Different Types Of Strikers In Football And What Sets Them Apart

Not all strikers are cut from the same cloth. Some bulldoze their way through defences, others sneak in like shadows. While they all have the same end goal, score goals. The how they get there can be wildly different. From the old-school target men to the slick modern false nines, football has a rich menu of strikers, and knowing who’s who can change how you see the game.

Different types of strikers in Football

So let’s break down the different types of strikers in football and what makes each unique.

1. The Target Man

Role: Big, strong, and basically a human wall. The target man is your go-to when you need someone to hold the ball up, win aerial duels, and bully centre-backs.

Key Traits: Physical strength, heading ability, hold-up play
Plays best with: Wingers and attacking mids making runs off them
Example: Olivier Giroud- A master of the flick-on, one-touch layoffs, and scoring headers that look like they defy physics.

2. The Poacher

Role: The ultimate goal-snatcher. This striker lives for rebounds, tap-ins, and chaos in the box. Not flashy, but deadly in the right place at the right time.

Key Traits: Positional awareness, quick reactions, finishing
Plays best with: Midfielders who love to shoot, poachers clean up the mess.
Example: Erling Haaland, didn’t care how pretty the goal was, only that it crossed the line. Offside 19 times? Still scores twice.

3. The False Nine

Role: A striker who drops deep instead of staying up top. Confuses defenders, links play, and pulls strings like a midfielder in disguise.

Key Traits: Vision, technical skill, movement
Plays best with: Quick wingers and overlapping full-backs
Example: Lionel Messi (under Pep at Barca), he would drift into midfield, lure defenders, and then boom. Space everywhere.

4. The Advanced Forward (The All-Rounder)

Role: The most modern breed. Quick, technical, and good at almost everything, running behind, scoring from distance, linking up play.

Key Traits: Speed, agility, strong finishing, good on the ball
Plays best with: Literally everyone
Example: Kylian Mbappe has pace that melts turf, finishing like a sniper, and can drop deep or beat three men wide.

5. The Deep-Lying Forward (Support Striker)

Role: Half-playmaker, half-striker. They drop between the lines, create chances, and often assist more than they score.

Key Traits: Creativity, link-up play, vision
Plays best with: A fast or physical partner ahead of them
Example: Roberto Firmino didn’t always top the score charts but made Salah and Mane look unstoppable.

6. The Complete Forward

Role: Think of this as the final boss of strikers. Strong, fast, technical, good in the air, good on the ground, is the full package.

Key Traits: Versatility, adaptability, high football IQ
Plays best with: Anyone, they’re flexible
Example: Karim Benzema, evolved from support striker to goal machine to creative force. Reads the game like a script he wrote.

7. The Second Striker

Role: Not quite a No. 9, not quite a No. 10. They play off the main striker, running into spaces, creating chances, and pouncing on half-chances.

Key Traits: Movement, technique, tactical awareness
Plays best with: A traditional target man
Example: Paulo Dybala thrives just behind a pure finisher, drifting between the lines and threading impossible passes.