Özet:

Football is a complex game in its individual and collective interactions. Performance analysis helps in understanding game statistics and in assessing athletes' performance. Recently, the defensive midfielder has been outstanding for their performance and offensive capabilities. There are few studies that try to understand the importance of the midfielder center in the offensive organization of a team. The objective of the study was to identify and measure the participation of the defensive midfielder in the finals of the 2017 Copa Libertadores champion team. Data collection was performed by watching videos of the 14 complete games that the team participated in the competition. Five criteria were established to include the participation of the defensive midfielder in the team finishes: finishing, direct assists; disarms, absences suffered and indirect assistance. A total of 168 submissions were identified, and in 65 of them the players had participations, revealing a participatory role in the team's conclusions. However, no significant difference in offensive participation was identified when the defensive midfielder acted as principals or visitors, as well as when comparing the finals of the qualifying phase with the knockout phase. There was a significant difference between the participation of the defensive midfielders in the team's offensive actions when comparing games in which the team won and lost, it being superior in defeat. It is concluded that the defensive midfielder played an important role in the offensive organization of the football game and in the finishing of the 2017 Copa Libertadores champion team.

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