One of the biggest upgrades you can make in your positioning is understanding lines — and this is something that fits your game perfectly once you commit to it.

As a CDM, the “line” is the closest player responsible for marking you — usually the striker.
And in your clips, I see moments where you stay too close to that line, which means you receive the ball in pressure instead of behind pressure.

Here’s the shift you need to make:

When your team has control and a numerical advantage, you position yourself beyond that line.

This removes the striker from the play before the ball even arrives.
You’re no longer receiving the ball with someone on your back — you’re receiving it with the whole pitch in front of you.

This changes everything.

Your body shape opens.
Your first touch becomes forward.
Your passing angles multiply.
Your tempo becomes cleaner.
And the opponent’s entire block has to adjust to you.

Positioning beyond the line is how elite CDMs stay one step ahead.
It’s how they break pressure early.
It’s how they control the rhythm.
It’s how they make progression feel effortless.

When you start thinking in lines, you stop playing inside the opponent’s structure and start playing above it — and that’s where your potential really lives.