)

I saw Harry Kane get blown clean away by Messi in the last World Cup

Yamal's gotten taller too
The era of short guys dreaming big is over

>>33
Yamal's around 180cm now, right?

Well, Maradona could head the ball with his hand, after all (a jab at the 'Hand of God' goal)

Haaland, here we go again
Son Heung-min, here we go again

Spain's national team averages 181cm, ranking 32nd out of 48 countries
Yeah, height's got nothing to do with it
By the way, Argentina averages 179cm

>>39
Japan's about the same, I think

Rodri, who comes across as a classic skillful midfielder, is actually 190cm too

In running-based sports, being tall is an advantage
Assuming the shorter guy puts in just as much effort, of course

Soccer's totally role-based. Center forwards and center backs clearly need tall players,
but for midfielders, my impression is that the world's top players are actually mostly in the 170s (cm).

>>47
That's exactly why soccer's a more equal-opportunity sport than most others

Back in the Zidane, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Kaká era, everyone was tall
Then in the Messi, Xavi, Iniesta, Neymar, Salah, Griezmann, Hazard era, it was all short guys
Is the tall-player era making a comeback now?

>>48
It's the opposite
Spain winning brought back the passing-soccer era
Same thing happened back when Barça was dominant—it became all about passing then too

Being short only helps in cases like horse racing, where the rider is basically cargo
Or airsoft, where being small makes you harder to spot
Generally speaking, being tall is the advantage
Tennis is a clear example—short players got weeded out

>>53
Still, today's top tennis players are only around 180-something cm
so it's not like they're that tall

Guys like Franco Baresi, a center back who was only 176cm
I love players like that

>>56
The guy who broke Kazu's nose, huh 🅆 (referring to Japanese soccer legend Kazuyoshi Miura)